Jets at Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks try for their 15th consecutive victory over Winnipeg when they host the Jets on Tuesday and hope to begin getting some of their injured players back for the final week of the regular season. Goaltender Frederik Andersen and defenseman Simon Despres (concussions) participated in Monday's practice and Despres has been cleared to return, but Anaheim is expected to be without center Rickard Rakell for at least one more game as he recovers from an appendectomy.
Defenseman Kevin Bieksa, center Brandon Pirri (upper-body injuries) and left wing David Perron (separated shoulder) also missed Sunday's 3-1 victory over Dallas, with Perron not expected back until at least midway through the Ducks' first-round playoff series. “The one thing you can’t do is have a pity party and say, ‘Woe is me,’” Anaheim coach Bruce Boudreau told reporters. “We sit there and another guy comes in and his job is to do as well as the guy before him.” The Ducks lead Los Angeles by one point in the Pacific Division with four games remaining - one more than the Kings - and visit Los Angeles on Thursday to kick off a season-ending three-game road trip. Winnipeg has been reduced to the role of spoiler and played the part well by slowing Minnesota's bid for a Western Conference wild-card spot with a 5-1 victory on Sunday in their home finale.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, NHL Network, TSN3
ABOUT THE JETS (32-39-8): Winnipeg could not build off the momentum of last season's trip to the postseason, but continues to play hard down the stretch. “The veterans have driven (us),” coach Paul Maurice told reporters. “(Blake) Wheeler and (Dustin) Byfuglien are playing as hard and as well as they have all year. ... There's some accountability and pride for the other players when they see those guys competing and not being casual about the game.” Wheeler's 50 assists are good for fifth in the NHL and his team-best 73 points also mark a career high while Mark Scheifele (club-high 27 goals) scored three in the last four games.
ABOUT THE DUCKS (44-24-10): Fourth-line center Nate Thompson didn't record a goal in his first 42 games but has scored in a career-high three straight contests, including a shorthanded breakaway tally Sunday in what Boudreau called Anaheim's best game in a month. Ryan Kesler scored the other two goals Sunday to give him 20, marking the eighth time he's reached that plateau. Corey Perry has a team-high 32 goals - the sixth time he's scored that many - and is one shy of matching last season's total while Ryan Getzlaf boasts 49 assists - tied for sixth in the league with Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby - and a club-best 61 points.
OVERTIME
1. The Ducks boast the top power-play and penalty-killing units in the NHL and scored two short-handed goals against Dallas.
2. Anaheim C Andrew Cogliano played his 700th consecutive game Sunday - the sixth player in NHL history to do so - and hasn't missed one in his career as he pursues Doug Jarvis' league record of 964 straight contests.
3. The Jets last defeated the Ducks 3-2 on Jan. 21, 2014 as the slide includes a four-game sweep in the first round of last season's Stanley Cup playoffs.