Jets standing in way of Sharks’ bid for division title

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This article was published 07/04/2016 (3464 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Jets will go mining for more respectability tonight in northern California.

Eliminated from the playoff picture but riding a two-game win streak, the Jets are in San Jose to face the Sharks at SAP Center (9:30 p.m.; TSN3/TSN 1290) hoping to finish strong before they play spectators when the playoffs open next week.

The Sharks are currently third in the Pacific Division — three points back of both Los Angeles and Anaheim.

“It’s along the lines of the last few games — it’s a good measuring stick for our team and for a lot of the young guys who don’t have a lot of experience in these types of games,” Jets winger Blake Wheeler told reporters after today’s pre-game skate.

Ondrej Pavelec will get the start in goal for the Jets, but the defensive pairings and forward lines remain intact from Tuesday’s win over the Anaheim Ducks. In that game the Jets rallied from a 1-0 third-period deficit to win on Wheeler’s OT marker.

The Jets are just 2-27-5 this season when trailing after two, but both of those wins have come in the last month, including a 3-2 victory over Colorado on March 12th.

“It’s a maturity thing,” said Wheeler. “It’s a confidence thing. If you’re confident in what you do and confident in what your team does you don’t swerve off path, you don’t get away from the gameplan.

“For us earlier in the year, coming off of last year, we maybe expected to be blowing the doors of teams more than we were. We forgot the way we were able to win games last year and the way we were chisel out some points when we maybe deserved to.

“But that’s the way it’s done in this league. It’s tough night in and night out. If we were down a goal (earlier this season) we didn’t really have the confidence in ourselves to stick with it… that’s where even if you end up losing a game by a goal, you can take solace in the fact you stuck with your gameplan and carry that into the next game.

“I think we got away from it too often than not,” added Wheeler, “and 2-1 games turn into 3-1 games turn into 4-1 games. And that’s it.”

JETS PROJECTED LINES:

Ehlers-Scheifele-Wheeler

Dano-Burmistrov-Stafford

Tanev-Lowry-Thorburn

Petan-Copp-Armia

D Pairings

Chiarot-Byfuglien

Stuart-Trouba

Melchiori-Postma

Goaltenders

Pavelec (starter)

Hutchinson