Backstops hoping for not-so-Wild Friday night
Goalies coming off unfinished starts
The Winnipeg Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck and the Minnesota Wild’s Devan Dubnyk will both be hoping for better results when they go head to head when Minnesota hosts Winnipeg on Friday afternoon.
In what was a rare occurrence, both No. 1 puckstoppers were pulled on Wednesday.
Hellebuyck got the hook after giving up three goals on nine shots during a 6-3 loss to the Calgary Flames, while Dubnyk was yanked after the Ottawa Senators turned a 4-1 deficit into a 4-4 tie, although Minnesota eventually claimed a 6-4 victory.
Here are five things to watch for on Friday:
1 Clean up the first period
Despite scoring 15 seconds into Wednesday’s game against Calgary, the Jets gave up five goals on 14 shots in the first period.
2 Laine feeling it
After going 18 games without a 5-on-5 goal to start the season, Jets sniper Patrik Laine has three over his last two games and five goals overall during that span to move him into the team lead with 13.
3 Byfuglien a force
Minnesota product Dustin Byfuglien has four assists during his last five games and has been logging an awful lot of ice time. He’s also averaging nearly a point a game with two goals and 16 points in 18 games.
4 O from the D
Speaking of defencemen who have piled up points, the top pairing on the Wild, Ryan Suter and Mathew Dumba, has combined for 13 goals and 32 points this season with 14 of those points coming on the power play.
5 Healthy and producing
Wild left-winger Zach Parise endured an incredibly challenging 2017-18 campaign thanks to a series of injuries, but he’s back to full health and is already in midseason form with nine goals and 19 points, with only five of those points coming on the power play.