Avs hobbled, but Jets taking nothing for granted tonight

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This article was published 11/11/2019 (1620 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg (10-7-1) and Colorado (10-5-2) meet for the first time this season tonight and the Jets are preparing for a difficult opponent despite the absence to several high-end Avalanche players.

Right-winger Mikko Rantanen, who has missed eight games with a leg injury, skated Monday, and No. 1 goaltender Philipp Grubauer (lower body) and top pairing defenceman Nikita Zadorov, recovering from a broken jaw, have been practising.

Forwards Gabriel Landeskog and Colin Wilson, meanwhile, are out indefinitely with lower-body injuries. Landeskog and Rantanen make up two-thirds of Colorado’s high-powered top line centred by Nathan MacKinnon.

“Obviously, they’re missing some fantastic players but at the same time, I don’t think they look any different,” said Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey. “I think their team is built off speed. We haven’t seen them since last year but they have some new players come into the lineup on the back end and up front that maybe make their lineup even deeper than it’s been in the past.”

Winnipeg centre Adam Lowry expects a high-intensity game from the Avs.

“Just a lot of speed,” said Lowry. “I think, with who they have out of their lineup, they still have a lot of weapons that can hurt you and they can still put pucks in the net.

“Nathan MacKinnon comes to town and it’s always a tough test to shut him (down) and keep his line off the scoreboard. He impacts the game in so many different ways but they’re getting a lot of contributions from a lot of different people.”

Beating a Central Division rival such as the Avs on home ice is crucial for the Jets, who are expected to start Connor Hellebuyck in net.

“We see these teams more often but at the same time, as important as every point is in the league, against your own division is — especially the way it’s formatted — extremely important,” said Morrissey.

“Definitely, you need to be hyped up for these games. They’re usually more physical and maybe a little bit more intense.”

 

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14