Buff and Laine return to action in Jets makeup game against Devils

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This article was published 28/03/2017 (3151 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Patrik Laine and Dustin Byfuglien return to the Winnipeg lineup tonight as the Jets play a make-up game against the host New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center.

Game time is 6 p.m. CT (TSN1290 Radio, TSN3-TV) for a contest that was postponed March 14 because of a winter storm in the area.

Laine, who is tied with Toronto Maple Leafs centre Auston Matthews for the lead in the NHL’s rookie goals (34) and points (61) races, will play after being sidelined with an illness Sunday against the visiting Vancouver Canucks.

The right-winger is expected to skate on a line with centre Bryan Little and left-winger Nikolaj Ehlers for the Jets (34-35-7), who were officially eliminated from the playoff race Monday night following the St. Louis Blues’ 4-1 triumph over the Arizona Coyotes.

“Maybe not 100 per cent, but feeling pretty good,” Laine told reporters this morning in New Jersey. “Hopefully, I can have enough power to play this game, but I’m feeling pretty good.”

Byfuglien will rejoin a Jets blue-line group that has been ravaged by injuries. He missed two games with a lower-body injury.

Defenceman Brian Strait and winger Marko Dano are expected to be healthy scratches tonight.

Winnipeg will go with goalie Connor Hellebuyck against the Devils (27-35-13), who are last in the Eastern Conference. He watched from the bench the last two games as Michael Hutchinson got consecutive starts, a 3-1 loss to Anaheim and a 2-1 win over Vancouver.

Jets head coach Paul Maurice said his club had prepared itself for the eventuality of missing the post-season.

“It didn’t sneak up on you,” he said. “You’ve been playing under the mindset of handling the day that you have in front of you, and that’s what our focus is here today — play this game, play it as hard as we can.”

Maurice said ducking into New Jersey for one game and then heading straight home shouldn’t be a drain on his club.

“It’s not as big a challenge as you might think,” said Maurice. “These things do happen at times. You don’t feel quite as sharp as maybe you do, but the game starts and you’ve gotta be right. It’s nothing anyone could have done about this one.”

Maurice also disclosed that injured defenceman Paul Postma (lower body) could face surgery in the next week or so.

Defencemen Tyler Myers (lower body), Toby Enstrom (upper body) and Ben Chiarot (upper body), winger Shawn Matthias (upper body) and goalie Ondrej Pavelec (lower body) remain out as well.

Maurice was asked if any members of the AHL’s Manitoba Moose — presumably forwards Kyle Connor and Jack Roslovic — might get a late-season promotion to exhibit their progress at the pro level.

“We’ve got lots of young players in our lineup right now fighting for jobs,” he said. “We’ll see. That’ll be a decision related to (general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff) will be looking to make.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell