GAME DAY: Jets visit Oilers to finish back-to-back

That change could come tonight against an Oilers team that is 6-6-1 in their own building, and is coming off a winless three-game road trip. Since beating the Jets back on Dec. 1, the Oilers have lost four of five, but three of those four losses have gone to overtime or a shootout.
Even with those points, the Oilers have fallen from top spot in the Pacific Division, down to the first wildcard spot in the Western Conference.
"The start is going to be huge for us," said Oilers forward Zack Kassian. "They're coming off back-to-back but we can't feed off that too much. We need to play a real good game defensively and take care of the puck, limit the turnovers, and don't give them any energy or any chances."
Kassian believes the two previous games against the Jets were closer than the score in both games indicated.
"It's a couple plays that make the difference, then it opens up a little bit," he said. "All in all, it's puck management against them. They have a lot of forwards that can make you pay. We have to be good through the neutral zone, both blues, and take care of the puck."

Two of those forwards Kassian is talking about are Mark Scheifele and Patrik Laine. Scheifele continues to chase down Connor McDavid in the league scoring race (McDavid's 38 leads the NHL, while Scheifele is 10 points back after missing three games with a lower body injury).
Laine scored twice in December's loss to Edmonton, but his play caught the eye of Oilers defenceman Oscar Klefbom.
"His shot is something else. I'm very impressed by his start," said Klefbom, who compares Laine's shot to Alexander Ovechkin's. "I would say he probably has a better shot than Ovechkin. I think he aims the shots where Ovechkkin has that curve on his stick so he can really go anywhere. That's why it's so hard to read. Especially for a goalie, he's so hard to read. If you just see Ovechkin's shot, you never know where he's going.
"Laine aims and he gets the puck where he's aiming. He's very impressive. Last game was really fun to watch. It's impressive from such a young kid to come from Finland, overseas, and he has the ability he has."
Laine's 17 goals have him three back of Sidney Crosby for the league lead, while Scheifele is only three behind of Laine with 14.
But more important to both players is getting two points in the standings, something Scheifele and his teammates have the chance to do tonight to get the feeling of the tough loss to Calgary out of their dressing room.
"We have to get it out of our mind, focus on (Sunday), and have that fire in our belly," Scheifele said. "They're a good team, they're quick, they're skilled, and we have to be ready for them."
- Mitchell Clinton, WinnipegJets.com
JETS GAME NOTES
Tonight's Game
The Winnipeg Jets play their second game in as many nights in Alberta tonight when they head north for their only trip to Edmonton this season to play the Oilers...Winnipeg lost 6-2 to the Calgary Flames last night...Nikolaj Ehlers and Jacob Trouba scored the goals for the Jets last night...The Jets have lost both games to the Oilers this season, both of which have occurred in Winnipeg...The Jets return home following tonight's game and welcome the Florida Panthers to MTS Centre on Thursday.
First Visit to Rogers Place
The Jets make their first regular-season visit to brand new Rogers Place tonight, which opened earlier this season as the new home of the Oilers...The Jets franchise was 5-6-1 all-time at Rexall Place, the original home of the Oilers...So far, Central Division teams are 2-2-0 at Rogers Place.
Six Against
Last night's 6-2 loss in Calgary was the second time this season the Jets have allowed six goals in a game...The first time was a 6-3 loss to Edmonton on Dec. 1 in Winnipeg...The Jets allowed six goals or more in four games last season and have given up six goals or more 22 times since the franchise relocated to Winnipeg in 2011.
Canadian Pacific
The Jets are 2-3-0 against Pacific Division teams this season...In addition to last night, Winnipeg's two losses against Pacific Division teams are against the Edmonton Oilers (Oct. 23 3-0 and Dec. 1 6-3), while the Jets have picked up wins against the Arizona Coyotes and Los Angeles Kings...Winnipeg plays five games against Pacific Division teams in December and all are against the three Canadian teams in the division (Edmonton - 2, Vancouver - 2, Calgary - 1)...Last season, the Jets went 12-8-1 against Pacific Division teams.
Weekend Getaway - Take Two
This weekend is the second of two consecutive weekends in which the Jets play back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday on the road...The Jets are 3-2-1 in the first game of back-to-backs and 3-1-1 in the second game of back-to-back games this season.
Face-Off Man
Bryan Little has won a team-leading 55.2% (75-of-125) of his face-offs this season...He's won more than 60% of his face-offs in four of his eight games this season.
Hit Man
Brandon Tanev leads all NHL rookies in hits with 74 in 30 games...He had four hits on Thursday against the Rangers, which marked the ninth time this season he has had at least four hits in a game...He's had a hit in all but three of the 31 games he's played this season.
Quick Hits
- The Jets are 4-for-17 (23.5%) on the power play in December, which is tied for eighth in the NHL.
- The Jets remain perfect when leading after the second period with a 9-0-0 record.
- Winnipeg is 8-4-3 in one-goal games this season and five of its last seven games have been decided by one goal (3-1-1).
- The Jets have outscored their opposition 38-30 in the third period and overtime this season, but have been outscored 43-20 in second periods this season...The 43 goals against is the most total goals an NHL team has allowed in a period this season.
- The Jets won 51.4% of the face-offs against Calgary last night, which marked the third consecutive game the Jets won more than 50% of the face-offs.
- The three days the Jets have without a game following tonight is the first three-day break in their schedule since Oct. 20-22.