Jets continue road trip in Las Vegas, hope to learn from loss to Kings

5 days ago

Winnipeg Sun

Published Nov 28, 2024 • 4 minute read

Adam Lowry of the Winnipeg Jets skates with the puck during his team's game against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Nov. 27, 2024 in Los Angeles, Calif. Photo by Ronald Martinez /Getty Images

The odds say that betting on the Winnipeg Jets in the city of slot machines would not be a smart choice Friday night.

Winnipeg Jets - Figure 1 — Photo Winnipeg Sun

THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Exclusive columns by Ryan Stelter, Paul Friesen, Ted Wyman, Scott Billeck, Lorrie Goldstein, Warren Kinsella and others. Plus newsletters: Gimme Stelter for your beat on the city, The Exit Row for all your Jets news and On the Rocks for curling.Unlimited online access to Winnipeg Sun and 15 news sites with one account.Winnipeg Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.

SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.

THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authors

Winnipeg Jets - Figure 2 — Photo Winnipeg Sun

Article content

After all, the Jets have lost six straight games to the Vegas Golden Knights, including the last three in Las Vegas. The Jets also just lost the fourth match of an exhausting six-game road trip to the Kings in Los Angeles on Wednesday and may need oxygen on the bench.

The Jets have not even had enough time to practise between games until Thursday.

“Today in practice, it was more just getting our hands and our feet moving and obviously, it’s a quick turnaround tomorrow,” Jets captain Adam Lowry told reporters in Las Vegas after that workout. “It’s an earlier evening game (starting at 5:30 p.m. PT/7:30 p.m. CT), so there will be no morning skate. So, we can rest, recover and try to do everything you can so tomorrow, you have your legs and you’re mentally sharp so you can make the right decisions out there, which we didn’t do (Wednesday) night.”

By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.

Article content

But first, they were forced to watch the video of their lacklustre play during a 4-1 loss to the Kings.

“After seeing the video from (Wednesday), I think it’s clear there’s areas of our game that we weren’t very sharp with and not at our best in those areas,” Lowry said. “On offence, we didn’t create a lot of opportunities and on defence, we spent a lot of time defending. It was a very cut-and-dried message coming from Arnie (head coach Scott Arniel) and what we need to improve on. I think everyone recognizes that that’s not how we expect to play and that’s not the standard we set for ourselves this year.

“When we’re at our best is when we’re advancing our zones and not turning pucks over high in our end or high in the offensive zone and we can create some offensive zone time, and last night, that wasn’t the case.”

Winnipeg Jets - Figure 3 — Photo Winnipeg Sun

Article content

The first practice of the trip could prove to be critical to how they play versus the Knights on Friday.

“Coming off a loss like we did last night, it’s important to keep the guys together, get them back out, try to re-group them,” said assistant coach Dean Chynoweth. “We’ve got to take what we can from that game and now, we’ve got to move forward for (Friday).

“I think the biggest thing with our group is that when we play as an 18-man unit, with everybody contributing — it’s a tough league, so you need everybody. You can’t have guys that take nights off, you can’t have guys that have an off night, you need guys to pick them back up and drag them along. That was not our best hockey by any means and now, we’ve got the back end of this road trip with two extremely tough teams.”

Article content

On the other hand, Winnipeg remains in first place and has been first overall for 38 straight days, the longest in franchise history, bettering the mark of eight days, set last season. The Jets are also 9-4-0 on the road, with the second-most road wins in the NHL to date. They are 2-2 so far on this road swing.

“It’s tough to win in other teams’ buildings but ultimately, we’ve been pretty successful on the road,” Lowry said. “Obviously, we haven’t liked our last few road games.”

Lowry believes the Jets are similar to the Knights, who just finished a five-game road trip (3-1-1) of their own.

“They’re built a lot like us,” he said. “They have a tremendous staff. They have a lot of contributions up and down the lineup, lot of guys chipping in. They get off to great starts and they have a deep back end. They really make it tough to get to the front of the net and they block a lot of shots. And they’ve got some great goalies back there.

Article content

“Like every game on this road trip, it’s felt like we’re playing a great team and we’re going to need to be at our best to find some success here.”

BRIEFLY

Chynoweth said that young defenceman Ville Heinola is still a work-in-progress after just dressing for just his second game of the season versus the Kings. “I thought, first game, he probably played on a lot of adrenaline and excitement,” he said. “The second game, obviously, we didn’t play well as a group. So, there’s stuff to work on there and that’s what we’re here to do, and we’ll continue to develop him.” … Forward Vladislav Namestnikov missed Thursday’s practice for what was believed to be “a maintenance day.”

Recommended from Editorial

'We are the hunted team': Jets cooling off after sizzling start

High-flying Jets hope to avoid a lag against Kings in L.A.

Article content