The Winnipeg Jets (10-1-0) will be hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning (7-4-0) for a matinee game on Sunday at the Canada Life Centre (2 pm CST), kicking off their four game home stand. The goals have been going in fairly easily for our squad early in the campaign and while the Bolts are no longer that Stanley Cup dynasty they once were, they will still offer a real test of the Jets’ puck luck.
Winnipeg has been rolling along this season, seemingly setting franchise records every time they hit the ice. That success has helped the Jets to an NHL best +26 goal differential and the #1 ranking in the entire league. Our boys have a 4-1-0 record over their past 5 contests, averaging 5 goals for over that same span and will be looking to improve their 4-1-0 record at home this season.
Kyle Connor is now the 3rd Winnipeg Jet in history to be named a Star of the Month by the National Hockey League. The 27 yr old winger has had the magic touch to start the year with points in all 11 Winnipeg contests in 2024-25, for a total of 18 at this point in time. Other skaters have helped the True North franchise to its’ best ever start to a season, like Nikolaj Ehlers (15 pts), Mark Scheifele (14), Josh Morrissey (13), Neal Pionk (13), and 5 more Jets with 9 points.
Here is how PuckPedia predicts head coach Scott Arniel will line up his players versus the Lightning:

Tampa Bay had a three game span earlier in the year where they were giving up loads of goals against, but they have become much more focused in the defensive zone in recent contests. Even with that bad blip, the Lightning are sitting with a +9 goal differential and are currently tied for 9th in the NHL. The Bolts have gone 3-2-0 over the past 5 games, with both losses coming against the very hot Minnesota Wild. The visiting team hasn’t been great on the road this year, with a 3-3-0 record overall and a 1-2-0 record when playing in Canadian arenas.
Nikita Kucherov is playing extremely well offensively (18 pts in 11 gms), but he has plenty of company in that regard: Brandon Hagel (13), Jake Guentzel (12), Brayden Point (12), Anthony Cirelli (12), Victor Hedman (11), and Nick Paul (10).
The following is how Tampa’s top coach Jon Cooper deployed his troops against the Wild, via PuckPedia:

Now that we’ve seen the lineups, lets take a peek at how the teams compare head-to-head and how the goalies have done so far in 2024-25 (via ESPN):


Through 11 games, Tampa has started Andrei Vasilevskiy for all but one of those contests. The talented Russian tender played the Bolts opening 5 games before getting his first break….will he get another in the Peg after suiting up for the past 5? That would definitely be a boon for Winnipeg. With Eric Comrie picking up the victory in Columbus, there is very little doubt that Connor Hellebuyck will be patrolling the crease for the Jets when the puck drops on Sunday.
One other thing I noticed while checking out ESPN’s Game Preview page was that the Lightning have amassed more than double the amount of penalty minutes when compared to the Jets (110 vs 52). If I was Winnipeg’s top coach, I would be expecting a gritty affair against Tampa Bay.
In order to give Arctic Ice Hockey member SaskatoonJet as much time as possible to get his first set of prognostications up in the comment section, I will wrap this up here. Even if you didn’t get the official nod from Padre, feel free to throw your hats in the ring with your own thoughts on the upcoming match.
Go Winnipeg!!