Note: The Jets held an optional practice on Sunday as they prepared for game 2 of their first round series with the Blues. We learned that Gabriel Vilardi is skating with his teammates in a yellow, non-contact while Rasmus Kupari has been cleared for contact. Morning skate for Winnipeg gets underway at 9:30 AM CDT so stay tuned for the pre-game report to ensure you’re up-to-date on the latest. Puck drop is at 6:30 PM CDT.
Note II: We are gonna have all day coverage for you on here but also on our YouTube channel. Our first IC broadcast gets going live at 4:30 PM CDT from Cityplace with the Illegal Curve Pre-Game Show as we get you prepared for game 2. Come say hello as we’ll be on the 2nd floor beside the food court.
Note III: This evening, after the final buzzer sounds between Winnipeg and St. Louis, we want you to be part of the conversation on the Illegal Curve Post-Game Show as we discuss and analyze the results of the game starting around 9:10 PM CDT.
Note IV: The Moose flew back from Texas yesterday after ending their season with a 1-0 victory on Saturday night which saw Jets goalie prospect Domenic DiVincentiis get his first pro shutout. The team will be holding their end of season media availability on Tuesday and Wednesday and we will have complete coverage.
Note V: Just one prospect in action on Sunday night as Colby Barlow (2023 1st) and his Oshawa team won their fourth straight game taking their second round series 4-2 as they advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals. Barlow had 1G 2A in the game which gives him 21 points (9G 12A) in 12 games for the Generals which is a 1.75 pts/g mark which is the highest of his junior career. He was named 1st Star of the Game in three of the four games his team won during that round.
Jets news:
Winnipeg Sun: Jets ready for another Blues hit parade in Game 2. Perhaps but that didn’t really help in game 1 so not sure if that’s the recipe for success in the follow-up match. And it’s not like the Jets shy away from playing a physical brand.
Photo Credit: Colby Spence (Illegal Curve)
Winnipeg Sun: ‘Just get to the net:’ Jets winger Alex Iafallo is a ‘bricklayer’. He definitely brings an element to the line that they have found success with.
Winnipeg Sun: ‘A different animal’: Jets not looking back at playoffs past. Third time is a charm in game 2? Even if it isn’t, the reality is you cannot expect the Jets to revert to what they did a season or two ago. Head coach Scott Arniel is continuously stressing that this is a different team and he isn’t wrong based on what we’ve seen to date.
Winnipeg Sun: ‘I blacked out’: Anderson-Dolan nets first NHL playoff goal in Jets win over the Blues. It was quintessentially Canadian watching him and Morgan Barron prod the other guy to take credit for the goal.
Winnipeg Sun: First Winnipeg whiteout thrilling for Jets’ Schenn, dad not so sure. Have to feel for the Schenn parents in this scenario.
Winnipeg Free Press: “It’s something you dream of as a kid’: Anderson-Dolan making most of opportunity with Jets. (Paywall). Breaking his foot at the start of the season was a tough break for the no nonsense forward who went down to the Moose, worked hard and earned his chance back up with the big club.
Winnipeg Free Press: ‘This is a different animal’: History won’t let Jets get comfortable with early lead. (Paywall). There is no room, from what we’ve seen all year long, for complacency.
The Athletic Winnipeg: Why Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele’s Game 1 performances prove they’ve grown. (Paywall). The duo showed they had faith in the system and didn’t get outside of what has made this team so successful (i.e. not freelancing when things aren’t going your way right away).
Jets video:
TSN: Dreger expects physicality to ramp up in Game 2 between Blues and Jets. TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger joins John Lu to explain what we can expect to see in Game 2 between the Blues and Jets, discuss the brotherly battle between Luke and Brayden Schenn, and share how forward Gabriel Vilardi took a step in the right direction towards his return from injury.
Sportsnet: Jets teammates Cole Perfetti & Mark Scheifele share a special bond. The Ontario duo sat down with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman to discuss their friendship, what Scheifele learned from his mentors that he pays forward to Perfetti and more.
