FROM THE PRESS BOX
MIKE SAYS: I can’t think of a better way to get into the holiday spirit than watching two heated hockey rivals try to beat the pulp out of each other.
Friendly Manitoba vs. Minnesota Nice is always a treat, and this one should be a doozy. Both teams are coming off disappointing losses and looking to get back on track, and you know the Wild don’t want to get swept in the season series by the Jets.
For Winnipeg, the key to me is all about how they start.
For whatever reason, they’ve been extremely slow out of the gate lately and have made it a (bad) habit of allowing their opponent to dictate what type of game it’s going to be. There’s no reason the Jets should come out sluggish again, especially against an opponent that is playing for a second straight night.
For the first time in a long time, the NHL schedule is actually working in their favour. Can they take advantage of it?
I’ve been wanting to get an extended look at what a defence pairing of Ville Heinola and Colin Miller could be like, and Logan Stanley’s injury now opens that door. Heinola has really looked tentative at times, and I wonder if now being with a more veteran partner (while also being on his natural left side) may help the cause.
I’ve always admired how candid Nikolaj Ehlers typically is during interviews, and he was quite harsh when judging his own play the other night. I’m expecting a much better performance now that he’s got one game under his belt following a lengthy injury absence, and the Jets really need to get that second line along with Cole Perfetti and Vlad Namestnikov cooking.
Lately, it’s pretty much been a case of offensive boom or bust, with it all coming down to whether the No. 1 line is going strong. A little scoring help would go a long way for the club.
KEN SAYS: With two games left before the break, the Jets not only have an opportunity to threaten to hit or eclipse 50 points prior to Christmas, they also have a chance to put some valuable distance between themselves and their closest competitor in the Central Division standings.
A clean win in the third and final meeting of the regular season would give the Jets a five-point cushion.
It’s also an opportunity to sweep the season series for a second consecutive year and while that doesn’t provide an advantage if the teams were to meet in the Stanley Cup playoffs, it’s something the Jets would like to achieve.
We’ve spoken plenty about the Jets’ top trio of Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Gabe Vilardi have been driving the offence. Although the Jets would like that to continue, there have been too many nights of late when there hasn’t been enough secondary scoring behind the productive power play.
There’s been a lot to like about the Jets’ fourth line this season, but they’ve been limited to just three goals at five-on-five this season — two from Rasmus Kupari and one from Alex Iafallo, since both of Morgan Barron’s markers have been scored into an empty net. That’s an area where a bit more offence could really serve the Jets well.
Iafallo’s lone even-strength goal came on Nov. 25 in the last meeting against the Wild and he delivered two goals in that outing.
Winnipeg Jets left wing Alex Iafallo (Mark Humphrey / The Associated Press files)
For the Wild, Kirill Kaprizov is tied for fourth place in the NHL in scoring with 49 points in 32 games. He’s worth the price of admission, given his willingness to mix it up and go to the hard areas — along with his ability to drive play, find the back of the net and make the players around him better.
Former Jets blue-liner Declan Chisholm is enjoying a strong season with the Wild, chipping in one goal and seven points in 27 games while averaging just over 17 minutes of ice time per game.
Chisholm was claimed off waivers by the Wild on Jan. 29 and has worked hard to establish himself as an NHL regular. With Jake Middleton out with injury, Chisholm has been bumped up to the second pairing with captain Jared Spurgeon and he’s seeing time on the second power play unit.
With Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson sidelined with an injury, Wallstedt will face the Jets for the first time in the regular season in what will be his fifth NHL start. The goalie prospect played well against the Jets during the pre-season and gave up three goals on 27 shots in his first start of the season last Sunday against the Vegas Golden Knights.
PROJECTED LINES
WINNIPEG JETS
FORWARDS:
- Connor-Scheifele-Vilardi
- Perfetti-Namestnikov-Ehlers
- Niederreiter-Lowry-Appleton
- Barron-Kupari-Iafallo
DEFENCE:
- Morrissey-Pionk
- Fleury-DeMelo
- Heinola-Miller
GOAL:
HEALTHY SCRATCHES: F Gustafsson
INJURED: D Samberg (broken foot), D Stanley (foot)
MINNESOTA WILD
FORWARDS:
- Karpizov-Rossi-Zuccarello
- Johansson-Hartman-Boldy
- Foligno-Gaudreau-Jones
- Gaunce-Khusnutdinov-Shore
DEFENCE:
- Brodin-Faber
- Chisholm-Spurgeon
- Merrill/Dermott-Bogosian
GOAL:
HEALTHY SCRATCHES: F Boyd
INJURED: G Gustavsson (lower body), D Middleton (upper body), C Eriksson Ek (lower body), F Trenin (upper body)
NOTABLE QUOTABLE
Jets centre Mark Scheifle on facing the Wild for the third and final time this regular season:
“We know it’s always a tough test. That top line (with Kirill Kaprizov, Marco Rossi and Mats Zuccarello) is deadly. Kaprizov has been amazing this year, so you’ve obviously got to watch for him.”
WHAT WE’RE WORKING ON
Ken is handling the third and final meeting of the regular season between the two teams and the story will appear online at winnipegfreepress.com.
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