The Manitoba Moose head into Saturday’s rematch with the Toronto Marlies carrying plenty of momentum from Friday night’s 2-1 overtime win, and Walker Duehr has been right at the center of it.
Duehr has wasted no time making an impact since returning to Manitoba, piling up three points in his first two games of the 2026-27 season. The Sioux Falls, S.D. native scored both Moose goals on Friday, including the overtime winner, and he also drew Manitoba’s first penalty shot since March 8/25, though the attempt came up empty.
It’s a sharp start for a winger who is in his second season with the club, after putting up 34 points (17G, 17A) in 62 games in 2025-26. Across his pro resume, Duehr has 207 games of AHL experience and 115 points (61G, 54A), along with 21 points (11G, 10A) in 95 NHL games.
His two goals this season have come on just three shots on goal.
Manitoba’s extra-time efficiency has been eye-catching, too. The Moose have already scored twice in overtime this season, and they’ve done it with almost no wasted motion: just two shots on goal and 2:21 of game time.
Brayden Yager delivered the first one on Oct. 18 in a 4-3 win over the Texas Stars, and Duehr followed with a 29-second strike to finish off Toronto on Friday. Those two three-on-three wins already match Manitoba’s total from all of 2025-26.
Home ice has been a major strength as well. Friday’s result pushed the Moose to 5-0-0-0 at Canada Life Centre, making them one of only two AHL teams with a perfect home record this season, alongside the Abbotsford Canucks.
Manitoba didn’t reach its fifth home win last year until Nov. 30, in its 10th home game. The Moose have also been piling up goals in bunches at home, with a player scoring twice in each of their last four games at Canada Life Centre: Walker Duehr on Nov.
6, Nikita Chibrikov on Oct. 18, and Brayden Yager on Oct. 16 and Oct. 4.
Manitoba sits sixth in the league with 29 home goals.
The penalty kill has held up its end of the bargain, too. The Moose come into Saturday ranked 14th in the league on the PK, but they’ve successfully killed their last 10 minors.
Through the first game of November, Manitoba has been shorthanded 60 times and allowed 10 goals, good for 83.3 percent. At home, the numbers are even stronger: the Moose are operating at 89.5 percent, fifth-best in the AHL, and have given up just two goals on 19 man-down situations.
They’ve also scored six shorthanded goals, tied with the Springfield Thunderbirds for the most in the league.
Isaak Phillips has been another steady presence. The Barrie, Ont. native added an assist on Friday to reach seven points (1G, 6A) through 13 games, and all of those points have come over his last 10 outings.
Over his past four games, he has three points (1G, 2A). Phillips also leads the Moose and is tied for first in the AHL with a plus-10 rating.
Saturday’s game against the Marlies is the back half of Manitoba’s two-game homestand, with coverage beginning at 5:45 p.m. CDT on 680 CJOB, CJOB.com, the Winnipeg Jets App and AHLTV on FloHockey.
Puck drop at Canada Life Centre is set for 6 p.m. CDT.
In Other News...
Jets Blue Line Suddenly Looks Different Heading Into Lightning Matchup
Winnipegs blue line is already shifting again as the club heads into a matchup with Tampa Bay, with the Jets forced to adjust after another defenseman became unavailable. Henry Thrun has been recalled under emergency conditions, giving the team another body on the back end while the group tries to absorb the loss of depth created by Haydn Fleurys injury.
The bigger development, though, is the possible return of Josh Morrissey, who has resumed full-contact practice after a wrist injury. For a Jets defense that has been juggling its lineup, getting Morrissey back into the mix would be a major boost, especially with a busy stretch ahead and the team still waiting on more clarity around its latest personnel shuffle. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Pressure On Scott Arniel May Be Raising The Wrong Question
Even with a few recent wins, the conversation around Scott Arniel has turned uncomfortable in Winnipeg, where the head coach is suddenly being treated like a man on borrowed time. Arniel has been behind the Jets bench since 2024, but the buzz around his future has only grown louder, and it has created the kind of uneasy backdrop that can hang over a coaching staff even when the results on the ice are not entirely bleak.
Former NHL coach Steve Peters painted a familiar but grim picture of what that uncertainty feels like inside a staff room, describing the lead-up to a possible firing as a stressful, dark waiting game. He also raised the bigger question the Jets may have to answer first: whether the roster itself is built well enough to make Arniel the right place to direct the blame, or whether the pressure is landing on the wrong target altogether. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Finally Have Something Fans Can Truly Build On
The Jets kept the momentum from their comeback win rolling at home, and this one looked more convincing from the start. Winnipeg handled the Vancouver Canucks 6-2, with Kyle Connor setting the table for a pair of goals and Stuart Skinner backing it up with his second straight win as the club continued to search for some consistency early in the season.
There was also a notable moment for Dawson Mercer, who found the net for the first time since arriving in Winnipeg, giving the crowd another reason to lean in. Mark Scheifele, meanwhile, kept inching closer to another major franchise milestone, a reminder that even in a season that has been uneven, the Jets still have a few players giving fans something real to watch. [Read more 🡒]