Winnipeg Jets: Musings and Questions at the Start of Their NHL Training Camp

As the members of 17 Wing Winnipeg took to the freeze for their first training exercises at the MTS Iceplex this morning, I found myself wondering...

•  Is there any chance that Mark Scheifele will be with the Jets on opening night, Oct. 9?

By all accounts, the club's first choice in this summer's National Hockey League garage sale performed admirably, with gusts up to jaw-dropping sensational, during the Young Stars tournament in Penticton, B.C. Alas, he was skating with, and against, lads his own age (18) or marginally older. He now will be competing with men who have already earned their NHL chops.

My guess is that Scheifele will be back with the Barrie Colts when the puck is dropped at the MTS Centre on Oct. 9, but I'd like to think the 17 Wing Winnipeg brain-trust will give the kid a legitimate look, not just a cursory glance.

• Who is the real Dustin Byfuglien, the guy who dazzled in the first half of the 2010-11 season, or the one who skated on empty in the back half?

The party line is that there is no concern about Big Buff's weight, but that's bogus. He checked in at 269 pounds last September and finished the season at 289. That defies logic. And, while his body ballooned, his numbers fell faster than Sarah Palin's credibility. He went from 15 goals and 40 points before the New Year, then produced just five goals and 13 points while becoming Minnesota Fats. There's a clear and undeniable link between his stat shrinkage and his girth growth.

How Byfuglien and the Jets manage his heft is a weighty issue, figuratively and literally.

• Are they going to resurrect that dreadful painting of Queen Liz that lived in the rafters of the old barn on Maroons Road? That was the only thing larger than Big Buff and made our girl Liz look like John Diefenbaker in drag.

• Now that these former Atlanta Thrashers have gone from anonymity to life in a fish bowl, how will they respond when/if their fans and the media turn on them during troubled times?

To date, it's been all sugar and spice, everything's nice. The team has been embraced by an over-the-moon fanbase and a fawning press. But as Byfuglien discovered as a result of his legal entanglement in Minnesota, something as seemingly minor as refusing to piddle in a bottle for the police is large news if you're a member of 17 Wing Winnipeg. His escapade on Lake Minnetonka became the biggest boating story since Gilligan and the SS Minnow washed ashore.

And I know Winnipeg sports fans. They can turn on you like a scorned lover. If, for example, Byfuglien performs poorly, you can be sure he'll hear more fat-guy jokes than Newman on Seinfeld.

• What special outfit will Donald S. Cherry be wearing at the home opener? My guess is that it'll look like my mother's old curtains and have a link to the Royal Canadian Air Force.

• What effect will an exhaustive travel schedule have on the Jets, most notably during the back end of a long season?

Winnipeg is a southeastern locale like Tiger Woods is a virgin, but the Jets' NHL grouping is the residue of the franchise transfer from Georgia to Manitoba. The hockey began today, the travel begins next week and won't end until April. That's eight months of road-weary buildup, and repeated journeys to Carolina, Florida and Washington will be extremely taxing. Travel could cost them a playoff spot.

• Can Claude Noel and Kevin Cheveldayoff deliver?

Keep in mind that both head coach Noel and general manager Cheveldayoff are NHL rookies. That's not to say they don't have a clue. But Noel isn't familiar with these players and they aren't familiar with him. Will his style rub them the wrong way? Will their style force him to go to Cheveldayoff and ask for different players? And can the GM pull the trigger on a trade without being fleeced by a more experienced operator?

• Who'll sing the National Anthem at the opener? Probably somebody older than the back of Gordie Howe's head, but as long as it isn't Nickelback, I'm cool with it.

Read more NHL news on BleacherReport.com