GAMEDAY: Jets vs Canadiens

WINNIPEG -The first four-game win streak of the season is within reach for the Winnipeg Jets tonight as they host the Montreal Canadiens in the second game of a four-game home stand.
The Jets (12-6-1) have rattled off three victories in a row for the second time this season, a feat that isn't easy to do as head coach Paul Maurice spoke to earlier this week.
"If the teams are fairly even, the more you see them the more even it becomes," Maurice said on Tuesday. "If there is a team clearly not in the class of everybody else and you play them three or four times in a row, maybe you go on a run. It becomes more and more difficult to go on a run as you see teams over and over again, and those teams are reasonably talent-even."

While the Jets hold a three-point lead over the Canadiens in the standings, they know what this Montreal team is capable of, even if they're winless in their last four games.
Montreal (9-6-4) started the season on an absolute tear - going 7-1-2 in their first 10 games - before hitting this bump in the road.
On Thursday night, the Jets gave up two first period goals to the Canadiens and fell behind 2-0 before turning it into a 6-3 win.
It was Winnipeg's sixth victory when trailing after 20 minutes (and their second in as many games). The ability to handle that adversity is something the Jets take pride in.
"I think the maturity really, really helps," said Maurice. "So the guys who are sitting on the bench are watching the game, they know what they're seeing. So we're playing alright, or, 'hey, we're not good enough good enough right now, we've got to get better.'
"They know what they're seeing. They know the adjustments that we need to make. They know how to get it going, if you will."

Tonight's Jets line-up will be exactly the same as it was on Thursday.
Sami Niku will play his second consecutive game after playing his first since Jan. 19 a couple days ago. Niku had 13:28 of ice time and a shot on goal in the win.
"I liked my game. Of course, it's not easy when you don't play for a month. I started with a simple game," said Niku.
"You just work hard in practice. You need to be ready to play when you get a chance."
The Canadiens seem to present some positive vibes for Niku. The defenceman played his first NHL game (and scored his first NHL goal) against the Canadiens back in April of 2018, so his return to the line-up coming against Montreal seems to fit the story.
However, the 24-year-old didn't care who the opposition was. He was happy to be back in the line-up.
"It's just one team. But, of course, I scored my first goal against them so I have good memories playing against them," Niku said. "I got a lot stronger during the offseason, so I feel more comfortable to battle in the corners. I think it's going better than last year."

With Niku in and Tucker Poolman out for a second consecutive game (and moved to injured reserve after the morning skate), the Jets line-up will look like this:
Dubois-Scheifele-Wheeler
Connor-Stastny-Ehlers
Copp-Lowry-Appleton
Perreault-Thompson-Lewis
Beaulieu-Morrissey
Forbort-Pionk
Niku-DeMelo
As for the Canadiens, forward Josh Anderson is "doubtful" for tonight's game according to interim head coach Dominique Ducharme. Jake Evans - who didn't play Thursday - will return to the Montreal line-up and Jake Allen will start between the pipes.
Connor Hellebuyck will start in goal for the Jets. Hellebuyck made 18 saves on 21 shots on Thursday to earn his ninth win of the season, putting him in a tie for second in that category with Semyon Varlamov of the New York Islanders and Philipp Grubauer of the Colorado Avalanche.
Having goaltenders like Hellebuyck and Laurent Brossoit between the pipes give the Jets a lot of confidence, says Andrew Copp.
Looking back to Thursday's game, the Canadiens may have jumped out to the early lead - and extended it to 3-1 in the second period - but Hellebuyck kept the door shut the rest of the way.
"Sometimes when that puck gets stopped when it shouldn't, it's like 'okay I'm not minus one right now,'" said Copp. "It can give your bench a boost of confidence when it should be 2-0 and it's only 1-0, or it should be 3-0 and it's only 2-0. Or you're maybe the one at fault and instead of being dash-one or dash-two, you're even. It can jump start a team for sure."

The Jets are hoping that jump start comes right from the drop of the puck tonight. The first period is the only period Winnipeg has been outscored the season (19-17).
If there is an advantage to be had in that department, this is the third time this season the Jets have started at 9 pm CT on home ice.
"We have Michigan basketball on today, so I'll be able to watch that which will be pretty good. Other than that, it sucks waiting that long," Copp said. "I've started to figure out little nuances to keep your mind busy. Maybe push your nap back a little bit but not all the way back. Maybe eat a little in between your meal and the game. Just little nuances that we've started to slowly figure out here as we go along."
-- Mitchell Clinton, WinnipegJets.com
Game Notes
The Winnipeg Jets continue a four-game home stand tonight with their second consecutive meeting with the Montreal Canadiens.
The Jets three-game winning streak has posted their points percentage to 0.658 this season, which is tied for sixth in the NHL.
Mark Scheifele is riding an 11-game point streak (8G, 10A), which is a career-high
Goaltender Connor Hellelbuyck is 6-2-1 on home ice this season and has allowed two goals or less in three of this past four home starts.
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