Andrew Ladd scored twice in Jets win over Kings – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
WINNIPEG – The Winnipeg Jets are beginning to make a statement to the rest of the Western Conference with the way they are starting to play again. They are a big fast heavy hitting team with a lot of skill and when they stick to their game plan they are a very tough team to beat. They showed they are for real with a convincing 5-2 win over the defending Stanley Cup Champ Los Angeles Kings who are in a dog fight to just stay in the top 8.
“We’re playing a full 60 minutes,” Jets center Mark Scheifele said. “We’re staying in every game. We’re sticking to our game plan and not straying from it at all, and that’s our goal. That’s what we want to do every game. We want to be a big, strong, fast, physical team.”
The Jets improved to 32-20-12 good for 76 points and have a nice cushion on the first wild card spot and are beginning to creep up on 3rd in the Central Division.
Michael Hutchinson was again in goal for the Jets today and he is beginning to look the guy as he has now started 6 of the last 7 games. He made 18 saves off of 20 LA shots but did make a couple of big stops when the game was still somewhat close, as he robbed Jeff Carter with a nice glove save and stoned Trevor Lewis point blank.
“We know what to expect coming in here,” said Kings center Jeff Carter, who scored twice. “We didn’t play near or close to what we should be playing to come close to getting two points. We need to get it going. We’re in a tight race, and every game for us right now is a playoff game, and we need to get our level up.”
Jonathan Quick was in the net for the Kings and gave up four goals on 21 shots before being pulled after the second period; Martin Jones stopped all seven shots he faced in the third period.
“We’ve just got to pay better attention to details,” Kings defenseman Matt Greene said. “There are a lot of things lacking in our game right now, and I think that showed. We played a fast, physical team, and we couldn’t keep up.”
The Jets got goals from Drew Stafford his 11th ,Tyler Myers his 6th , Captain Andrew Ladd notched his 21st and 22nd goals , Blake Wheeler his 17th an empty netter.
“Ladd’s [past] three games have been spectacular,” Jets coach Paul Maurice said. “He really is driving that line [with Little and right wing Michael Frolik]. There is a consistency to [Ladd’s] game and the way that he prepares, the way he practices and the way he plays that you have to have from your leader.”
“Everybody follows,” Maurice said of the Jets when Ladd leads. “That’s what leadership is. Usually when he is on, everybody else is.”
The Kings got a pair from Jeff Carter his 19th and 20th goals of the season. He was the Kings most dangerous player all game and was named the games third star.
The Jets got a huge game from Tyler Myers who seems to be getting more confident with each game he plays as he is so smooth with the puck for a big man as he showed with a beautiful move and then a nasty shot that he ripped past Quick. Myers really likes the Jets system right now.
This was a very intense game as both teams were throwing their bodies around.
Mark Scheifele threw one of the best open ice hits of the season as he caught Lewis with his head down at center ice. Dustin Byfuglien who was in a snarly mood all game lowered the boom on Jordan Nolan and the two dropped the mitts for a short tilt. Both teams will be in for some ice baths after this one.
“I think we’ve started to slip gradually over the past four or five games, and we were lucky to pull a couple out at the end [of the winning streak],” Carter said. “But some bad habits have crept back into our game lately. We had better figure it out quickly.”
On a side note GM Kevin Cheveldayoff continues to make solid moves as he acquired forward Lee Stempniak from the Rangers in exchange for forward Carl Klingberg. This is just another great move to add more depth to an already strong line up. Cheveldayoff has said he will do whatever it takes to bolster this line up and help them get to the playoffs.
Jets will continue their homestand with a game against the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday night.
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