Patrik Laine hopes to help Jets win in debut

HURRICANES (0-0-0) at JETS (0-0-0)
8 p.m. ET; TSN3, FS-CR
WINNIPEG - Forward Patrik Laine won't be thinking about anything other than helping the Winnipeg Jets get two points when he makes his NHL regular-season debut against the Carolina Hurricanes at MTS Centre on Thursday.
The No. 2 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft watched the player who was selected before him, Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, score four goals in his NHL debut on Wednesday, but Laine isn't placing any lofty expectations on himself.

"Play my game and help my team win," Laine, 18, said after the morning skate. "And if we could win, that would be great. Just be brave on the ice and don't be afraid of anything and give everything you have on the ice. That's enough for me and the team."
Laine wasn't the only Finnish player preparing for his NHL debut. Sebastian Aho, the No. 35 pick in the 2016 draft, will make his debut on a line with fellow Finn and Hurricanes newcomer Teuvo Teravainen, who was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks on June 15.
"Of course, it's a pretty big thing," Aho said. "I've been waiting to play for the Hurricanes. Every day [I'm getting] better and better.
Aho downplayed playing against Laine, his teammate on Team Finland at the World Cup of Hockey 2016.
"It's pretty cool that two Finns make their debuts on the same night," Aho said.

Jets projected lineup

Nikolaj Ehlers -- Mark Scheifele -- Blake Wheeler
Shawn Matthias -- Bryan Little -- Drew Stafford
Kyle Connor -- Mathieu Perreault -- Patrik Laine
Brandon Tanev -- Adam Lowry -- Joel Armia
Josh Morrissey -- Dustin Byfuglien
Toby Enstrom -- Tyler Myers
Ben Chiarot -- Paul Postma
Connor Hellebuyck
Michael Hutchinson
Scratched:Mark Stuart, Chris Thorburn, Alexander Burmistrov
Injured:none

Hurricanes projected lineup

Jeff Skinner -- Victor Rask -- Lee Stempniak
Joakim Nordstrom -- Jordan Staal -- Andrej Nestrasil
Sebastian Aho -- Elias Lindholm -- Teuvo Teravainen
Bryan Bickell -- Jay McClement -- Viktor Stalberg
Jaccob Slavin -- Justin Faulk
Ron Hainsey -- Brett Pesce
Noah Hanifin -- Klas Dahlbeck
Cam Ward
Eddie Lack
Scratched: Phillip Di Giuseppe, Martin Frk, Roland McKeown
Injured: Ryan Murphy (lower body)

Status report

Hellebuyck will start in goal for the Jets. Ward will start for the Hurricanes. ... Carolina forward Sergey Tolchinsky was assigned to Charlotte of the American Hockey League on Thursday

Who's hot

Skinner scored twice and had an assist to lead the Hurricanes in four preseason games. ... Connor scored two game-winning goals in the preseason and led the Jets with 12 shots on goal.