GAMEDAY: Jets vs Sabres

WINNIPEG -The best part about being at home, after playing eight of nine on the road, really comes down to the little things according to Neal Pionk.
"I think we had 48 hours at home over the last two weeks, so I got to do a little more than my laundry yesterday. So that was nice," he smiled. "It'll be nice to be in front of the home fans again."
The Winnipeg Jets (31-17-1) begin a three-game home stand tonight against the Buffalo Sabres, and want to take advantage of being on home ice before the All-Star festivities in early February.
With a Western Conference leading 17-6-0 record on home ice, Canada Life Centre is exactly where the Jets want to be after a road trip that saw them go 2-3-0.
"We feed off the energy of the fans," Pionk said. "If someone throws a bit hit, we kill a penalty, score a goal, the crowd is electric. We feed off that momentum."

The first meeting of the season between the Jets and Sabres occurred exactly two weeks ago, with the Jets earning a 4-2 win. Kyle Connor picked up the eventual game-winner in that one, but it was Connor Hellebuyck's heroics, in the form of 39 saves on 41 shots, that cemented that victory.

"Our goalie bailed us out. That's why he's an All-Star," said Pionk. "We got out chanced big time in the third period, I know they were down a goal and they were pushing a bit and we were on our heels. Still, that's what we took from that game."
With 179 goals, the Sabres (25-19-3) are second only to the Edmonton Oilers (180) for goals scored this season, and average a league-leading 3.81 goals-per-game.
They're led up front by Tage Thompson, who has 33 goals and 66 points in 47 games this season. But it isn't just Thompson the Jets have to be concerned with. Alex Tuch, Victor Olofsson, and Jeff Skinner all have at least 20 goals this season, and Rasmus Dahlin is just one of two defencemen in the National Hockey League with more points (53) than Josh Morrissey's 51.
"(They're) one of the more skilled teams we've played," said Pionk. "They don't dump a lot of pucks and they're good at making plays at the blue line. We're going to have to be conscious of that, forwards are going to have to have good back pressure and the D are going to need to have good sticks."

Since Winnipeg beat Buffalo, the Sabres have gone 5-1-1, including four wins in a row coming into tonight.
"They're three points behind Washington with three games in hand. So there's going to be a big push here," said Jets head coach Rick Bowness. "They outplayed us in Buffalo. So regardless of road trip or not, we better make sure we're playing Winnipeg Jet hockey right off the get-go. Because this team can score, they're dangerous and they're hard to play against."
Bowness won't make any changes to the line-up that dropped a 2-1 decision in Nashville two nights ago:
Ehlers-Scheifele-Wheeler
Connor-Dubois-Perfetti
Barron-Lowry-Kuhlman
Jonsson-Fjallby-Stenlund-Maenalanen
Morrissey-DeMelo
Dillon-Pionk
Stanley-Schmidt
Cole Perfetti had an assist in the loss to Nashville, giving him 22 helpers on the season - the most among NHL rookies.

His 29 points are the second most (behind Seattle's Matty Beniers' 36) and as the Jets hit game number 50 tonight, Perfetti is noticing a change in how teams are playing.
"It's going to be a heavier game. I think that's really good for me," he said. "I think you have to prepare for that and get that experience heading into playoffs hopefully. Just get used to the heavy game, tight checking, low scoring, that kind of stuff that comes along with the playoffs."
The 49 games the Jets have played are the second most in the division (but they'll tie the Dallas Stars' 50 tonight), so the nearly two-week break coming up around the All-Star Game might be tempting to think about.
But there is work to be done first, and that's far more important.
"You overlook these games and they're going to catch up to you in the end," said Pionk. "You don't want to finish the year and look back at these games before All-Star break and say 'oh man I wish we were ready for those.' We have to be ready to play right at puck drop."
Puck drop is set for 7 pm CT.
ICE CHIPS
Mason Appleton continues to skate in a non-contact jersey as he works his way back from wrist surgery. However, his return date is getting closer.
"I would doubt if he'll play before the break. I wouldn't rule it out at this point," said Bowness. "I talked to him today about getting him out of that red jersey. But I would say after the All-Star break is the best bet, without ruling out the possibility of Saturday or Monday."
David Gustafsson didn't take the morning skate. Bowness said the forward likely needs another few days before he'll start skating.
-- Mitchell Clinton, WinnipegJets.com
Game Notes
The Jets can match a franchise best 32 wins through the first 50 games of a season with a win on Thursday. The only other season in which the Jets wins 32 games through 50 games came in 2018-19.
The Jets are 17-6-0 at Canada Life Centre this season. Winnipeg has own five consecutive home games for a second time this season. The longest home winning streak in franchise history is nine games (March 2 - April 7, 2018).
The Jets are fifth in the NHL with a plus-32 goal differential. Winnipeg only has a plus-one goal differential in first periods, but is plus-12 in second periods and plus-13 in third periods.
Kyle Connor leads the team in scoring with 57 points (24G, 33A) in 49 games. He's tied for 11th in NHL scoring. He's reached 20 goals, 30 assists, and 50 points for the second consecutive season and fourth time in his career.
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