JETS SNAPSHOTS: Laine feeling comfortable, looking strong as Jets embark on new season

It was in the NHL playoff bubble in Edmonton in August and the Jets, after suffering season-ending injuries to Mark Scheifele and Laine, were never really in a best-of-five series that the Flames won 3-1.

So, what has changed about the Jets now that makes them believe they can be better than the Flames in Thursday night’s opener or in any of the other eight games against Calgary this year?

First off they are older and wiser, having added veterans Paul Stastny, 35, Nate Thompson, 36, Lewis, 34, and Derek Forbort. 28, to the lineup.

They’re also a little bigger on defence, thanks to Forbort and his 6-foot-4, 220-pound frame, and have changed their pairings in order to better handle physical opponents.

They also are hopeful that Hellebuyck will be the better goalie when the Jets face the Flames, who signed free agent Jacob Markstrom away from the Vancouver Canucks in the off-season.

Hellebuyck got outplayed by Cam Talbot in the summer, despite being the regular season Vezina Trophy winner.

“I liked my series, but it wasn’t good enough to win,” Hellebuyck said. “I liked a lot of things from that series but it was also in the middle of the summer and there’s no excuses. We lost a lot of players to injuries.

“It’s a new day and age. It’s going be different teams that have a couple of different players and it’s a different mindset. I’m excited to see exactly where this team is and from looking at them over practice, I feel very confident in this group.”