The Winnipeg Jets missed the playoffs by eight points.
They squandered nine.
As we continue to sift through the rubble of the Jets’ disastrous 2025-26, one thing that cannot be ignored are all the potential points they let swirl down the drain due to late-game collapses.
Seven games in particular stand out as missed opportunities for one or two additional points, and if the Jets had not blown the leads they had in these contests, they would have snuck into the second Western Conference wild-card spot with 91 points rather than the Los Angeles Kings with 90.
Criteria
Everyone’s definition of “squandered” or “blown lead” is different, but for the sake of the article we must establish a fair definition. “Squandered” will be games the Jets were ahead by multiple goals at any point and lost in regulation, overtime, or a shootout, and games the Jets were leading by any margin with less than 10 minutes to go and lost in regulation, overtime, or a shootout.
1: Dec. 15 versus Ottawa Senators
- Situation: Ahead 2-1 with less than two minutes to go in third period
- Result: Lost 3-2 in overtime
- Points squandered: 1
- Running total of points squandered: 1
The Jets appeared in control of this contest late in the third period, leading 2-1 and not having given up much in the way of Grade A opportunities throughout the game. Even the game-tying goal they allowed to Jake Sanderson with 1:54 remaining wasn’t off a dangerous chance, but rather went in after a fairly innocuous point shot deflected off Mark Scheifele’s stick and past Connor Hellebuyck.
The Jets seemed stunned by the equalizer and failed to regroup from there. They only mustered up one shot in overtime, and Brady Tkachuk — who had just one goal on the season to that point — potted a one-timer off of Tim Stutzle’s pass on a two-on-one rush just over two minutes into the extra frame.
2: Dec. 27 versus Minnesota Wild
- Situation: Ahead 3-2 in final minute of third period
- Result: Lost 4-3 in overtime
- Points squandered: 1
- Running total of points sqaundered: 2
The Jets were within 19 seconds of capturing a big two points against their closest geographical and fiercest rival, but shot themselves in the foot badly.
Up 3-2 in the final minute at Canada Life Centre in the first game back from the Christmas break, Dylan DeMelo took a retaliatory cross-checking penalty after Joel Eriksson Ek boarded Josh Morrissey and got away with it. While the call on DeMelo was soft and Eriksson Ek definitely should have been assessed a penalty earlier, DeMelo’s decision to retaliate was less-than-stellar considering the Jets had lost four straight.
Head coach Scott Arniel decided to allow Morgan Barron — rather than faceoff specialist Jonathan Toews — to take the crucial ensuing defensive-zone draw, but he lost it cleanly and the Wild ripped in the tying goal just eight seconds later.
They kept the momentum going in the 3-on-3 session as Matt Boldy scored a one-timer on the rush just 39 seconds into it.
3: Jan. 1 @ Toronto Maple Leafs
- Situation: Ahead 4-1 until 11:05 of second
- Result: Lost 6-5 in regulation
- Points squandered: 2
- Running total of points sqaundered: 4
It was not a happy start to the New Year for the Jets.
They entered this game at Scotiabank Arena versus the Maple Leafs on a seven-game losing streak but seemed destined to snap it when they went up 4-1 5:24 into the second period on goals by Gabriel Vilardi, DeMelo, Alex Iafallo, and Scheifele.
However, the team — and specifically goaltender Eric Comrie, who was making his first appearance in three weeks since his disastrous stretch as a starter ended with Hellebuyck’s return from surgery — unraveled from there.
Goals by Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Auston Matthews cut the lead to 4-3 going into the third, with Matthews’ tally being a power-play marker with just three seconds left in the frame.
It seemed inevitable that the lead would evaporate completely and it did at 6:30, but Mark Scheifele restored the one-goal cushion 2:20 later.
Unfortunately, that lead didn’t stand up either as Troy Stecher beat an out-of-position Comrie clean with just over seven minutes to ago. Two-and-a-half-minutes later, Comrie, clearly reeling, mishandled an easy dump-in that allowed Matthews to score an open-net game winner and complete his hat trick.
Comrie’s final line of the night: six goals on 30 shots. The Jets lost three more after this one — including the next two we’ll talk about — for a franchise-long 11-game slide.
4: Jan 6 versus Vegas Golden Knights
- Situations: Ahead 2-0 until final minute of second period, ahead 3-2 with less than five minutes to go in third
- Result: Lost 4-3 in overtime
- Points squandered: 1
- Running total of points squandered: 5
Five days after the collapse against the Maple Leafs, the Jets looked in a similar sorry state against the Golden Knights at Canada Life Centre.
Once again, the Jets saw a multi-goal lead cut in half by a last-minute second period power-play marker, this time courtesy of Winnipegger Mark Stone. The lead evaporated in the third when another Manitoban, Brett Howden, drew the Golden Knights even at 8:13.
While Kyle Connor scored with less than five minutes to go to get the lead back, the Jets couldn’t protect that one either as Reilly Smith scored just 59 seconds later.
In overtime, yet another final-minute goal sunk the Jets: after Dylan Samberg tripped Mitch Marner with less than a minute to go, Tomas Hertl scored on a mad power-play scramble with 13 seconds remaining before a shootout.
5: Jan. 8 versus Edmonton Oilers
- Situation: Ahead 3-1 until final minute of second period
- Result: Lost 4-3 in regulation
- Points squandered: 2
- Running total of points squandered: 7
It was the third time, but not the charm; the third time in eight days the Jets allowed a goal in the final minute of the second to see a multi-goal lead reduced.
Connor, Tanner Pearson, and Morrissey’s tallies had the Jets up 3-1 late in the second over the Oilers at Canada Life Centre, and they’d kept Connor McDavid — who was riding a 16-game point streak — from making it 17. But then, with 21 seconds to go, McDavid took a Leon Draisaitl pass off his skate, got it to his stick, and flipped a puck by Hellebuyck while in all alone. Connor and Neal Pionk had somehow lost track of the world’s most-talented player.
The goal gave a “here-we-go-again-feeling,” and a Jets’ collapse in the third seemed inevitable. Zach Hyman scored to tie the game at 8:19, then Nino Niederreiter took a delay-of-game penalty for flipping the puck over the glass.
While shorthanded, the Jets almost scored, but allowed the game-winning goal to Evan Bouchard on the rush back the other way.
6: Feb. 27 @ Anaheim Ducks
- Situation: Ahead 2-0 until final minute of second period
- Final result: Lost 5-4 in overtime
- Points squandered: 1
- Running total of points squandered: 8
Stop us if you’ve heard this before: the Jets allow a goal in the final minute of the second period and everything spirals from there.
In this game at the Honda Center, goals by Iafallo and Vilardi had the Jets up 2-0. Through the first 39 minutes, the visitors made a high-octane Ducks team look ordinary and limited their chances.
Then, with just 41 seconds to go in the middle frame, Hellebuyck allowed a weak point shot from former Jet Jacob Trouba to beat him.
In the third, the Jets went up 3-1 on Elias Salomonsson’s first-career goal, but then the Ducks’ young guns took over, victimizing the Jets’ lack of speed and scoring three times in a 10-minute span to go ahead 4-3.
Connor scored a late equalizer to send the game to overtime and salvage a point in a game his team should have won in regulation, but Chris Kreider scored the overtime winner with just 13 seconds to go in the extra frame.
7: March 21 @ Pittsburgh Penguins
- Situation: Ahead 4-3 with 7:15 remaining
- Final result: Lost 5-4 in a shootout
- Points squandered: 1
- Running total of points squandered: 9
The Jets had a nightmarish start to this one at PPG Paints Arena as Hellebuyck allowed two goals in the first 2:02 on his first two shots against. The Jets clawed back, though, and actually led 4-3 in the mid third period after Brad Lambert’s snipe.
However, they relinquished the tying goal to Erik Karlsson with 7:15 remaining after a turnover at the offensive blue line.
In the shootout, Arniel made the inexplicable decision to allow underperforming veterans Toews and Gustav Nyquist to shoot first and second rather than use one of his star players such as Connor, Scheifele, or Vilardi.
Both Toews and Nyquist were stopped easily, and Sidney Crosby and Rickard Rakell both beat Hellebuyck clean to capture the extra point.
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