The Winnipeg Jets were able to end their season-long 4 game winning streak in their last game, but it took some overtime luck against the Buffalo Sabres to get it done. Now the True Northers have headed to Illinois for one last road game against the Chicago Blackhawks before they start a 4 game home stand at the Canada Life Centre.
The Jets (19-8-0) are currently sitting in a tie for 3rd in the entire National Hockey League, while the Hawks (8-16-2) sit at the opposite end of the spectrum (last place). When you take a look at the goals for and against, the wide gap remains with Winnipeg scoring 34 more goals and allowing 13 less goals against than Chicago. Despite the stats being lop-sided, the two Central Division rivals have identical 1-4 records in their past 5 contests, so neither squad is playing very well right now.
The Jets have been okay on the road (10-6-0), while the Blackhawks have picked up half of their wins on home ice (4-7-0). The two franchises had met once already this season, with Winnipeg picking up a 2-1 OT victory when they clashed in the Jets’ first home game of the campaign.
Lets take a look at how PuckPedia is predicting the teams to line up their players this afternoon:
The Winnipeg Jets are still missing some key players in the injured Nikolaj Ehlers & Dylan Samberg, so there will be opportunities for other players to step up in their absence. Top scorers like Kyle Connor (30 pts), Mark Scheifele (29), and Josh Morrissey (25) will likely have to play a key role today, but the Jets do get a decent amount of depth scoring (11 skaters with double digit pts).
Obviously Connor Hellebuyck (league leading 15.6 Goals Saved Above Expected) is a big part of his team’s success, but everyone seems to be suggesting that backup Eric Comrie (-1.5 GSAE) will get into action this afternoon.
The Chicago Blackhawks are also dealing with injuries, as they have key defenseman Seth Jones on the shelf and former Jet Laurent Brossoit has yet to make his season debut due to ongoing health issues. While the sophomore slump has gotten to young phenom Connor Bedard, the 19 yr old center is still leading the Hawks with 19 points. Chicago has to be happy with the production they’ve gotten from Ryan Donato (10 goals & 15 pts), but the GM had to be hoping for more from newcomers Teuvo Teravainen (12) and Tyler Bertuzzi (10).
Despite the loss of services from Brossoit, the Blackhawk tenders have played well this season (between .905 & .927 save %), as shown by ESPN’s Goaltender Comparison below. I have also included the breakdown of the numbers for each squad this season to see how they look head-to-head.
If you want to check out the opposition’s perspective, check out the link below to Second City Hockey’s game preview article:
Alright, now that everyone has had a chance to digest all the information above….how do you see tonight’s game playing out? Will the Winnipeg Jets fall for a “trap game” despite their recent lack of success or will they show us that the numbers are right and these franchises aren’t even close in talent?
Expect the Hawks to try to physically pound the Jets’ defenders on the forecheck….and the best way to make that difficult is for Winnipeg to spend the majority of the time in the offensive zone. If they can’t manage that, then it will be important for our squad to capitalize on any mistakes Chicago makes. Getting an early two goal lead can really kill the opponent’s desire to put in a full effort.
Ok, I better get this up soon as there is less than 3 hours before the puck drops at 3 pm Central. Should also take advantage of a lovely day in the Peg by taking my cat Lambo for a walk (+3 in December….the Jets should be forwarding a link to every player in the NHL to try & fight the cold weather narrative. lol).
Go Winnipeg!!!
