JGD 13: Jets End the Road Trip with a Stop at MSG
By Dustin Mymko
7 years agoThe Jets’ third game in four nights on the road has them facing the red hot New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. After dropping a heartbreaker to the Capitals on Tuesday, then stealing a point with a comeback in Washington on Thursday and gutting out a solid win over the Red Wings in their last trip to the Joe on Friday, Winnipeg limps into New York as a battered club with seven players nursing injuries to face an Eastern Conference leading Rangers team that has won four in a row. The Rangers defeated the Bruins 5-2 in Boston last night behind 35 saves from backup goaltender Annti Raata and look to extend their winning stream with Henrik Lundqvist returning to the net.
The Jets iced their youngest lineup yet on Friday with recent callups Nic Petan, Andrew Copp, and Marko Dano playing important minutes and not looking out of place. They’ll be in for another test from the high scoring Rangers who lead the league in goal differential with a +23 (50 goals scored in 12 games, compared to the Jets with 32).
Puck drops at 6pm. Coverage on Sportsnet and TSN1290. After the jump we look at the projected lines.
Winnipeg Jets
(4-6-1, 4th in the Central)
Laine-Scheifele-Ehlers
Connor-Petan-Wheeler
Dano-Lowry-Tanev
Burmistrov-Copp-Thorburn
Enstrom-Postma
Melchiori-Chiarot
Morrissey-Byfuglien
Hellebuyck
Hutchinson
Jets projected lines courtesy of Brian Munz on Twitter (@BrianMunzTSN)
New York Rangers
(9-3-0, 1st in the Metropolitan)
Vesey-Stepan-Nash
Kreider-Zibanejad-Zuccarello
Grabner-Hayes-Miller
Buchnevich-Pirri-Fast
McDonagh-Girardi
Staal-Holden
Skjei-Klein
Lundqvist
Raata
- The Hobey Baker Award for Best Men’s Hockey Player in the NCAA was (somehow) awarded to Harvard’s Jimmy Vesey over Michigan’s Kyle Connor last season. Vesey refused to sign with Nashville after the NCAA season ended and his rights were traded to Buffalo, who he also refused to sign with, eventually becoming a free agent. There were reports of him possibly becoming a Leaf or a Bruin, before sigining with the New York Rangers. This will be the first professional meeting between the Hobey Baker Finalists.
- On the ‘Saturday’s Headlines’ segment of HNIC, Nick Kypreos and Elliotte Friedman reported that Jacob Trouba’s agent, Kurt Overhardt, and Jets’ GM Kevin Cheveldayoff met (in a stairwell at JLA?) to discuss the Trouba situation. Kypreos indicated that the Jets would like to sign Trouba to that market-rate contract (6 years, $5 million) and would be open to trading him once he does.
- Friedman also reported that Joel Armia’s lowed boy injury is an ankle injury that could have him out six to eight weeks.
Obvious Prediction – The Jets come out looking tired in the first half of the opening period, worse in the second, and like world-beaters in the third.
Not So Obvious Prediction(s) – Kyle Connor scores two to show Jimmy Vesey who’s boss. Connor Hellebuyck gets a leg up in the goalie battle.
Game Prediction – Jets win 3-1.
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