Take it and run Jets fans because a masterpiece it was not for a team that was desperate for a win.
While it may not have been the most glorious game it was exactly what the Winnipeg Jets needed and with Pittsburgh taking care of business in Ottawa tonight the Jets are just one point back of the Sens for eight place.
It was not a masterpiece as noted before and if you are a Jets fan you know the team played with fire and Ondrej Pavelec was the extinguisher. however, that's only one part of the story.
Jonas Enroth was just as beastly as his counterpart. In fact Blake Wheeler is probably going to see Enroth popping up in his nightmares for some time. The Buffalo goalie stoned Wheeler on at least 3 grade A scoring chances. He posted a .949 save percentage tonight and had some real mustard to his game.
He was outdone by Pavelec though. With the game on the line and Ron Hainsey sliding into his right leg preventing the Winnipeg keeper from setting up, Pavelec pulled out a glove hand to stop Vanek at point blank range. In fact he might have robbed Vanek so badly that the Buffalo sniper should be wondering just what happened.
As Darrin Bauming
@darrinbauming likes to say 'he robbed him, ski mask style'.
Don't let the three stars from Buffalo fool you:
1- Enroth
2-Miettinen
3-Ennis
Pavelec was as good as Enroth when it mattered. In fact how Ennis who put up a whopping 1 assist, 0 hits and 0 shots made it as a third pick is almost comical. Selection is a goofy thing and the media at FNC is not the only group to have a home bias. I've helped pick the stars before and it's not easy in a close game.
One thing that is picking up some traction, and could gain a bit more should the Jets sneak into the playoffs and even finish as high as third in the east, is the play of Andrew and how it relates to the Hart trophy.
Gary Lawless of the Winnipeg Free Press deserves full credit for this as it had no crossed my mind before. However, during the game I looked up some stats and did a comparison between Ladd and some other front runners and what I found was very surprising. I'll have more on this later in a future post.
Whether or not you felt the Sunday loss to the Islanders was preventable by better play of Ondrej Pavelec you cannot criticize his play tonight. He, and the rest of his team, was missing their best defenseman in Zach Bogosian due to concussion symptoms. The Jets were also missing Olli Jokinen and after the second period Kyle Wellwood.
The chances for Buffalo to tie if not win this game were there but the Jets still managed to keep the Sabres to just 25 shots in the game. Defenseman Derek Meec, who filled in with Byfuglien, provided the assist on the opening goal along with 19:53 of excellent play on ice.
What the Jets did do well was get chances. Evander Kane drew a penalty shot, Blake Wheeler drove the net like a man possessed all of it anchored by Andrew Ladd who went toe-to-toe with agitator Steve Ott. If you want more evidence of Ladd's leadership and value to his team- look no further than stepping up to deal with Ott.
In the end the team who needed the win most pulled it out thanks to Antti Miettinen who scored the go ahead goal at 12:24 of the third period. The Sabres put up a valiant fight to the bitter end and got robbed on a poorly called off-side by the linesman just as Pavelec was already running away with their loot.
While many are calling the Islanders game in Winnipeg Saturday the game of the last two seasons for the battle of will and emotional display, no game thus far in the history of Winnipeg Jets 2.0 will have more importance than in Washington tomorrow night.
It just got very real for Winnipeg and now the Capitals, who blinks first?
Winnipeg Jets Blogger •Winnipeg Jets Writer • 
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