The Winnipeg Jets travelled south on Sunday to finish a home & home series with the Minnesota Wild, hoping to sweep their division rivals in the set of games. With the news that Wild star Kirill Kaprizov wouldn’t be playing due to an injury sustained in Saturday’s game, would Minnesota try to extract some revenge on New Year’s Eve day?
The Wild immediately tried to extract their retribution when Minnesota’s Maroon and Winnipeg’s Lowry dropped the gloves just seconds into the game. While the scrap was fairly even, the Wild did seem to gain momentum and were the better team early, forechecking hard and hitting anything that moved. This intensity led the home team to get multiple chances on Brossoit, but the Jets’ backup was up to the test early and DeMelo helped out by denying a wrap-around attempt. After being outshot 5 to 1 in the opening 5 minutes, Winnipeg’s pace started to pick up and they were rewarded with a powerplay when Niederreiter was slashed by former Jet Bogosian. The Jets’ PP gave up an early SH rush against, but then were able to get set up in the offensive zone to create some offense (3 shots and a rebound that Vilardi just couldn’t contain). After the man-advantage failed to give Winnipeg a lead, the 2nd line rushed up the ice with Iafallo flying down the left wing, then skating around the net before he almost found Toninato on the back door. The Wild then went back on the attack for a couple shifts, but a Dillon shot block and a save by Brossoit tight against the post kept the game scoreless. Winnipeg responded with good shifts by the Lowry and Namestnikov lines, getting looks by Appleton and Namestnikov. The Scheifele and Toninato lines had some more offensive zone time, but the Jets’ top center was getting quite frustrated with the officiating when he was once again hit without the puck. Minnesota intercepted a Winnipeg pass at their own blueline and that resulted in a 3 on 3 rush for the Wild. The puck worked it’s way to Hartman in the high slot and he let a quick shot that beat Brossoit glove side. The home team took a 1 goal lead with 3:16 to play…but wait, a coach’s challenge from Bowness was successful for a missed off-side call, so the game remained scoreless. A bit later, a pinch by Morrissey at the offensive zone blueline wasn’t covered well by Perfetti, allowing Minny to break out on a 3 on 1 rush. An effective backcheck by Perfetti ended up getting there just in time to break up the Wild’s third pass attempt and nullified the scoring chance. However, Minnesota was actually able to take the lead when they won an offensive zone face-off, which allowed a point shot to be deflected by Winnipeg’s goaltender. With two minutes to play, the Jets pushed for the equalizer, but their best scoring chance just sailed wide of the net. Minnesota finished the period with a final push, but the Jets were able to keep them to the perimeter until the horn sounded.
First Period MoneyPuck Stats: Score: 1 to 0 for the Wild, shots 12 to 8 for the Wild, 62% Deserve To Win for the Wild, Expected Goals – all situations (0.86-0.32 MIN), & 5 on 5 (0.86-0.29 MIN)
The Wild have been 10-0 this year when leading a game after the first period, so it appeared the Jets had their work cut out for them. The opening two minutes saw the teams skate back & forth, but unable to create any shots on the goalies. That ended when Niederreiter skated the puck up the middle of the ice, gaining the Minnesota zone. He passed off to the side boards upon entry, finding DeMelo on the left side of the ice. The defender didn’t keep the puck long, as he quickly fed a pass to Appleton as he entered the zone. The winger let a shot go from the high slot and while Fleury was able to make the save, the rebound popped out to Lowry in the blue paint. The captain made no mistake and was able to tie the game up early in the 2nd period with his 100th NHL goal. Winnipeg’s defense was playing well early in the middle frame, not allowing Minnesota a shot in the first 5 minutes. The Jets were starting to control more of the play, with the 4th line cycling the puck to give AJF a quality look from in tight and Samberg rang the post loudly off a point shot. The Wild responded with a pressure shift by their top line, but Schmidt sacrificed the body to block their best look. Minnesota wasn’t done pushing for offense and they were back again, this time on a 2 on 1 that saw the puck carrier opt for a shot that Brossoit blockered aside. The Jets’ top line responded with some looks of their own despite most of their shot attempts being blocked, but fans in Minnesota got to witness another puck hitting a post (this time off of Dillon’s point slap shot). The Scheifele line kept up the pressure and eventually a Wild defender panicked, sending the puck over the glass to send Winnipeg back to the powerplay. This man-advantage started off well with chances by Ehlers & Scheifele, but the second half of the PP was uninspired as the Jets struggled to regain the offensive zone. Minnesota gained some momentum from the kill and a 4 on 3 rush saw them barely miss the net from the low slot. The Wild had the Jets’ top line pinned in their zone, but a nice defensive play by Scheifele stopped a cross-ice pass & scoring opportunity. Samberg finally rode a player off the puck and used his body to protect the puck before making an outlet pass that allowed Winnipeg to escape their zone with the game still tied. Minnesota once again pushed for offense in the final minutes of a period, but Samberg was there again to end the pressure by clearing the puck.
After Two Periods MoneyPuck Stats: Score: 1 to 1 tie, shots 18 to 16 for the Wild, 56.5% Deserve to Win for the Wild, Expected Goals – all situations (1.10-0.90 MIN) & 5 on 5 (1.08-0.82 MIN)
Winnipeg got off to a good start in the 3rd when a fortunate bounce off the glass sprung Toninato on a rush, but his shot from the face-off dot hit Fleury squarely in the chest. The Jets’ top unit continued the press when Ehlers stole a puck in the neutral zone and skated it behind the Wild’s net, only to send a pass back the way he came. Unfortunately Scheifele didn’t have much space to work with and couldn’t find the gap between Fleury and the post. A high-stick by Pionk ended the Jets pressure and sent Minnesota on their 1st PP of the game. The Wild were able to get set up right away and after some cycling, DeMelo was called on to block a 1 timer. Winnipeg was able to briefly clear their zone, but Minny regained the Jets’ end on their 1st attempt. Brossoit was able to make a save on a bad angle 1 timer, but the Wild kept the pressure on. After a scramble behind the net, the puck popped out to the right corner and the Jets penalty killers were caught out of position. A long cross-ice pass found Gaudreau wide open for a 1 timer and while Brossoit was able to get part of the puck as he slid across the net, he couldn’t stop it from trickling between his legs to give Minnesota their lead back. Winnipeg responded with the Scheifele line and Vilardi caught the official’s attention when he was hauled down on a rush. The 2nd PP unit started things out and won the face-off to get set up. Some passing around the perimeter found Namestnikov on the right side of the ice and the Russian quickly spun to face the goaltender. Despite Fleury being in good position to make the save, the center opted for a shot and ended up sniping the attempt off the crossbar and by the Wild goalie to tie the game up with a rare Winnipeg powerplay goal. Minnesota immediately tried to break the tie with some pressure, but a nice kick save by Brossoit kept the game knotted. The Lowry line replied with a cycle shift that saw Fleury stone Appleton from the mid-slot, but Minnesota was once again nabbed by the officials for an infraction. With the refs’ arm in the air to call the penalty, Winnipeg tried to use the 6 on 5 player advantage to take the lead. After playing keep away for a bit, a Dillon point shot ended up hitting Toninato in front of the net. The puck dropped to his feet and the veteran forward held off the defenseman as he batted it by a sprawled Fleury to give Winnipeg a 2 to 1 lead with 12:28 to play. The Jets didn’t lay back to protect the small lead and ended up creating a bunch of quality looks (Barron, Appleton, Niederreiter, and Ehlers all with good chances). Minnesota eventually starts to press to tie the game and many Winnipeggers’ had to make strong defensive plays (Scheifele block, Niederreiter bodying Bogosian on the forecheck, Brossoit denying Boldy from a prime scoring area, Morrissey block, and a couple more high-light gloves saves by the Jets’ tender). The Wild’s best chance to equalize things came on a Brock Faber rush against 4 Winnipeg defenders that saw the defenseman split the Jets only to miss the net from a high-danger spot. The last 16.5 seconds saw a face-off to the side of Brossoit and yet another face-off loss allowed a couple of shots….but Appleton & Toninato would not allow the pucks to reach Winnipeg’s goal by sacrificing their bodies.
FINAL SCORE: WINNIPEG JETS 3 MINNESOTA WILD 2
SHOTS: WINNIPEG JETS 29 MINNESOTA WILD 26
Game Observations:
- MoneyPuck Stats: 79.8% Deserve to Win for the Jets, 3.40 to 1.70 in expected goals (all situations) for the Jets, and 1.92 to 1.38 in expected goals (5 on 5) for the Jets.
- The Winnipeg Jets have only allowed one team to score more than 2 goals against them in their past 13 matches. While there are still many things to work on for our hometown club (PP, PK, face-offs, etc), the Jets’ defensive play lately has masked these deficiencies to launch them into the upper echelon of the NHL. After the weekend sweep of Minnesota, Winnipeg finds itself sitting in a tie for 6th place in the NHL (with Dallas) and have a game(s) in hand on three of the franchises ahead of them (Vegas, Vancouver, & Colorado).
- Face-offs are still an issue for Winnipeg. The team won only 28% of draws in the 1st period, but were able to improve that to 40% by the end of the game. Dominic Toninato was the only Jet center with a better percentage than 50% (6 of 8 for 75%) and the veteran forward’s goal extended his point streak to 3 games (G/2A).
- Former Winnipeg Jets 2nd round draft pick Nic Petan filled in for the injured Kirill Kaprizov and ended up picking up an assist in the game.
- Laurent Brossoit played well yesterday, helping Winnipeg extend their defensive streak another game. I guess you could say that he might have made the save on the long cross-ice 1 timer on the PP, but it seems Jets’ tenders only make big saves this season when the teams are at 5 on 5.
- What a dominating 3rd period by the Winnipeg Jets…they went from losing the expected goal battle to blowing the Wild out (3.4 to 1.70)
- Bit of an odd game statistically. The Jets mainly lost in the shot stats (Corsi/Fenwick) with only the Toninato line out-shooting opponents. But three of four lines won the expected goal battle at 5 on 5, with Toninato’s getting 80% xG, the Lowry trio ending with 64.4% xG, and the Scheifele line finishing with 59.5% xG (only the Namestnikov lost with 23.3% xG).
A great way to end 2023…with a Winnipeg Jets win, a Rutger McGroarty hat-trick at the World Juniors, and Brad Lambert picking up a couple points in a Manitoba Moose loss (3-2) to improve to 0.91 pts per game in the AHL.
NEXT GAME: Tampa Bay Lightning @ Winnipeg Jets – Tuesday, January 2nd @ 7:00 pm Central
I hope everyone had a great New Year’s Eve celebration!! Wishing you and your families the best of health in 2024.
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