NHL Game of the Week: Winnipeg Jets vs. Colorado Avalanche
In a night filled with interesting games among the top teams in the NHL, Friday’s slate will close out with a best of the west matchup between the Winnipeg Jets and Colorado Avalanche.
Through two games this season, the Jets have yet to lose to the reigning Stanley Cup Champs, winning the first contest 4-3 back in October, then pulling out a dominant 5-0 victory in the tail end of November.
The landscape of the western conference is fairly similar to what it was when these teams faced off last, but all teams in the playoff race are extremely close, with the Jets and Avalanche being no exception to this.
Winnipeg sits at second in the Central Division with 71 points, just four more than Colorado who currently holds the third seed due to a tie breaker with the Minnesota Wild based on games played.
So if all things were to remain the same, this game could turn out to be a preview of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Jets have somewhat struggled as of late, dropping three of their last four to the New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils and the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets.
Their lone win in this stretch came against the New York Rangers in a game where they allowed 51 shots on goal and relied on a masterful performance in net from Hellebuyck, along with some struggles from Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin.
Led by star winger Kyle Connor, breakout defenseman Josh Morrisey and franchise cornerstone Mark Scheifele, the Jets have the talent to be dangerous but need to pick it up and win these rivalry games if they want to solidify their spot in the postseason.
On the Avalanche side, they have dealt with their fair share of injuries to key players which has limited their ability to dominate in the same way they did last season en route to becoming Stanley Cup Champions.
However, they still seem poised for another playoff berth.
Even after missing time, Nathan MacKinnon has continued to prove why he’s one of the best in the world, totaling 67 points in just 44 games played.
Unlike the Jets, Colorado has been picking up steam lately, riding a three game winning streak and a five game point streak into this massive rivalry matchup.
Their last game was on Sunday in a high-scoring affair with the Edmonton Oilers that went into overtime before Mikko Rantanen netted a goal in overtime to claim a 6-5 victory.
So while they are on a hot streak, it’ll be a big test for this Avalanche team that hasn’t played in four days and has to come out of their hiatus facing one of the stronger teams in the NHL this season.
Jakob Schnur is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jks6463@psu.edu
