JGD 34: Jets Get Back Up on the Saddle
8 years ago
Once again, the Jets were unable to string consecutive wins together.
After a complete 60-minute effort against the New York Rangers that resulted in an impressive 5-2 win, the Jets got off to a slow start against the Edmonton Oilers last night that resulted in a disappointing 3-1 loss.
It wasn’t until the Oilers got up to a 3-0 lead and had pulled starter Connor Hellebuyck that the Jets started to put pressure on the Oilers. The Jets broke the shutout bid with a goal from Bryan Little, but that was all they could muster out of their 45 shots. Cam Talbot was a wall.
Tonight, the Jets head to the Saddledome to take on the Calgary Flames in their final game before the short Christmas break.
Even though stringing together wins has proven difficult for the Jets, they’ve also not lost consecutive games in over a month.
Ya know, silver linings.
These two teams have met once already this season, a 3-1 win for the Jets all the way back on October 16th at MTS Centre.
The Flames present a similar situation to the Jets as the Oilers did. The Flames were riding a 7-game winning streak since the beginning of December, but have lost their last two games.
The bad news for the Jets, those two losses were both on the road. The Flames haven’t lost a home game since October 30th when they lost 6-2 to the Montreal Canadiens.
So, I’m telling you there’s a chance.
LINEUPS
Lineups courtesy of Daily Faceoff.
Winnipeg Jets (15-16-2)
No lineup changes up front for the Jets.
Bryan Little had a goal and an assist against Calgary earlier this season. Blake Wheeler added an empty net goal to seal the deal.
Bryan Little has 3 goals in the last 3 games.
No lineup changes for the Jets defense. That means we are almost guaranteed to see a goal against that was directly caused by Mark Stuart again.
Byfuglien also added a goal during the first meeting with Calgary.
Tyler Myers has 5 points (1 goal, 4 assists) in the last 3 games.
Hutch gets the start tonight after making all 7 shots faced in his relief performance last night against the Oilers.
Hutch will make his first start since December 6th. He is 2-6-1 with a 3.05 GAA and a .896 save percentage on the road this season. So, that’s reassuring.
Calgary Flames (15-16-2)
Former Jet Michael Frolik remains out with an injury.
I see reports saying Lance Bouma is expected to return to the lineup tonight from a broken leg, then I see reports saying the opposite. So we shall see.
Johnny Gaudreau leads the team with 6 points (2 goals, 4 assists) in the last 5 games. He also has an insane 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 15 home games this season.
The Flames have been getting a lot of offensive production from their defensemen lately.
Kris Russell leads all defenseman with 5 points (1 goal, 4 assists) in the last 5 games. Giordano, Brodie and Hamilton all have 3 points also in the last 5 games.
Karri Ramo will make his fifth consecutive start tonight.
Although he has lost his last two starts, Ramo is still 5-2-0 with a 2.40 GAA and a .921 save percentage in the month of December.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
Courtesy of FlamesNation.ca
After a disappointing end to their four-game road trip, the Calgary Flames try to end their pre-Christmas schedule with a home date with the Winnipeg Jets.The Jets are about as good as the Flames so far this season, and they’re coming off a disappointing result last night up in Edmonton against their local hockey club. Hopefully the Flames can get off to a better start than they did on their road trip.Oh, and bionic Lance Bouma returns from a broken leg tonight (and missing 30 games).The puck drops at 7pm MT on Sportsnet West and Sportsnet 960 The Fan!The Flames lost to Winnipeg back in October by a 3-1 score. They were right in the game before Karri Ramo let in a bad goal from a bad angle from Dustin Byfuglien late in the third period.The Calgary Flames lead the Battle of Teams That Used To Be In Atlanta with a 10-9-1 record.“The Battle of Teams That Used To Be In Atlanta.” Perfect.PREDICTIONSGame Day Prediction: Yesterday I predicted a Jets win and they lost. Today, I go with a Jets loss prediction. 4-2 Jets loss.Obvious Prediction: I already said this earlier, but Mark Stuart will directly cause one goal against.Not so Obvious Prediction: Bryan Little continues his scoring streak tonight.
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