Enstrom is out, Buff is on the road trip, and the Jets know exactly what has to be done but it sure would be nice for the Canucks to help out right?
That's really what has to happen tonight and for Jets fans that means cheering for the team they cheered against on Saturday afternoon. Oh doesn't the playoff drive create strange bedfellows. In this case 48 hours makes huge difference as the team the Jets all be absolutely had to beat to keep playoff hopes alive is now the same one they want to win to keep the Kings down.
ABLA- anyone but Los Angeles right?
The Kings and Jets are now tied for games played so any win/loss combinations have some serious effects which is why cheering for the Canucks is all the more important if you are a hopeful Jets fan. That being said there is a task at hand in the Twin Cities that has to be managed on the Jets' part, get two points tonight.
Two clean points matters, but in this case even a point will help as long as LA gets none. To achieve that task the Jets have activated Ben Chairot in place of the injured Engstrom and he pairs with Tyler Myers with Stuart and Trouba the middle pair and Harrison-Pardy rounding out the bottom.
Ondrej Pavelec, he of the less than stellar positioning on Saturday gets the start.
The game management tactics and minutiae seem pretty irrelevant but the basics still remain for the Jets; stay out of the penalty box and play a tight defensive game. The latter was a bit hard for the Jets on Saturday but the Sedins will do that to any team, hopefully against LA tonight. Regardless, the challenge with the Wild is containment again as they have been far from an easy team for the Jets.
One thing that is on everyone's mind is when does Dubnyk fall off the high horse he has been riding in what seems like forever into the sunset? The kid is playing like pucks are the size of grapefruit and he can do no wrong- it's very similar to the November/December Jets. Getting to him and on him will certainly make the task easier but that seems to be the problem every team faces when Dubnyk is in the crease- can the Jets be any different?
3 of the past 4 games this season have gone to OT with the Jets coming out on top twice but even when not getting to the extra frame the teams played to a 1-goal 3-2 win for the Wild. Calling these games tight is un understatement and predicting them is even harder because they have become classic division battles.
The Jets have played in 3 straight close games but came out on top only once and that was with Vancouver, but they arrived to that victory by establishing a lead and hanging on. Against the Rangers and Chicago the games were tied and the Jets were at least believing they could earn a single point and failed to by the same score of 3-2, both games late wins for the opposition. It might make sense to hope that the Jets can keep it close and perhaps have a reversal of fortune, or at least enough luck for a single point.
Hoping for help through cheering may feel good but it has no real value if the Jets can't do their part and it's likely not easier tomorrow in St. Louis. Perhaps tonight they can strike when the iron is hot but what stands in front of the iron for Minnesota may be even too hot to overcome.