Jets at Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning were rolling along during the first five weeks of the calendar year at 11-2-0 while threatening first place in the Atlantic Division but suddenly are in dire need of a victory. The Lightning have dropped four of their last five games, scoring two or fewer goals in each of the losses, as they prepare to host the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday.
“I have a lot of faith in this group,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper told reporters. “You go through 82 games, you’re going to go through bumps in the road. We’ve got one more at home before six of seven on the road. We need to have an inspired effort against Winnipeg.” The Jets saw their six-game road point streak (5-0-1) come to an end with a 2-1 loss at Carolina on Tuesday and sit nine points out the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Blake Wheeler has scored in two straight games and recorded a team-high 53 points for Winnipeg, which has been struggling on special teams. The Jets are 1-for-20 with the man advantage over their last four games and allowed two power-play tallies on Tuesday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, TSN3 (Winnipeg), Sun Sports (Tampa Bay)
ABOUT THE JETS (25-28-3): Wheeler has notched four points in his last three contests and second-leading scorer Bryan Little (48 points) has collected four in a four-game span while Mathieu Perreault has been blanked in four straight. The Jets announced they will be without physical defenseman Mark Stuart for 4-to-6 weeks due to a broken right hand suffered against Edmonton on Saturday. Ondrej Pavelec has been solid in two starts since returning from injured reserve, allowing three goals on 51 shots.
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (30-22-4): Cooper told reporters the Lightning have been on the wrong side of the puck and cheating defensively during their recent slide. The loss of Jason Garrison (lower body) has hurt the depth on defense while veteran blue-liner Matt Carle was benched late in Tuesday’s game after recording a minus-3 rating in 11:07 of ice time. Nikita Kucherov leads the team in goals (23) and points (48) while captain Steven Stamkos (22 and 42) has tallied just twice in 13 games.
OVERTIME
1. The Lightning are 3-1-2 in the last six overall meetings with the Jets but have lost three straight at home in the series.
2. Winnipeg captain Andrew Ladd is two goals shy of 200 for his career but has been held without a point in four straight games while trade rumors swirl around him.
3. Tampa Bay C Vladislav Namestnikov (upper body) practiced Wednesday and is considered day-to-day after missing one game.