Winnipeg Jets Morning Papers

Scoreboard watch:  Senators @ Capitals | Rangers @ Hurricanes

Note: Make sure to @ tweet @illegalcurve with your guess during tonight’s game you can win IC Gear by participating in our twitter Game Winning Goal and 50/50 contests. Remember that for your vote to qualify you must send in your guess by hashtaging (#) our Game Winning Goal (GWG) and 50/50 contest. (i.e. #ICGWG Thorburn #IC5050 $44,445.00).

Note II:  Want to meet Guy Lafleur?  You can today at Polo Park from 11 am to 12:30 pm as he signs autographs for charity (Winnipeg Pet Rescue).  Meet a Hall of Famer and support a great cause.

Jets news:

Winnipeg Free Press:  Ondrej Pavelec needs to be even better for Jets to contend.  Pavelec makes world class saves consistently game in and game out.  However if you asked him if he could improve he obviously would agree that there are areas in which his game could get better.  What are your thoughts on Pavelec’s game?

Winnipeg Free Press:  Hanging hats on hope.  When you no longer control your own destiny you lose the ability to determine your own path and so now the Jets are down to their last chance for romance tonight against Montreal.

Winnipeg Free Press:  Noel encouraged by improvements over last season.  When asked what specifically he notices he stated that it was a maturity of his team as they spent time growing together as a team this year.

Winnipeg Sun:  Antropov drives Jets fans crazy — in more ways than one.  He’s like an enigma wrapped in a riddle that you just cannot figure out.  He has tons of talent and leaves you wanting him to play a full season like he did on Tuesday night against the Capitals.

Winnipeg Sun:  Need to win — and pray.  One of the worst feeling in sports has to be knowing that your fate lies in the hands of someone else.  This became reality when the Jets left themselves below the playoff line trailing two teams by one point with just one game to play while the rest have games in hand.  Going to be some serious nail biting and scoreboard watching at the MTS Centre tonight.

Winnipeg Sun:  Special teams not special enough.   They rank 29th in the league in power plays and 23rd for penalty kills.  Hard to be a playoff team when neither of these reflect the word ‘special’.  Unfortunately for Winnipeg this was best exemplified with a power play opportunity to tie the game with time running out in the 3rd period against the Capitals but instead it was an exercise in futility.

Winnipeg Sun:  Noel gives Pavelec big endorsement.  Pavelec has some detractors who reference his numbers as reason alone to cast him aside for a better alternative.  Coach Noel doesn’t share a similar mindset, despite being mindful of Ondrej’s stats.  He was fairly unequivocal in the confidence he has in Pavelec as his number one tender.

National Post:  Jets, Habs with plenty to prove as season winds down.  It will be difficult for the Jets to not scoreboard watch as both the Rangers and Senators games begin an hour earlier than they do.  All the Jets can control is how they play so it will require another 60 minute effort to at least keep themselves in the conversation.

TSN:  Top 10 Coach Noel clips.  Coach Noel’s post-game anger during the scrum following the loss to the Capitals has led TSN to focus on  some of the more remarkable statements from the Jets bench boss during the past couple of years.

Jets prospect news:

TSN:  Bolts edge Bulls in OT.  Another barn burner in Barrie as these two fairly evenly matched teams played another game which required extra time.  The Colts took a commanding 3-1 series lead, have just lost once in three rounds and are one win away from the OHL Championship.  Jets 2011 draft pick Mark Scheifele scored one goal and had one assist and now leads all playoff scorers with 24 points (8 G, 16 A) in 12 games.

Jets opposition (Canadiens) news:

Montreal Gazette:  Tinordi gets a second look.  Getting the call from Hamilton has to be exciting for the young first round pick (22nd overall) back in 2010.

Montreal Gazette:  Habs know they need to play tougher.  This is not going to be a fun Montreal team to face as they are surly and ready to play to get themselves ready for the post-season.

NHL news:

Chicago Tribune:  Hawks clinch Presidents’ Trophy.  Hawks were the best in the West and took home some impressive regular season hardware.  Coincidentally the Penguins are the best in the East.   Might we see a re-match of the 1992 Stanley Cup Finals?

Vancouver Sun: Roberto Luongo in while Cory Schneider heals.  Bet folks in Vancouver are happy they didn’t trade away Roberto.

Globe and Mail:  Peplinski says ban bodychecking for kids or ‘we’re going to become dinosaurs’.  More and more veterans of the game are speaking out and should be heard.

CBC:  Maple Leafs fan takes aim at CN Tower goal light (video).  A Toronto Maple Leafs fan wants to celebrate his team’s return to the NHL playoffs by turning the CN Tower into the world largest goal light.

NHL Mid-Week with Illegal Curve:

Replay:  Winnipeg Jets & Eastern Conference playoff picture.  Dustin Brown suspension for elbow to Jason Pominville.  Interview with Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette.  Break it Down: Montreal Canadiens Power Play.  6 Things We Learned This Week.  Interview with Andrew Gross of The Record.  Prospect Pulse.  The Relationship Between Players/Coaches and the Media, Keep Your Eye On.