ANAHEIM – Heading into Sunday’s third stop on the road trip, the Winnipeg Jets might feel they have a slight advantage over the Anaheim Ducks.
After all, the Ducks played in Las Vegas on Saturday night, and will be playing the second game of a back-to-back when they host the Jets.
Even with that in mind, Haydn Fleury isn’t so sure it’s much of an advantage.
“They’re a young team. I don’t know if back-to-backs even faze some of those guys yet,” grinned the 29-year-old Fleury. “Just be ready to play and be ready for a full 60. Be the suffocating team we can. Bring some energy.”
Regardless of the circumstance the Ducks are in, the focus for the Jets remains on themselves. They know they’ve dropped the first two games of the road trip in Los Angeles and San Jose, the first time this season they’ve lost consecutive games.
The Jets have shown long stretches of games that they’re the type of – to borrow a word from Fleury – suffocating team that has won consecutive William Jennings trophies in the last two seasons.
They’re outscoring their opposition 14-6 in the first period, with those six goals being the fewest allowed in the National Hockey League. But, while they’ve outscored their opponents 15-13 in the second, Winnipeg is being outshot 167-126.
Fourteen games into the season, the Jets want to see a lot of the positive things they’re doing in the first period translate into the second and third.
“You’re going to make mistakes over the course of a game, some plays that you’re not going to be able to fully execute on,” said Luke Schenn. “Just continue to stick with it, play the right way, and it’s going to be a tough challenge (Sunday). We have to be ready to go.”
In the third period against San Jose, head coach Scott Arniel mixed up Winnipeg’s lines. That, combined with Saturday’s optional practice at Honda Center, means the line-up for Sunday’s game will be clearer after the team’s morning skate.
With their 4-3 overtime win over Vegas, Anaheim sits at 10-3-1 through 14 games. Offensively, they’ve been a juggernaut this season, scoring seven goals in a game four times this season – and twice in the last seven days.
“They’re buzzing right now,” said Schenn. “They’re one of the hottest teams in the league and a lot of high-end firepower, young guys that are producing, and a good mix of veteran guys.
“We’ve got a lot of things we want to focus on ourselves too and clean up. We’ll have to be ready to rock tomorrow.”
Puck drop is set for 9:00 pm CT.
ICE CHIPS
The Jets had three players skate in non-contact jerseys on Saturday: Dylan Samberg, Morgan Barron, and Gustav Nyquist.
For Barron, it was his first time on the ice with the group since his injury late in the contest against Pittsburgh on November 1.
Nyquist, who hasn’t played since an early injury against Chicago on October 30, took his second skate (he hopped on the ice late in the morning skate on Friday).
Samberg continued his road back from the broken wrist he sustained in the preseason.
Cole Perfetti also skated in a regular jersey in Anaheim. It was his second consecutive skate that he participated in at full capacity.
As far as a return date goes, that’s a little murky, says Arniel.
“He’s getting there. He hasn’t really got a real practice yet,” said Arniel. “He had an optional today and a morning skate yesterday, then a morning skate tomorrow. For me, I haven’t heard yet how it went today. Maybe a little bit of bump and grind this week, but he’s getting closer.”