His Most Memorable Jets Goal?

When the Winnipeg Jets signed Tanner Pearson in the offseason this year, I was immediately puzzled. I struggled in understanding how adding a 33 year-old, bottom-six forward would help the Jets surpass last season's finish, but Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff must know something that I don't. After all, this is a player who has only hit the 20-goal mark twice in his career, hasn't scored 20 goals in the last three seasons combined, and looks like he's on the downside of a NHL career. If he was coming into Winnipeg to replace Brandon Tanev or Mason Appleton who both left via free agency, there are lots of players on the Manitoba Moose roster who have better upsides. I'm not saying Pearson is a bad player, but his best days in the NHL might be in the rearview mirror. Sometimes, that's how things go.

Pearson has been getting regular ice time throughout the preseason with the Jets as the coaching staff appears to be evaluating his spot in the lineup, and it's still a bit of a mystery where he'll fit in the top-twelve forwards despite that fourth-line winger spot looking like his best option. He may have worked hard enough to prove that he can contibute in a checking role while providing a touch of offence.

Even if Pearson doesn't score a lot of goals this season, the goal he scored tonight might be on his personal highlight reel simply due to how he scored. Check out this shootout goal he scored tonight.
In the seventh round of the shootout, Pearson's shot is stopped by Calgary netminder Dustin Wolf, but the puck goes up in the air. Wolf notices it as it passes by his face thanks to gravity, and he throws the glove out to try and catch it. In doing so, he bobbles the puck before attempting to pin it against his pad, but the puck finds a seam and falls to the ice, sliding into the net! That's a goal by all standards, and Pearson's marker gives the Jets a 5-4 victory over the Flames!

No one said that goals have to be pretty, and there are players who made entire careers out of scoring goals in any manner possible. Tanner Pearson will probably have a chuckle over that goal, but my hope is that it opens the floodgates for a guy looking to score 10-15 goals this season. They say you have to be good to be lucky and be lucky to be good, and Pearson can use a touch of both if he's going to help turn that fourth line into a problem for opposing teams.

The title of this article is a bit of backhanded joke, but my hope is that Pearson can score more twelve goals like he had last season in Vegas. If he can, the Jets should benefit from that bottom-six production in a big way. And maybe he'll score a few beauties too!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!