After coming out of the Olympic break with two straight wins, the Winnipeg Jets looked like a confident team that would be challenging for a wildcard berth into the playoffs. Five of their next seven games would be played at home and it looked like an opportune time to surge in the standings. However, the Jets lost seven of their last nine games and have seen their playoff chances all but slip away.
The New York Islanders came into the MTS Centre without star forward John Tavares. Andrew Ladd scored twice for Winnipeg including an equalizer in the third period forcing the game into overtime. Michael Grabner gave New York the win on a breakaway in overtime beating Ondrej Pavelec. The game was not the only thing the Jets would lose as Mark Scheifele suffered a knee a knee injury that would sit him out 6-8 weeks.
After a heartbreaking loss, the Los Angeles Kings used a suffocating style of play to beat the Jets 3-1. Kenora product, Mike Richards scored the game winner for the Kings.
An all-Canadian battle with the Ottawa Senators was up next for Winnipeg. Dustin Byfuglien had a goal and an assist but it wasn’t enough as Sens netminder Craig Anderson was stellar in a 5-3 win, stopping 46 of 49 shots Winnipeg shots.
After three straight home losses, the Jets travelled to Colorado to battle the Avalanche. Byfuglien led the way once again scoring two second period goals but Matt Duchene scored in overtime to break the hearts of Jets fans. Pavelec stopped 33 shots in the Jets 3-2 loss.
The Jets faced another team in a recent funk in the Vancouver Canucks. Andrew Ladd and Michael Frolik both scored for the Jets but former Manitoba Moose Alex Burrows scored twice sending the game into a shootout. Neither team could find the back of the net until Canucks Chris Higgins deked out Pavelec to give the Canucks a 3-2 win.
After the game, coach Paul Maurice talked about the lack of production from his star players.
“It’s the standard of every game. Eventually those guys got to scores goals and produce offensive numbers,” Maurice quipped.
The New York Rangers didn’t make anything easier for the Jets. With the Jets up 2-1 early in the game, Carl Hagelin lifted New York to a 4-2 win thanks in part to his three goal performance. Pavelec left the game due to a lower body injury forcing Al Montoya to be the starter going forward.
Winnipeg snapped their six game losing streak beating dominating the Dallas Stars 7-2. Byfuglien had two goals and an assist and Blake Wheeler had four helpers. One night later, the Jets were in tough taking on the NHL’s best team in the St Louis Blues. The Jets fought hard until the very end but David Backes scored twice in the third period to lift the Blues to a 3-1 win in a fight filled affair.
In a back and forth affair with the Colorado Avalanche, Andrew Ladd scored twice and Blake Wheeler added two assists and scored the overtime winner to get the Jets an exciting 5-4 win to the delight of the hometown crowd.
With just 11 games left on the schedule, the Jets will need to stay in the win column as they sit four points out of the final playoff spot and cannot afford to go on another losing streak.
Photos by Rob Buenaventura and Star Roxas
