Now that the Winnipeg Jets’ first losing streak of the season is over, the NHL’s points leaders will aim to extend a new winning streak when they visit the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday.
Winnipeg’s second and third defeats of the season came in a 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Nov. 14 and a 5-0 shutout to the Florida Panthers on Nov. 16. The Jets got a chance at immediate revenge against the Panthers on Tuesday, and capitalized with a 6-3 victory on home ice.
“We didn’t like the way we played in Florida. So it’s just a sign of a lot of good character in this room that we wanted to bounce back,” said Mark Scheifele, who had a hat trick on Tuesday. “We wanted to have a good game in front of our home crowd before we go on the road for what feels like forever.”
Friday marks the start of a six-game road trip for the Jets, who are 7-2-0 in away games this season.
The Penguins are 1-2-2 in their last five games, and have been struggling to either gain or hold leads. In the first two games of their five-game homestand, the Penguins almost blew a three-goal lead in Saturday’s 4-3 shootout win over the San Jose Sharks, and then lost a two-goal lead in Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Lightning.
Pittsburgh is 4-5-2 when scoring first in games, the lowest winning percentage (.364) of any team in the NHL when taking the early lead.
“We like parts of our game but I think we’ve just got to get more comfortable and just got to put 60 minutes together … We have the leads in the game, we’re right where we want to be and we let it slip,” Penguins forward Rickard Rakell said.
Keeping leads is always difficult with a leaky defense, and the Penguins have allowed the most goals (81) in the NHL. Pittsburgh’s skaters have a combined -127 plus-minus rating, and goaltenders Alex Nedeljkovic, Tristan Jarry and Joel Blomqvist have a cumulative 3.62 goals-against average.
Defenseman Kris Letang is questionable for Friday’s lineup after missing Pittsburgh’s last three games due to illness.
It adds up for a great opportunity for the scorching Jets offense to keep lighting the lamp. Winnipeg is among the league leaders with an average of 4.21 goals per game.
Since the Penguins host the Utah Hockey Club on Saturday, Nedeljkovic and Jarry figure to split the back-to-back starts in some order.
The Jets are also playing consecutive games, as the team faces the Predators in Nashville on Saturday. Backup goalie Eric Comrie might be likelier to face Pittsburgh, as starter Connor Hellebuyck may be saved to face Winnipeg’s Central Division rivals.
Sidney Crosby could achieve another milestone Friday, as the Penguins star is sitting on 599 career NHL goals. Still a potent force in his 20th NHL season, Crosby leads Pittsburgh with 20 points (seven goals, 13 assists).
Scheifele and Kyle Connor share the Jets’ team scoring lead with 24 points apiece. Both players have an even 12 goals and 12 assists.
In the first meeting between the two teams this season, the Jets collected a 6-3 win over the Penguins in Winnipeg on Oct. 20.
–Field Level Media
