With the puck dropping at Madison Square Garden on November 12 at 7:00 PM ET, the Winnipeg Jets and New York Rangers will square off in a cross-conference contest. This will be their first meeting of the season, and Winnipeg is hoping for their third straight triumph at the site.
Having defeated the Dallas Stars Saturday, the Jets are riding a six-game winning run. With 14 wins in their first 15 games, they have began the season with the best start in NHL history. In each of the first two periods against Dallas, they scored two goals, so establishing a 4-0 lead by the 7:14 mark in the Second. On the power play, the Jets went 2-for- 5; Connor Hellebuyck made 32 saves.
Now 11-1-0 on the young season, Hellebuyck boasts a 1.83 GAA and a.935 save percentage with three shutouts thus far. Eric Comrie has a 2.67 GAA and a.914 save percentage; he is 3-0-0.
With 4.47 goals per game and 2.07 goals against, the Jets lead the NHL in both marks. At a stunning 41. 9% (18-for-43), they also have the best power-play percentage in the league. Among seven skaters who have already logged at least 13 points over 15 games are Kyle Connor (G9, A10) and Mark Scheifele (G7, A12).
After their dismal 6-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres, the New York Rangers recovered with a 4-0 triumph over the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday. Out of their last four games, three have been wins.
New York was outshot 37-24 against Detroit, but Jonathan Quick had an amazing night between the pipes. While going 1-for- 2 with the man advantage, the Rangers killed a couple of power-play opportunities; Artemi Panarin lead the way with a goal and an assist.
Quick is now 3-0-0 on the season with a great 1.17 GAA and a.964 save percentage; Igor Shesterkin is 6-3-1 with a 2.62 GAA and a.964 save percentage.
While giving up 2.31 goals in return (2nd), the Rangers score 3.77 goals per game—sixth in the NHL. With the man advantage (6th) they are 10-for-38; with the man down (1st), they are 41-for-45. Notching 10 goals and 11 assists in 13 games this season, Artemi Panarin has been exceptional thus far.
This research indicates that the Rangers should win this game.