After a week and a half of waiting, the Winnipeg Jets are finally back in action as they start their second round series of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Montreal Canadiens.
Tonight’s game will be the first of two straight at Bell MTS Place as the Jets have home-ice advantage throughout this series. Puck drop is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. central time.
The Jets are coming into this game after having a week and a half off. Their last game was on May 24 when they completed a four-game sweep against the Edmonton Oilers in round one.
On the other hand, the Montreal Canadiens come into Winnipeg right off the back of their game seven victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Montreal was down three games to one in the series but won three unanswered to complete an outstanding comeback against the North Division favorites.
The Winnipeg Jets will look to pick up right where they left off in game one against the Montreal Canadiens
Both teams are taking winning streaks into this one, but none of this matters when the puck drops tonight. This game should be extremely fun to watch. Expect both teams to play fast and physical in this one.
Odds
The Jets are the favorites in tonight’s matchup. Both of these sides were underdogs in the previous round and this is the first time Winnipeg is the favorite this postseason.
The Canadiens are flying high while the Jets have not played since May 24. As we have seen in years prior, the team with less rest that comes right into a series does extremely well against a team that had a considerable time off.
This matchup could go either way tonight
Where you can Find the Game
TV: CBC, SN, TVAS, NBCSN
Radio: 680 CJOB
Projected Lineups
With no injuries in the first round and a week of practice under their belts, the Winnipeg Jets are expected to use the same lineup that they used in games three and four against Edmonton.
Connor Hellebuyck will get the start as he looks to win his first five starts of this current postseason.
The Jets are projected to lineup like this:
Connor-Scheifele-Wheeler
Dubois-Stastny-Ehlers
Copp-Lowry-Appleton
Perreault-Thompson-Lewis
Morrissey-DeMelo
Forbort-Pionk
Stanley-Poolman
Hellebuyck (Brossoit)
Montreal has kept a consistent lineup throughout the postseason and tonight should be no different.
The Canadiens are projected to use the same exact lineup that got them the game seven victory two nights ago.
Montreal is projected to name Carey Price as their starter for tonight’s game one. Price played outstanding on Monday night stopping 26 of 27 shots faced.
The Canadiens are expected to lineup like this:
Evans-Danault-Gallagher
Toffoli-Suzuki-Caufield
Byron-Kotkaniemi-Anderson
Perry-Staal-Armia
Chiarot-Weber
Edmundson-Petry
Kulak-Gustafsson
Price (Allen)
In anticipation of this series, click the link here to read a quick preview of the Jets vs. Canadiens matchup including how these sides faired against each other during the regular season.
Winnipeg Jets Fans: Will the Winnipeg Jets win game one? Leave your comments below!
*All Stats Provided by the NHL*