Game 46: Wild 4 Jets 1 post-game report

The Jets are now 26-13-7 after 46 games on the season and sit 1st in the central division (although the Preds, who are down in second by three points, have four games in hand).

For those who would like to take a deeper dive into the advanced stats here are the results from tonight’s game via Natural Stat Trick.

Notable:

– Wild controlled the 1st period, out shot the Jets 23-5 and scored on the power play;
– The Jets were the better team in the middle frame, out shot the Wild 17-9 but gave up another goal;
– Early 3rd period power-play goal by Mathieu Perreault (13th) brought Winnipeg within one;
– Assists went to couple of guys with Minnesota Nice bonafides in Wheeler (Plymouth) & Byfuglien (Roseau);
– Wild regained two-goal lead when Dumba blasted home a slap shot past Hellebuyck;
– Wild extended the lead when Dumba blasted another past Hellebuyck to make it 4-1;
– Proving you can take the boy out of Minnesota but you cannot take the Minnesota out of the boy Blake Wheeler, a Minnesota native, was shown on the tele doing the Skol Vikings clap (To watch click here);

Health Update:

In case you missed it, prior to puck drop coach Maurice provided an update on Steve Mason and Shawn Matthias.  He indicated that Steve Mason has returned to Winnipeg ahead of the team to be further checked out.  As well Shawn Matthias was ruled out of the game this evening in St. Paul with an upper-body and was listed as day-to-day by the Jets bench boss.

Audio:

Blake Wheeler

Mathieu Perreault

Josh Morrissey

Coach Maurice:  Thoughts on the game.  Is the break coming at the right time?  What was his message to the group on the way out.  Did he like what Perreault brought to the top line?  Was he surprised they didn’t get more of a lift from the 5 on 3?

Up Next:

The Jets have a five-day break that begins on Sunday.  They play next Saturday in Calgary at 2 pm.