The Minnesota Wild have seemingly turned their season around since John Hynes was installed as coach last month.
Meanwhile, the Winnipeg Jets have been solid from the start.
The surging Wild aim for a season-high fifth straight victory Saturday when they visit the Jets, who look to extend their home point streak to seven games.
Minnesota was 5-10-4 when coach Dean Evason was fired on Nov. 27. Enter Hynes, who formerly coached in New Jersey and Nashville, and the Wild are 11-3-0 and brimming with confidence.
“We’ve regrouped,” Minnesota forward Ryan Hartman said. “It shows a lot of character in our group and how we were able to be resilient.”
Marcus Johansson had two goals with an assist, while Hartman scored in his third straight game, as the Wild tallied four times in the third period of Wednesday’s 6-3 home win over Detroit. Minnesota superstar Kirill Kaprizov scored in his fourth straight contest and has five goals with four assists in the last five games.
“We’re trending in the right direction, and it’s fun to play hockey right now,” said Johansson, who has three goals with seven assists in his last 11 games.
Amid a 7-1-0 overall stretch, Minnesota will try for a third consecutive victory at Winnipeg.
The Jets are in the mix for the Central Division lead, have lost just nine times in regulation this season and have outscored their opponents 38-20 while going 8-1-2 this month — even without star Kyle Connor since Dec. 10. He is slated to miss at least six weeks with a knee injury.
Though Winnipeg looks to rebound from Wednesday’s 2-1 overtime loss at Chicago, it’s an exceptional 5-0-1 at home in December. The Jets, though, would still like to improve a power play that went 0-for-4 against the Blackhawks and is 3-for-25 in the last 11 contests.
“We’ll work at it, and keep working at it,” Winnipeg coach Rick Bowness said of the team’s power-play struggles.
“Make sure it’s ready the next time we go.”
While Minnesota has played well, it enters play Friday tied for last in the NHL in penalty-kill percentage at 71.8. The Wild have allowed opponents to record a power-play goal in each of the last five contests.
Jets star Mark Scheifele was held without a point at Chicago but has posted 24 of his team-leading 36 points in 18 home games this season. However, he has just one point in his last four games versus Minnesota.
Teammate Connor Hellebuyck owns a 1.77 goals-against average and .939 save percentage during a current 9-2-2 stretch. Meanwhile, backup Laurent Brossoit has a 2.00 GAA during his current four-game home winning streak.
Minnesota’s Filip Gustavsson has won five of his last six starts but yielded 10 goals in his last three. Teammate Marc-Andre Fleury has won two straight starts but surrendered nine goals in his last three outings.
Kaprizov has been stellar against the Jets, posting three goals and 11 assists in just eight career games. However, he’s failed to score in all four games he’s played at Winnipeg.
–Field Level Media