LAS VEGAS – As he usually does, Winnipeg Jets captain Adam Lowry described his team’s current situation perfectly.
“Our next three games need to be our three best of the year,” he said Saturday night, just minutes after Winnipeg’s tough 7-1 defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia Flyers.
“We talked about this internal optimism, this belief in our team that we were better than we played all year and coming out of the break, I feel like we've done a good job of putting together good stretches of hockey playing well against good teams,” he said. “And that can't change.”
The situation that lies ahead of the Jets (35-32-12) as they head out on the final road trip of the regular season – a two-game trek with stops in Vegas and Utah on back-to-back nights – is simple. The Jets trail Los Angeles by five points for the final wildcard spot in the Western Conference. With six points still on the table for Winnipeg to grab, it’s still possible to catch the Kings, but the Jets would need help from the three remaining opponents on Los Angeles’ schedule: Seattle, Vancouver, and Calgary.
“We have three games left and we have a road trip here and all we can do is try and control what we can control and that is being ready to go against Vegas,” said Josh Morrissey. “There are six possible points left. Can we get all six and see where the cards fall. That is all we can do.”
Ultimately, the Jets know they can only control the teams on their schedule. With no room for error, it can be a lot of pressure to carry.
“If the intensity caught you or if it’s too much pressure, then you’re in the wrong business,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “This time of the year, and the second half, this is what you play the game for, when you get put into these situations.”
Winnipeg didn’t practice on Sunday, instead using it as a travel day ahead of the season’s most crucial back-to-back set.
Even though they weren’t on the ice, the Jets recalled forwards Brayden Yager and Nikita Chibrikov from the Manitoba Moose under emergency conditions. The Moose have already clinched a playoff spot in the American Hockey League and had most recently defeated the Texas Stars 5-4 in a shootout at Canada Life Centre on Friday night.
Yager scored his 10th goal of the season in that victory and leads all Moose rookies in points with 30. As for Chibrikov, he started the 2025-26 campaign with the Jets and suited up in eight games before being loaned to the Moose. He has 16 points in 53 games this season.
Any line-up modifications made by Arniel and the coaching staff will be evident at the team’s morning skate at T-Mobile Arena on Monday. No matter how the line-up shakes out, the focus is on being more like the team that beat Vegas 4-1 back on March 24 than the one that fell to the Flyers on Saturday.
“Guys are going to have to find a way to have a mental reset and put our best foot forward on Monday,” said Lowry. “We know the situation we're in that, pretty much have to pick up every point the rest of the way.”
Tonight marks the final game of the three-game season series between the Jets and Golden Knights (37-26-17). Winnipeg has earned three of a possible four points so far, but it could be said the Vegas team they’ll play tonight will have a different feel than the one from late March.
Of course, it was only six days after the Jets beat Vegas that the Golden Knights changed head coaches, bringing in veteran John Tortorella. Since the hiring, Vegas is 5-0-1 and are outscoring their opponents 23-12 – including a 3-2 overtime win in Colorado on Saturday.
That victory clinched a playoff spot for Vegas, who are locked into a battle with Edmonton and Anaheim for top spot in the Pacific Division.
“We have worked so hard to get back in the mix. We knew we weren't going to go 28, or however many games were left after the break and 'zero',” Morrissey said.
“We have got to stick with it and we have to keep fighting.”
Puck drop is set for 9 pm CT.
