After their first two meetings resulting in lopsided victories, one for each team, the Winnipeg Jets and Arizona needed extra time to conclude their season series. After taking a 3-1 halfway through the third period, the Jets got little done and slowly watch Arizona creep back into the game.
In the end, the Jets pulled out a 4-3 win via the shootout. The two points pull the Jets into a tie, with Chicago, for third in the Central Division and 4th in the Western Conference.
Ten Thoughts:
Blown lead seems to be the buzz on Twitter and this is a legit source of frustration, but I won't fret. The Jets got their two points.
Dustin Byfuglien was awesome again tonight. From an early shift where he took it upon himself to own the offensive zone to his third period goal, Buff was beastly. Again. He is a joy to watch.
That said, Buff did take three! penalties tonight – half of the Jets six minors. It could be argued that the first two were weak, but a late unsportsmanlike conduct penalty is never a good penalty. Six for the team is also too many. Gotta be smarter.
Ondrej Pavelec getting the start tonight was a surprise to some. His workload wasn’t extensive. The second and third goals were tough tip-ins. Thankfully Pav shut the door in the shootout and earned the extra point for his team.
At the other end of the ice, Mike Smith had himself a strong game. The Jets piled a number or quality chances on him, but he kept his team in the game. He did give the Michael Frolik a freebie thought.
During the shootout Bob Cole at said, "We've got two great goalies in this game."
Bryan Little scored another nice goal and added the shootout winner for good measure. He is so good. The little guy is not getting near enough credit for his battle level. Bryan has been too hurt to practice for weeks.
Evander Kane has been great on the penalty kill. He had another near breakaway today. This seems to be a regular occurrence. That is a good thing. The Jets need him to step up with Perreault hurt.
In the not a good thing column was the Winnipeg Jets third line. They were out-shot more that any other trio and they finished the night with a minus. The Winnipeg Jets forward depth is yucky. Get well soon Mathieu Perreault.
Going into this run of seven games in eleven nights many were calling it the Jets' toughest stretch of the season. They went 5-1-1. They also won the last four! That is crazy! Big props to the team for pulling that off.
I realize that makes 11 thoughts, 12 if you include this one. Two free thoughts!!
What did you make of tonight's game?
