#NHLJets G Connor Hellebuyck said it was the hardest he's ever been hit in the head. "Usually, when the puck hits me in the cage, it makes a chain link fence kind of sound, but this one hit me perfectly in the eye and it felt like I got clobbered in the face. It hurt pretty bad."
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JNGD.S8.G67 Flight Plan: Jets Head Into Carolina to Play ‘A Bunch of Jerks’
The Hurricanes are having a special season, although not for the usual ways when it comes to playing hockey. Carolina has become known for their post game antics where they celebrate winning the game. They’ve played duck duck goose, done the limbo, and even brought in Evander Holyfield to knock-out a challenger. All of this led Don Cherry calling them ‘a bunch of jerks’ for these fun celebrations. The Jets are hoping to put a damper on these celebrations as they continue their eastern conference road trip tonight.
Winnipeg Jets (39-23-5)
@
Carolina Hurricanes (36-23-7)
March 8, 2019 – Puck drop: 6:30 PM CST
PNC Arena – Raleigh, NC
TV: TSN 3 – Radio: TSN 1290
 |  |  |
VS TBL 5-2 L | Last Game | VS BOS 4-3 LOSS |
2-3 (1 L) | Last 5 Games | 4-0-1 (1 L) |
MARK SCHEIFELE – 32 | Goal Leader | SEBASTIAN AHO – 29 |
BLAKE WHEELER – 63 | Assist Leader | SEBASTIAN AHO – 46 |
BLAKE WHEELER – 81 | Points Leader | SEBASTIAN AHO – 75 |
25.50% (4TH) | The Power Play | 17.20% (22ND) |
78.30% (25TH) | The Penalty Kill | 81.70% (9TH) |
LAURENT BROSSOIT (11-5-2/ .927 SV%) | Starting Goalie | CURTIS McELHINNEY (26-17-7/ .921 SV%) |
W vs NSH (35-38 / .921 SV%) | Last Goalie Start | VS BOS (34-38) / (.895 SV%) |
17-15-0 ON ROAD | Road v Home Record | 18-10-4 AT HOME |
Hurricanes Player To Watch
#20 Sebastian Aho – C
Aho is clearly the dominant force behind the Hurricanes attack. He’s extremely talented and is still only 21 years old. He currently leads the Hurricanes in goals with 29, assists with 46, and points with 75. He comes into this game with the same number of points as Scheifele and they are tied for 15th in the entire league. The Jets and Hurricanes have only played each other one time this year, all the way back in October. In that game, Aho finished with one assist on the only Hurricanes goal. He’s clearly the player to watch for Carolina tonight.
Last Hurricanes Game
The Hurricanes were wearing their classic green Whalers jerseys as they took on the Bruins on Tuesday. It was a back and forth game that had both teams exchanging the lead throughout the night. It was decided in overtime as Krejci won it for the Bruins.
Hurricanes Notes
- From canescountry.com: ‘The Hurricanes remain firmly in the playoff hunt but face a difficult road ahead.‘
- From cardiaccane.com: ‘The return of Jordan Staal to the lineup has further bolstered the Carolina Hurricanes as they push for a first playoff spot‘
- A bit old, but still relevant from NHL.com: ‘Brind’Amour defends Hurricanes’ elaborate postgame celebrations‘
Jets Player To Watch
#27 Nikolaj Ehlers – LW
It’s been six games since Ehlers returned from his injury and the results have been slightly underwhelming. In his first game back, he scored less than a minute in and all signs were pointing that he would be back to his usual scoring ways. However, it’s been a struggle since that game as he’s only recorded one assist in the last five games. Things haven’t been great with new linemate Hayes but it seems that they could break out at any time. Ehlers is too good to stay off the scoresheet for long, look for him to have a solid game tonight against the Hurricanes.
Last Jets Game
The Jets got soundly beat by the league leading Lightning on Tuesday evening. The game was tied after the first period, but went downhill from there as the Lightning were able to score four straight goals and take a commanding lead. Trouba added a goofy goal late, but the Jets fell 5-2.
Jets Notes
Hellebuyck took a hard shot to the face last game as Kucherov blasted a one timer on the powerplay. Hellebuyck had to leave for repairs although he did come back and play the rest of the game. Here’s what he had to say about the play.
It appears that Sami Niku is here to stay as the Moose aren’t expecting him back in the lineup for the rest of the year (and likely ever again)
The #Moose left Sami Niku off their playoff roster and head coach Pascal Vincent said today Niku is now a Jet and he’s not expecting him to be sent back.
Looks like Byfuglien is still out of the lineup, although the Jets will be getting Lowry back in the lineup after serving his two game suspension.
#NHLJets HC Paul Maurice said he expects F’s Bryan Little (undisclosed) and Adam Lowry (illness) to be available for Fri game withHurricanes. Expecting Laurent Brossoit to start in goal. Dustin Byfuglien skated once this week but Maurice wasn’t sure when he’d be on the ice again
Be sure to check out our Twitter feed for any late mid-day updates to the game lineups!
You can also get up to the minute lineup combos for the Jets
including power play and penalty kill lines by checking out our line combo page.
You can also get up to the minute lineup combos for the Jets
including power play and penalty kill lines by checking out our line combo page.
Take these lines with many grains of salt because nobody has any real clue as to what the lines are going to look like in this one.
Carolina Hurricanes Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 NINO NIEDERREITER Rating: 77.6#20 LW |  SEBASTIAN AHO Rating: 82.6#5 C |  JUSTIN WILLIAMS Rating: 78.0#18 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 79.41#12 FL1 |
 MICHEAL FERLAND Rating: 74.7#37 LW |  JORDAN STAAL Rating: 77.2#37 C |  TEUVO TERAVAINEN Rating: 79.2#16 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 77.01#7 FL2 |
 ANDREI SVECHNIKOV Rating: 72.8#71 LW |  JORDAN MARTINOOK Rating: 71.7#111 C |  BROCK MCGINN Rating: 72.3#81 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 72.28#17 FL3 |
 GREG MCKEGG Rating: 70.8#144 LW |  LUCAS WALLMARK Rating: 73.3#72 C |  SAKU MAENALANEN Rating: 72.6#75 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 72.21#7 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 JACCOB SLAVIN Rating: 78.4#8 LD |  DOUGIE HAMILTON Rating: 80.1#8 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 79.24#3 DL1 |
 BRETT PESCE Rating: 76.0#24 LD |  JUSTIN FAULK Rating: 78.0#17 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 77.02#3 DL2 |
 HAYDN FLEURY Rating: 69.8#122 LD |  TREVOR VAN RIEMSDYK Rating: 73.3#45 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 71.56#20 DL3 |
| GOALIES | |
|---|---|
 CURTIS MCELHINNEY Rating: 79.4#3 G1 |  PETR MRAZEK Rating: 66.8#61 G2 |
Winnipeg Jets Lines
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 PATRIK LAINE Rating: 79.5#14 LW |  MARK SCHEIFELE Rating: 84.1#5 C |  BLAKE WHEELER Rating: 82.3#5 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 81.96#2 FL1 |
 KYLE CONNOR Rating: 76.9#22 LW |  KEVIN HAYES Rating: 75.9#45 C |  NIKOLAJ EHLERS Rating: 77.2#25 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 76.66#8 FL2 |
 BRANDON TANEV Rating: 71.2#107 LW |  ANDREW COPP Rating: 72.2#97 C |  BRYAN LITTLE Rating: 73.9#50 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 72.42#15 FL3 |
 MATHIEU PERREAULT Rating: 72.3#83 LW |  PAR LINDHOLM Rating: 68.9#177 C |  JACK ROSLOVIC Rating: 69.7#118 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 70.27#24 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 NATHAN BEAULIEU Rating: 71.9#78 LD |  JACOB TROUBA Rating: 76.8#22 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 74.33#17 DL1 |
 DMITRY KULIKOV Rating: 69.8#123 LD |  TYLER MYERS Rating: 74.0#36 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 71.88#29 DL2 |
 BEN CHIAROT Rating: 71.8#80 LD |  SAMI NIKU Rating: 72.6#58 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 72.22#14 DL3 |
| GOALIES | |
|---|---|
 CONNOR HELLEBUYCK Rating: 74.0#22 G1 |  LAURENT BROSSOIT Rating: 68.4#58 G2 |
Breaking News
- Winnipeg Jets select C/RW Viggo Bjork with the 8th overall pick at the 2026 NHL entry draft
- 2026 NHL Draft: Winnipeg Jets select centre Viggo Björck eighth overall
- Jets goalie tandem had a below average season: Connor Hellebuyck and Eric Comrie Jets Nation year in review
- Two of the youth slowly on the rise: Brad Lambert and Elias Salomonsson Jets Nation year in review
- Certified top line winger with a fully healthy season behind him: Gabriel Vilardi Jets Nation year in review