Moving right along…
After a somewhat predictable, but definitely disappointing result to the game in Vancouver last night the Winnipeg Jets will be looking to get points out of their mini Western Canada road trip when they head to Cowtown to face Iggy and the boys.
That's the Calgary Flames for those of you keeping track at home.
One would think that the way the Jets lost last night would light a fire under the butts of the players and prompt them to really go after the W tonight. Because there was really no reason to leave Vancouver empty handed, so why would there be one to leave Calgary without a point either?
The Flames last played on Tuesday in what was a 5-4 win where they managed to hold on against the mighty Montreal Canadiens. I would hope that the Jets would be able to perform better than the Habs, but this IS the second game in a back to back and the Jets have a pretty awful, but not winless, record in such scenarios.
So we see a matchup between Canadien teams where one team is coming off of 3 days rest and the other caught a flight early this morning. Yea…good job NHL scheduling department. That seems totally logical. I've got an idea…why don't you keep Winnipeg in the Southeast Division next season too? YOU WILL?! Oh peachy!
…
The Jets need to win this game, now even more so that they lost last night as they currently sit in 9th in the East and out of a playoff spot. Now, hopefully the planets align and we get some help that will alleviate the road woes and teams like Florida and Washington will choke down the stretch, but any team worth it's salt should make the playoffs because they were good enough to make them, not because some others teams were worse than they were.
Keys to the Game, Player Numbers and Lineups coming your way in beautiful HD after THE JUMP
Keys to the Game:
- Don’t squander leads like last night
- Don’t allow 45 shots on goal like last night
- Score more goals than last night
- Can you tell I wrote this last night?
- When you get 3 opportunities with the extra man in one period, try to do something other than allow a shorthanded goal while looking futile offensively.
- Pavelec played great, I’m hoping Mason can do the same if not better.
Lineups
Jets (GP 68 32-27-8 72 PTS)
Forwards
#16 Andrew Ladd — #18 Bryan Little — #26 Blake Wheeler
#9 Evander Kane — #8 Alexander Burmistrov — #13 Kyle Wellwood
#15 Tanner Glass — #19 Jim Slater — #22 Chris Thorburn
#14 Tim Stapleton — #80 Nik Antropov — #20 Antti Miettinen
Defencemen
#39 Tobias Enstrom — #33 Dustin Byfuglien
#6 Ron Hainsey — #24 Grant Clitsome
#5 Mark Stuart — #12 Randy Jones
Goaltender
#31 Ondrej Pavelec
Iron Mason starting is just a guess at this point, but after Ondrej Pavelec saw 45 shots, I think he might need a break.
UPDATE: Word on the street is that Pavs gets the start.
Flames (GP 67 30-25-12 72 PTS)
Forwards
#40 Alex Tanguay — #18 Matt Stajan — #12 Jarome Iginla
#20 Curtis Glencross — #13 Olli Jokinen — #25 David Moss
#16 Tom Kostopoulos — #51 Roman Horak — #15 Tim Jackman
#26 Guillaume Desbiens — #8 Krys Kolanos — #48 Greg Nemisz
Defencemen
#27 Derek Smith — #4 Jay Bouwmeester
#5 Mark Giordano — #23 Scott Hannan
#7 TJ Brodie — #6 Cory Sarich
Goaltender
#34 Miikka Kiprusoff
This is what they went with on Tuesday…
Player to boo mercilessly: Olli Jokinen. I've never really liked him…can't really put my finger on why but…yea. BOOOO
Prediction: Winnipeg 3-1 Calgary. A nice little bounce back win for the boys as they take a lead into the 3rd frame and don't relinquish it.
