With 10 games under their belts, the Winnipeg Jets (7-3-0) and Chicago Blackhawks (5-3-2) are only separated by 2 points in the Central Division standings. The two rival franchises have had a common trait that has helped them to success this season (graphic via MoneyPuck):
As you can see, the Jets & Blackhawks’ starting goaltenders have been excellent to begin the 2025-26 NHL campaign. Spencer Knight & Connor Hellebuyck are chasing the lead in the Goals Saved Above Expected category, nearly neck & neck as they enter action tonight. Yet that is not the only thing the clubs have in common, as their shooting & scoring chance creation at 5 on 5 has been less than ideal (graphic via MoneyPuck):
As we can see, both the Hawks & True Northers are near the bottom of the league in the Expected Goals %, Corsi %, & Fenwick % categories, which means that excellent tending they have been getting has been a huge reason for their win-loss records.
To continue with the similarities between the American & Canadian Windy Cities, Winnipeg & Chicago are coming in on a 1 game winning streak, having won 3 of their last 5 contests.
Time to check out the team data from ESPN and see that the team & goalie numbers are once again pretty close to each other:
MATCH UP STATS
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From the looks of it, Winnipeg won’t be making any roster changes from their last contest, so lets see how PuckPedia is predicting the lines for both teams:
WINNIPEG JETS LINE UP
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CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS LINE UP
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Should be an interesting match tonight at the Canada Life Centre……..the aged versus the youth, the learned against the inexperienced, wisdom versus energy, etc. Winnipeg has one of the league’s oldest rosters (probably will have oldest when fully healthy), while Chicago has a bunch of young high end prospects like Connor Bedard, Frank Nazar, Sam Rinzel, Artyom Levshunov, etc.
Of course, tonight also represents the first time former Blackhawk Jonathan Toews will square off against the franchise he became a likely Hall of Famer with. So hopefully his teammates will decide Thursday is a perfect night to play a full 60 minute to help Captain Serious walk away with a win.
Two more home games for the Jets before they head out on the road for a 6 game trip….so if you have a hankering to watch some live hockey in the near future, then buy a ticket for tonight (Halloween night at the arena) or Saturday.
At least the Toronto Blue Jays have a chance to wrap up a World Series title on Friday….maybe this forum will get a bit busier after that.
Go Blue Jays!!!! Go Winnipeg!!!!!
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POST-GAME INFO
Information will be added on Friday morning…..check back then to see what the numbers said about the Winnipeg Jets performance.
Scoring Summary: (courtesy of ESPN)
FINAL SCORE: Winnipeg Jets 6 Chicago Blackhawks 3
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Game Stats: (courtesy of MoneyPuck)
Expected Goals (all): WPG 3.88 CHI 3.88
Expected Goals (5on5): CHI 2.53 WPG 2.40
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The Winnipeg Jets’ top forward line of Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor, & Gabriel Vilardi shone brightly last night at the CLC. Combining for 9 points and out-scoring their opponents at 5 on 5 by a 4 to 1 count, the 1st line was deadly against the Blackhawks as they helped the Jets to their highest scoring game of the 2025-26 campaign.
Some very nice scoring plays in this contest, including a couple of tic-tac-toe passing sequences that led to pretty Winnipeg goals, an amazing snipe to the top shelf by Connor, and a between the legs goal by the Hawks’ Andre Burakovsky. Speaking of Scheifele, the Canadian center is easily off to the best start to a season of his career and has almost been scoring a goal per game through 11 contests. Mark’s 9 markers this year puts him in a 7-way tie for the NHL’s goal scoring lead and his 18 points has him in sole possession of the 2nd most points, one behind the Vegas Golden Knights’ Jack Eichel.
On the negative side, the Jets continue to sustain injuries as both Gustav Nyquist (left in 1st) and Luke Schenn (left in 3rd) were forced to leave the game early. We will have to see if either player will be available when the Pittsburgh Penguins visit the Peg on Saturday.
