GAME DAY: Preseason Game 1 - Jets vs Wild

Maurice said on Sunday the first three games of the pre-season schedule will have a "light" lineup. That means light in veteran presence since Winnipeg plays seven games in 11 days. Against the Wild, Little, Patrik Laine and Nikolaj Ehlers will begin the process of getting that chemistry together in time for when the games begin to count.
"Two of them (Laine and Ehlers) anyway look a whole lot different than they did at this time last year," said Maurice. "Patty's moving really well, and Nik looks strong shooting it real hard. Chemistry is something you have to rebuild every year and I'm looking forward to seeing them as a group."
Ehlers was one of five Jets to score more than 20 goals last season. After the trade deadline, he and Laine played with Paul Stastny almost exclusively over the final 37 games of 2017-18. So the Danish born forward understands the importance of these September games to getting back on track with Little as his centreman.
"It's huge. I've played with Bryan a lot in the last three years," said Ehlers. "I know him as a player and Patty coming in just complements that. We played really well last year, and we got to get back to that as quick as possible and build on it."

The newer faces in the lineup include the likes of Nicolas Kerdiles, Seth Griffith and Kristian Vesalainen. Nic Petan is not a new face and begins another season with the Jets organization after he signed a one-year deal at the end of July. Petan is as excited as anyone to just get back into facing competition.
"Three or four months you haven't played in a game, you just want to get out there and get some touches and show what you can show," said Petan.
Laurent Brossoit will get the start in goal, his first appearance as a Jet since signing a one-year deal with the club in the off-season. Historically Maurice likes his goaltenders to play the full game during the preseason and tonight shouldn't be any different.
"As just a mental thing," explained Maurice. "They've done enough work. They are in good shape. But getting their brains back into focusing for 60 minutes, that's what I think is important."

Eric Comrie will back up Brossoit this evening.
Here are the forward units and defence pairings from the morning skate at Bell MTS Iceplex:
Ehlers-Little- Laine
Vesalainen-Roslovic-Perreault
Kerdiles-Griffith-Appleton
Lemieux-Petan-Dano
Stanley-Byfuglien
Niku-Chiarot
Morrow-Poolman
Brossoit
Comrie
Puck drops at 7 pm CT tonight, with the game being carried live on TSN 3 and TSN 1290.
TONIGHT'S LINE-UP
GAME NOTES
The Winnipeg Jets embark on their seven-game 2018 pre-season schedule tonight at Bell MTS Place against the Minnesota Wild...After tomorrow's game, the Jets practice at Bell MTS Iceplex Tuesday and Wednesday before travelling to Rogers Place to face the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday in the second game of the pre-season.
Experienced Lineup
Of the 20 players the Jets are scheduled to dress tonight, 17 played at least one game in the NHL last season, including 14 for the Jets...Only Logan Stanley (Kitchener/OHL), Mason Appleton (Manitoba/AHL), and Kristian Vesalainen (HPK and Karpat/Liiga) didn't see action in the NHL.
New Guys
Three summer acquisitions are slated to be in the Jets lineup tomorrow - G - Laurent Brossoit, F - Seth Griffith and F - Nicolas Kerdiles...Brossoit and Griffith were signed as unrestricted free agents, while Kerdiles was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for F - Chase De Leo.
First Round Content
The Jets have five of their last six first round picks in the lineup tonight, including rookies D - Logan Stanley (2016) and F - Kristian Vesalainen (2017)...Also scheduled to play are F - Patrik Laine (2016), F - Jack Roslovic (2015) and F - Nikolaj Ehlers (2014)...Winnipeg's top four goal scorers last season were first round selections picked after the team relocated to Winnipeg in 2011 - Laine (44), Kyle Connor (31), Ehlers (29), and Mark Scheifele (23).
Wild Foes
The Jets went 3-1 against the Wild in 2017-18 during the regular season and then dispatched of Minnesota in five games in the first round of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs...Mark Scheifele had six points (1G, 5A) in three regular season games against the Wild, while Blake Wheeler matched that with six points (2G, 4A) in four regular season games...Scheifele (4G, 1A) and Dustin Byfuglien (5A) each paced the Jets in scoring against Minnesota in the playoffs...Dating back to 2015, the Jets are 14-7-0 in their last 21 regular season and playoff games against the Wild.
State of Buff and Wheels
Minnesotans Dustin Byfuglien (Roseau) and Blake Wheeler (Plymouth) have enjoyed more success against the Wild than any Minnesotans since the Wild entered the NHL for 2000-01 season...Byfuglien leads all Minnesotans in scoring against the Wild with 32 points (8G, 24A) in 39 career games, while Wheeler is second with 26 points (11G, 15A) in 30 games...Byfuglien is 20-15-4 all-time against Minnesota during the regular season, while Wheeler is 15-13-2.
Road Start
For the first time since 2016, the Jets start the regular season on the road, as they begin the 2018-19 campaign at Enterprise Center in St. Louis against the Blues on Oct. 4 and follow up with their second game in Dallas against the Stars on Oct. 6...However, Winnipeg plays the bulk of their October schedule at Bell MTS Place, as the team has seven of their first 10 games at home...The Jets have a season-high six-game homestand from Oct. 14-24.
Pre-Season Sked
The Jets play an extremely condensed pre-season schedule, as after tomorrow the team is slated to play six games in eight days, including three back-to-back sets, starting Thursday in Edmonton...Winnipeg plays their usual pre-season counterparts twice each - Minnesota, Calgary, and Edmonton - and host the New Jersey Devils on Sept. 27 in their lone pre-season game against an Eastern Conference opponent.