Time: 7:00 pm CST
Channel: TSN
Radio: CJOB680/Power 97
After a dismal two periods against the Calgary Flames led to a loss despite some first period heroics by Sean Monahan, the Winnipeg Jets are right back at it tonight against the Minnesota Wild. We will have to see if being back in the friendly confines of the Canada Life Centre (18-7-2) can reignite their passions for playing Rick Bowness-style hockey.
Winnipeg played very poorly away from the puck last night against the Flames, which led to larger than normal gaps between the Jets’ defenders. This in turn resulted in Calgary getting a lot of scoring chances on the rush and their head coach saying they didn’t look at all like the team they have been this season.
Other than Laurent Brossoit coming in between the pipes, there has been a lot of talk in the media about potential roster & lineup changes versus the Wild. Could the staff insert big Logan Stanley for some physicality against their division rivals? Will Rasmus Kupari find his way back into the starting 12? Without a scheduled practice today, we will have to wait for the pre-game skate to get any real answers.
The Minnesota Wild have been playing great lately, going 8-2-1 in their last 11 contests including a out-pouring of offense against the stingy Vancouver Canucks last night (10 goals). Tonight’s game will also mark the return of Declan Chisholm, who could be getting into his 3rd game with the Wild against his former team. Minnesota is led offensively by Kirill Kaprizov (57 pts) and Joel Eriksson Ek (51 pts), but are also getting contributions from younger players like Matt Boldy (44 pts), Brock Faber (33 pts), and Marco Rossi (31 pts). The Wild aren’t getting great goaltending this season, with Marc Andre Fleury (.900%) and Filip Gustavsson (.894%) putting up below average numbers.
Tonight’s contest represents the start of 5 straight games against Central Division rivals (MIN, CHI, ARZ, STL, & DAL) and the Winnipeg Jets could really help secure their playoff position with a good run of games.
The team has had a hard time putting all aspects of their game together lately to play a complete 60 minutes of hockey. The coaching staff and team leaders need to put their heads together to come up with a plan, because as the season progresses, each game is going to get more difficult.
Let’s see how our squad responds tonight. Hopefully we can avoid the shenanigans that typically accompany a game versus the Wild.
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