FROM THE PRESS BOX
MIKE SAYS: This is one of those so-called “scheduled losses” on the NHL calendar — a term typically used in hockey when one team faces seemingly insurmountable odds in a specific game. That would apply tonight to the Jets, who played last night at home, then hopped on a charter and arrived in Edmonton in the late hours.
Meanwhile, the Oilers haven’t played since putting up a nine-spot on Thursday. In other words, good luck to the weary visitors, who will be playing for a sixth time in nine nights — with five of those on the road covering three different time zones.
As Tanner Pearson jokingly told me last night, the home game against Buffalo felt more like the sixth stop on a seven game trip. That makes sense, since the Jets didn’t even get back from Montreal until Thursday afternoon and then were on a plane to Edmonton about 30 hours later
It was interesting to hear Scott Arniel explain why he moved Jonathan Toews to the wing against the Sabres. In a nutshell, it’s to lighten the defensive duties in his own end and hopefully free him up a bit more in the offensive zone.
I wonder if the Jets would consider a bit of load management tonight and actually sit him out for the first time? Toews looks like he could use a bit of a breather and this would allow him to get some rest and be ready for Winnipeg‘s next game on Tuesday as they open a four game homestand. They have another struggling veteran in Gus Nyquist at the ready, and I’d expected he would be plenty motivated to show that he deserves to stay. In that sense, it could be a bit of a win-win as you get some fresh legs in the lineup.
KEN SAYS: For a team struggling to generate much offence from beyond the top line at five-on-five, getting two goals from the fourth line was the equivalent of the Jets hitting the jackpot.
We will see if this well-travelled group — playing on the road for the 12th time in 16 games — can follow that up with another multiple goal effort from alternate sources against a highly-motivated Oilers team that is coming off consecutive appearances in the Stanley Cup final; losing in six and seven games respectively to the Florida Panthers.
The Jets have a long list of candidates among that forward group looking to dent the twine for the first time in a while, including Vladislav Namestnikov (no goals, one assist in 15 games), Toews (no goals, one assist in 11 games) and Morgan Barron (no goals, two assists in 17 games) to name a few.
Some folks might see it as throwing Milic to the lions in the metaphorical sense, but the second-year pro has seemed pretty unflappable during the first two appearances of his NHL career — a start against the Carolina Hurricanes and two periods of relief in Buffalo.
Winnipeg Jets goaltender Thomas Milic, left, stops Buffalo Sabres center Ryan McLeod (71) during the third period of an NHL hockey game on Dec. 1, 2025, in Buffalo, N.Y. (Jeffrey T. Barnes / The Associated Press files)
Although the environment is obviously much different, Milic has played games at Rogers Place as a member of the Seattle Thunderbirds in the Western Hockey League, so there could be an element of comfort for him as well.
There’s no doubt that facing the Oilers — especially after the offensive explosion — is a massive challenge for the youngster, but it’s another great opportunity for him.
Don’t look now, but Oilers captain Connor McDavid is heating up. He recorded the 13th hat trick of his NHL career against the Kraken and he’s up to 14 goals and 40 points in 28 games, which means he’s putting some heat on Nathan MacKinnon in the chase for the Art Ross Trophy.
McDavid has often given the Jets nightmares over the course of his career, racking up 12 goals and 59 points in 35 games.
Leon Draisaitl has also produced consistently against the Jets, recording 24 goals and 43 points in 34 career games — and he’s leading the Oilers in goals with 16 and is second in points with 35.
PROJECTED LINES
WINNIPEG JETS
FORWARDS:
- Connor-Scheifele-Vilardi
- Toews-Lowry-Perfetti
- Niederreiter-Namestnikov-Iafallo
- Koepke-Barron-Pearson
DEFENCE:
- Morrissey-DeMelo
- Samberg-Pionk
- Stanley-Salomonsson
GOAL:
INJURED: G Hellebuyck (knee), D Fleury (concussion protocol)
HEALTHY SCRATCHES: D Miller, D Schenn, F Nyquist
EDMONTON OILERS
FORWARDS:
- Nugent-Hopkins-McDavid-Hyman
- Podkolzin-Draisaitl-Savoie
- Janmark-Henrique-Mangiapane
- Frederic-Lazar-Tomasek
DEFENCE:
- Ekholm-Bouchard
- Nurse-Regula
- Kulak-Emberson
GOAL:
INJURED: RW Roslovic (lower body), D Walman (undisclosed), RW Kapanen (lower body), C Philp (upper body).
HEALTHY SCRATCHES: LW Clattenberg
NOTABLE QUOTABLE
Jets head coach Scott Arniel on getting back into the win column on Friday:
“I thought that, as a group, our details and our compete, some of the things that maybe I’ve talked about in the past that weren’t up to speed, I thought tonight as a whole we did a better job. As much as you saw their speed, I thought we did a really good job of getting numbers back whenever possible. I just thought it was a solid game where we forced them to play in their end a lot more, certainly more than we did down in Buffalo and we were rewarded for it.”
WHAT WE’RE WORKING ON
Ken is handling the game analysis from home. In case you missed it, check out the latest instalment of Dump and Chase, the weekly lap around the NHL, from Mike and Ken. While we have your attention, with the flip of the calendar, the December Jets mailbag is open, so send your questions along to Ken and Mike
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