The Winnipeg Jets get back to work tonight with a five-game skid hanging over them after Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Canadiens in the Heritage Classic at home. That defeat dropped Winnipeg to 0-3-2 during the stretch, and the club took yesterday off before finishing this two-game home stand against the Panthers, who arrive after a 3-2 win over Chicago two days ago.
There should be some movement in the lineup once the skate begins, but the projected look has the Jets starting from the same place they were in the Heritage Classic. Josh Morrissey remains a major question mark after going down almost three weeks ago, and his week-to-week status could get an update today. Vlad Namestnikov is also still sidelined, with his injury dating back close to two weeks and carrying the same week-to-week label.
For now, Winnipeg’s projected forward groups show some mixing and matching. The defense pairings also have a wrinkle, with Salomonsson sliding to the left side and Clay Stevenson listed in net.
Jets projected lines & D pairs:
Connor-Scheifele-Perfetti
Rosen-Lowry-Vilardi
Iafallo - Bjorck - Mercer
Koepke - Barron - Lambert
Samberg- Pionk
Salomonsson - DeMelo
Ferraro- Bauer
Stevenson
Florida’s projected lineup brings its own heavyweight feel, with a top line built around the Tkachuk brothers and Bennett. The rest of the forward group and blue line are set up as follows:
Tkachuk - Bennett - Tkachuk
Verhaeghe - Reinhart - Vilmanis
Luostarinen - Lundell - Eller
Imama - Schwindt - Hathaway
Forsling - Ekblad
Mikkola - Jones
Kulikov - Gudas
Schmid
Black
Player media and coach media are still to follow.
On paper, the Panthers hold a slight edge going into the matchup, and Winnipeg will need a more complete showing to snap the slide. The path is straightforward enough: create better chances, make more of the power play, and clean up the mistakes.
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Jets Fans Have New Reasons To Watch The Moose Right Now
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Thomas Milics recent milestone only adds to the appeal of watching this group closely, especially for Jets fans tracking the organizations next wave of depth. The Moose have had some encouraging individual developments lately, and this stretch on the road gives them another chance to show how those pieces fit together as the season winds down. [Read more 🡒]