Things are starting to turn back in the right direction for Winnipeg Jets in 2025. Coming off a 3-0 win on Saturday against the Avalanche followed by a 6-1 win on Tuesday over the Canucks, the Jets are recently looking more like the team they were earlier this season. The 7th game of this long, yet enjoyable 8 game home stand will continue tonight against another Western opponent, the Seattle Kraken. 2025 has been up and down for the Kraken, but they’re coming off a 4-2 win on the road Tuesday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Seattle will be in tough tonight though, as the Jets have only allowed 3 goals total in their last 3 games.

As you may have noticed in the title, tonight is a chance for the Jets to get back at the top of the NHL standings. After back to back wins, the Jets now sit tied at the top of the league standings with the somewhat surprising Washington Capitals. The Capitals have played 1 less game than the Jets currently, but the Jets continue to lead them in regulation wins with 26. The 6 goal performance against the Canucks was enough to get the Jets in the league lead for goals for with 162. Near the bottom of the NHL standings are the Seattle Kraken, sitting 28th overall with a 19-23-3 record. It’s been a tough, below average 1st half of the season for the Kraken, and the team might be starting to realize that they could be active sellers at the NHL trade deadline.

Tonight’s matchup is the 2nd time the Kraken and Jets will meet this season, but the 1st time in Winnipeg. The Jets won 4-3 in OT in Seattle earlier this season to improve to a perfect 7-0-0 on the season. The Winnipeg Jets have a 8-2-0 record overall in their last 10 matchups against the Kraken. The Jets have won the last 3 games against the Kraken, but looking back at these 10 games, 7 of the 10 were decided by just 1 goal. Expect another tight checking game tonight as both teams look to pick up the win on this Thursday night.

In terms of injury news, the Jets are still without 4 of their players. Fans are waiting for the next update on Haydn Fleury, Vlad Namestnikov, Colin Miller and Mason Appleton, who are all listed as either “day to day” or “week to week”. Injury statuses have evolved the past few seasons in the NHL, and like other major sports leagues, it’s becoming less common to publicly announce specific injury details. At practice yesterday, Colin Miller was skating in a regular jersey, so he looks like he could be the 1st of the bunch to return to the lineup.

Tonight’s projected starting goalies are Connor Hellebuyck and Phillip Grubauer. The Kraken could turn to Joey Daccord, who played last game (and has appeared in around half of the games this season), but it looks to be Grubauer’s turn in net tonight. Grubauer is having a bad season, currently holding a 5-14-1 record with a 3.76 GAA. Connor Hellebuyck will look to continue his current hot stretch, recently recording his 6th shutout of the season, and lowering his GAA after last game to a league best 1.99 (insane!).

Yesterday afternoon, the Jets made an AHL swap, trading defenceman Dmitry Kuzmin to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for defenceman Isaak Philiips. Kuzmin is a 21 year old who was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft and has played 21 games with the Manitoba Moose this season, recording 4 points. Phillips is a 23 year old who was selected in the 5th round of the 2020 NHL Entry draft. Phillips has made 3 appearances with the Blackhawks this season, scoring once, and has 8 points in 28 games with the AHL Rockford Ice Hogs. This move led the Jets to send Dylan Coghlan down to the AHL to play with the Manitoba Moose.

A player to watch tonight is Kyle Connor. Following his 1st period natural hat trick against the Canucks, Connor now has 7 goals and 9 assists for 16 points in his last 10 games. Connor has jumped to 1st in Jets scoring recently, and he’s now up to 59 points in 45 games played, on pace for a 100 point season. With the way the whole 1st line has been performing lately, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Connor’s name on the scoresheet once again tonight. Puck drop is at 7 pm CT, and make sure to check back post game for a recap on tonight’s Jets home game.