Game #23 GDT: Winnipeg Jets at Nashville Predators

Sorry folks, got the time wrong and thought the game was an hour later than it was. The Winnipeg Jets (9-11-2) look to win at least one game on this miserable road trip, against a Nashville Predators (9-7-3) squad which is 7-1-1 at home.

Kyle Connor's gain is Chase De Leo and Alexander Burmistrov's loss, as the former has been reassigned to the Manitoba Moose, while the latter draws out of the lineup. It'll be fun to see what Andrew Copp can do with his new linemate, presuming Connor can get quickly up to speed. Meanwhile, Patrik Laine will hopefully get an offensive jolt from his return to Mark Scheifele's wing.

A Winnipeg d-corps already missing Tyler Myers will now have to deal with the absence of Toby Enstrom, who has returned to Sweden for a personal matter. As a result, Josh Morrissey will get a spin beside prodigal son Jacob Trouba, and Paul Postma returns from the press box. As for the Nashville Predators, while the retirement of Matt Carle doesn't have much of an on-ice impact, the absence of Ryan Ellis does. Day-to-day with an upper-body injury, the 25-year-old has nine points in 19 games while being a top-four regular.

Without Matt Carle, the Predators don’t have a defenseman that’s 30 or older. Matt Irwin is the oldest. He turns 29 next week.

— Adam Vingan (@AdamVingan) November 25, 2016

Nashville has found stability after a dreadful start to the season, and goaltender Pekka Rinne has been a key part of that. The 34-year-old Finn, who many (myself included) had assumed beyond hope, is rocking a 8-5-3 record and .934 Sv%. Goalies are a funny lot, and Rinne's apparent resurrection will likely require a full season's body of work to be believed. But for now, the Predators do seem to be getting their money's worth.

The good guys will counter with Connor Hellebuyck, who followed up a fine performance against Carolina with another vs. Minnesota. Helle is unable to score for the Jets, but his 23-save, .920 Sv% effort was more than enough to merit today's start. After an up-and-down start to the season, the 23-year-old Michigan native has a slowly improving .912 Sv%. Given Winnipeg's recent struggles, the Jets may need another strong night in net to have a shot.

#GoJetsGo