JGD 54: Jets face Bruins seeking third straight victory

Jets head coach Paul Maurice is feeling pretty good about the direction his team is heading.

Coming off back-to-back wins, the Jets will look to keep their hot streak alive when they host the Boston Bruins on Thursday night.

“We’ve been right there the last two games, as good as we’ve been all year, where you’re wired into the game and ready to go,” Maurice told the Jets official website. “That’s a big deal. We’re back skating, we’re competing on pucks. We’re battling and when it all goes bad, we’re getting a block or a save.”

Provided by DailyFaceoff.com.

Drew Stafford returns to the Jets’ lineup after serving a one-game suspension for a high-sticking incident against the Colorado Avalanche last weekend. Blake Wheeler will look to break out of a scoring slump as the winger has just one goal in his last eight games. Wheeler leads the Jets in scoring with 14 goals and 35 assists.

Newly signed all-star defenceman Dustin Byfuglien loves playing the Bruins. In 18 career games, Byfuglien has 16 points against the B’s.

Connor Hellebuyck is expected to get the nod between the pipes on Thursday night. The rookie netminder has posted a 13-10-1 record with a 2.25 goals against average and .921 save percentage. On a side note, starting goalie Ondrej Pavelec has travelling with the team but his return from a knee injury is still uncertain.

The Bruins, who are beginning a six-game road trip, shuffled their lines during practice Wednesday. Matt Beleskey moved to the left wing on a line with David Krejci and David Pastrnak.

Loui Eriksson skated on a line with Ryan Spooner and Jimmy Hayes.

The Bruins are coming off a 9-2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings where they gave up 57 shots on goal — the most the club has surrendered since 1965. Zdeno Chara leads all Boston defencemen in scoring with 28 points.

Tukkaa Rask was pulled against the Kings after allowing five goals in the defeat.

Game Day Prediction: The last time these two teams met on Nov. 15, the Bruins skated away with a 6-2 victory. Expect a tighter matchup tonight with Winnipeg squeaking out another W. Jets 3 Bruins 2 (OT)

Obvious Prediction: If the Jets stand any chance against the Bruins’ firepower, they’ll need another solid performance from Hellebuyck.

Not So Obvious Prediction: Rookie Nikolaj Ehlers has been held without a goal since netting a hat trick in a 5-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Jan. 26. How about another hatty against the Bruins tonight?