The Winnipeg Jets extended their winning streak to 9 games on Saturday despite not performing anywhere near the level of play us fans have been accustomed to this season. That victory allowed the True Northers to write another franchise record for the longest hot streak in club history and now they will be looking to add to that when the San Jose Sharks come to town.
The Canada Life Centre in Manitoba will be hosting what appears to be a very lop-sided contest on Monday, at least based on the season stats. The Jets are currently only 1 point out of first place in the entire National Hockey League, while the Sharks are firmly sitting on the floor of the league’s basement. The gap is so wide in the standings at this point that the difference between the squads is actually larger (46 pts) than San Jose’s total for the year (37 pts). That theme continues when you look at goal scoring in 2024-25 as well, with Winnipeg scoring 56 more goals and allowing 82 less than tonight’s opposition.
Winnipeg (40-14-3) has some question marks coming into the game, but there shouldn’t be any doubt that goalie Connor Hellebuyck & defenseman Josh Morrissey will be returning to the lineup. Whether forward Morgan Barron will be able to return or who exactly will be coming out will be unknown until after the team’s pre-game skate.
San Jose (15-36-7) hasn’t exactly been lighting up the league recently, with a miserable 2-13-1 record over their past 16 matches. To make it even worse for the visitor’s, the Sharks are coming off a 3-2 loss to the Calgary Flames on Sunday and will therefore be in a the last part of a back-to-back situation. That also means the Jets should expect to face Vitek Vanacek (.878 save %) when the puck drops at the CLC, since Alexandar Georgiev (.879%) was in net the previous outing.
Still early in the morning, here is how PuckPedia is predicting the coaching staffs to line up their players:
The Sharks’ Tyler Toffoli makes a return to a city he briefly called home in the middle of a pretty good season. The winger has hit the 20 goal plateau for the seventh time of his eleven season career and is on pace to match the 55 points he put with New Jersey & Winnipeg last season. Despite firmly being in the “seller” category, I am not sure there are many potential targets for Jets’ GM Kevin Cheveldayoff on the SJ roster. The only player I’ve seen mentioned in trade rumours relating to our team is left-handed defenseman Mario Ferraro. The 26 yr old does have another season remaining on his contract, so he isn’t a typical pending UFA target but it is being said that he could be had for the right price. In my eyes, the cost to acquire him might be too much to spend on a 3rd pairing LD but he would certainly be an improvement over the person who usually plays there.
On to checking out the season’s stats for both franchises and other than the shot categories, the Jets have large advantages. ESPN’s look at the goaltenders’ performances this year also show why Winnipeg is heavily favoured tonight:
Alright, now we’ve had a chance to review all the information…will the “real” Winnipeg Jets show up tonight or will they play down to the level of competition? Lets hear your thoughts about the game in the Comment section. Have a great day.
Go Winnipeg!!!!!
