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The Winnipeg Jets pulled a rabbit out of the hat Friday night and turned what looked like was destined to be a disappointing loss into a thrilling victory against the Chicago Blackhawks. Mark Scheifele tied the game with 64 seconds left in regulation, then scored 38 seconds into overtime to send the fans home happy.
No offence to the opponent – who went into Edmonton last night and skated off with a 5-2 victory – but the Jets will step up in weight class today with a visit from the Minnesota Wild. We say that both figuratively and literally, since Marcus Foligno, Ryan Hartman and company play a physical style that can turn, at times, into downright nasty.
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It usually makes for a spicy affair whenever these two clubs meet.
“There’s a nice rivalry there,” said Jets coach Scott Arniel. “Obviously, being so close to our neighbours to the south, we got some real spirited games. And I don’t imagine that’s going to change. We started (Friday) night in our division and had success, you’ve got to continue that. [Minnesota] plays back-to-back, so it’ll be really important to get after them. But I don’t think it’s going to change. I still think that our guys get fired up for those games.”
Neither team held a morning skate with the early puck drop, so there’s a bit of guesswork involved in the lineups. We’re expecting the Jets to roll out the same 20 skaters, meaning Connor Hellebuyck will start in goal and D Dylan Coghlan and F David Gustafsson will be the healthy scratches for a third straight outing.
The Wild played last night, losing 5-4 in a shootout to the Seattle Kraken in St. Paul, and got banged up a bit. Joel Eriksson Ek left the game after taking an elbow to the face (which was missed by officials) and reportedly wasn’t on the late-night flight to Winnipeg. That’s a big loss for Minnesota, and we’ll have to wait and see how they plan to fill it. They called up centre Travis Boyd this morning (and reassigned extra goaltender Jesper Wallstedt to the AHL), so he may slot in for Eriksson Ek.
Marc Andre-Fleury was in net yesterday, so expect either Filip Gustavsson to get the call.
Here’s some other information to get you set:
FROM THE PRESS BOX
MIKE SAYS: Previously, on “As The Jets and Wild Turn”….Minnesota is angry at Winnipeg because they seem to keep hurting star Kirill Kaprizov, with Logan Stanley and Brenden Dillon either accidentally or on purpose – depends on which side you believe – leaving a mark. Winnipeg, however, is angry at Minnesota because Hartman deliberately targeted Cole Perfetti, either accidentally or on purpose – depends on which side you believe – high-sticking him in the face. We’re leaning towards “on purpose” since Perfetti happened to be mic’d up during the game last season and says he caught Hartman later telling him it was deliberate. There’s also been plenty of other cheap shots and scraps in recent years.
“That’s a two-way street. I think that they go after our top guys,” Arniel said Saturday when asked about the recent history between the clubs.
“If you look around the league, I think that if you let the opposition’s best players just run free range, you’re going to have a tough night. [Karpizov] is an elite, elite player. We try to make sure that we make it difficult on him. Not just him, (Mats) Zuccarello or no matter who they have, they have skill players. No different than Bedard (Friday) night. You gotta make it hard on those guys. You don’t want them to get comfortable because once they get comfortable, then they start to become tougher to play against. And being in the division, you run into them more. If you were to ask some of our top guys — Morrissey, Scheifele, [Connor] — they get run at pretty good, too.”
I, for one, can’t wait to see what this latest episode brings us. This is the first of three meetings between the teams, with the Jets visiting St. Paul on Nov. 25 and then hosting Minnesota for a final time on Dec. 21.
KEN SAYS: Hellebuyck has been sensational to start this season, allowing one goal through two games. He’s been dialed in and showcasing the form that helped him earn his second Vezina Trophy in June.
Speaking of dialed in, Scheifele has already recorded three goals and an assist to lead the Jets offensively. He finished with six shots on goal and nine shot-attempts, delivering both goals to help the Jets erase the one-goal deficit.
Jets D-man Josh Morrissey has been excellent out of the gate, chipping in three assists while taking care of his own zone and embracing the opportunity to participate on the penalty kill.
Fred Greenslade / THE CANADIAN PRESS Connor Hellebuyck made 26 saves against the Chicago Blackhawks.
The Wild are led by sniper Kaprizov (who had 46 goals and flirted with 100 points last season), but they’re expecting fellow winger Matt Boldy to take another step this season after he recorded 29 goals and 69 points in 75 games in 2023-24. Kaprizov (1G, 3A) and Boldy (2G, 2A) are off to strong starts through two games. You can expect the Jets to try and get Adam Lowry’s shutdown line out against them as much as possible.
The return of captain Jared Spurgeon from injury will help lighten the load for Brock Faber, who was the runner-up to Connor Bedard in the race for the Calder Trophy.
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