The Winnipeg Jets were on the road tonight for their 3rd out of 6 pre-season games. After back-to-back 3-2 losses at Canada Life Centre, the Jets were looking to pick up the win in Edmonton. Although 2 points aren’t on the line in these pre-season games, it’s always nice to pick up some wins to build confidence throughout the lineup before the regular season begins.

Since the Jets also play tomorrow night back home in Winnipeg, tonight’s lineup looked a little different. Elias Salomonsson was likely going to play in his 3rd straight game, but missed tonight’s game due to illness. Tonight’s “top 6” forwards for the Jets could be a preview of the bottom 6 forwards on opening night. The trio of Nino Niederreiter, Vladislav Namestnikov and Alex Iafallo is a very possible 3th line, while Cole Koepke, Morgan Barron and Tanner Pearson is a potential 4th line. Dom DiVincentiis got the start in goal, and many of the Jets top prospects were also in the lineup. Here’s how the Jets managed to unfortunately lose their 3rd straight game of the pre-season.

The first 5 minutes of the game were fairly uneventful, with both teams managing just 2 shots on goal. Darnell Nurse opened the scoring for the Oilers 4 minutes later after a shot from the point found its way past defenders and DiVincentiis. After the goal the Jets started to pick up the pace, but they couldn’t get one past Calvin Pickard. The Jets got their 1st powerplay of the night with 5 minutes to play in the 1st after Isaac Howard tripped Cole Koepke, but an unsuccessful man advantage followed.

With just under 1:30 left in the 1st, Josh Samanski made it 2-0 for the Oilers. A failed pass from the behind the net by Namestnikov was interecepted by David Tomasek, and he quickly found Samanski in front where he snapped one to the back of the net. After 20 minutes played, both teams were tied in shots on goal (8-8), but the Oilers held a 2-0 lead.

The Jets were looking for a good start to the 2nd, but that’s not exactly what happened. On the Oilers 2nd shot of the period, the Oilers increased their lead to three. Troy Stecher collected the puck near centre ice while both teams were line changing and brought the puck into the zone. Stecher was in with speed and passed it across to Noah Philp, who snapped one past DiVincentiis.

A few minutes later, Josh Brown and Tyrel Bauer got into an epic tilt near centre ice, a fight that was worth a second watch. Bauer was clearly trying to spark his Jets teammates to get some offence going in this game sooner than later.

Minutes later the Jets got their 2nd powerplay opportunity of the night after a holding call on Cam Dineen. This powerplay was slightly better (for what it’s worth) than the first powerplay, but the Jets still couldn’t find the back of the net.

The Jets couldn’t generate many chances after the powerplay, and with just over 2 minutes left in the 2nd Logan Stanley was called for high-sticking. The Oilers went on their first man advantage of the night, but the Jets continued their strong play on the penalty kill throughout the pre-season. Despite the Oilers getting the only goal in the 2nd, the Jets outshot the Oilers 8-6, but they just couldn’t seem to get a much needed first goal on the night.

Both teams decided to keep their starting goalies in for the 3rd period rather than split the crease as some teams do in the pre-season. Morgan Barron took a high sticking penalty just 1:16 into the 3rd period. Teams went to a 4 on 4 a minute later, and just a minute after that both teams took another penalty. Both the Jets and Oilers were looking to get a successful powerplay, but things remained quiet as the Oilers continued to lead 3-0.

Shortly after the halfway point in the 3rd, Kasperi Kapanen gave the Oilers a 4-0 lead. A shot from the point was blocked (redirected) in front, and the puck quickly found its way to Kapanen as he was able to collect and snap it into the back of the net, putting this game out of reach for the Jets.

Right after the goal there was some rough stuff, and Kasperi Kapanen and Logan Stanley ended up receiving roughing penalties along with misconducts. The rest of the 3rd period went by without too much drama or excitement. The Jets were short handed for the final 5 seconds of the game, but at the point the game was still out of reach and the clock winded down at Rogers Place.

The final shots on goal for tonight’s game were 21-20 for the Jets. Both teams went 0/4 on the powerplay (29 penalty minutes each), and most of the other main stats were relatively close. Tonight was just not the night where the Jets could get some scoring. Having the regular top 6 out of this lineup definitely had some impact, but you still would like to see a bit more results from some of the younger players looking to make an impression during the pre-season.

The Jets will now have to quickly re-group as they head home to Winnipeg for another pre-season game tomorrow night. The Calgary Flames pay a visit to Canada Life Centre, with puck drop set for slightly after 7:00 pm CT. Tomorrow’s lineup will feature several players that were in the lineup tonight, but expect an overall more veteran team as the regular season opener approaches. Stay tuned here at Jets Nation for the latest news throughout pre-season as the Jets continue to battle for their first win of the pre-season.