The Winnipeg Jets and visiting Anaheim Ducks will close out their regular seasons on Wednesday night and then head in opposite directions.
The Jets are going to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the third straight season, having won the Presidents’ Trophy with the best record during the regular season.
The Ducks, meanwhile, will head back to Anaheim to gather their belongings after missing the playoffs for the seventh straight season.
Winnipeg (55-22-4, 114 points) will open the playoffs against the St. Louis Blues, but it appears the Jets will be without forward Nikolaj Ehlers at the start of the series.
Ehlers, who has 24 goals and 63 points in 69 games this season, collided with a linesman during Winnipeg’s Saturday game against the Chicago Blackhawks and aggravated a lower-body injury he dealt with earlier this season.
Winnipeg coach Scott Arniel said Ehlers is week-to-week.
On the positive side, defenseman Dylan Samberg returned to practice on Tuesday after leaving the Sunday game against the Edmonton Oilers when a shot by Connor McDavid went off the inside of his left knee midway through the second period.
“Trust me, I was trying to get back up, but I had no feeling in that leg. I couldn’t move it,” Samberg said. “It’s part of the game and part of blocking shots.”
Winnipeg’s Gabriel Vilardi also appears close to returning.
The forward has missed the past 10 games with an upper-body injury, but he skated before practice on Tuesday and has been upgraded to day-to-day.
The Ducks (35-37-9, 79 points) are hoping to end their season on a high note after losing the past three games (0-2-1), a skid that will prevent them from finishing from earning an average of more than one point per game.
Anaheim led by a goal in the final minute against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday in Saint Paul, Minn., but gave up the tying tally with 22 seconds left and the winning goal with 18 seconds remaining in overtime to take a 3-2 loss.
The Wild needed at least one point to clinch a playoff spot.
“Minnesota was pretty much fighting for their lives (Tuesday) night, so it was sort of like a playoff game,” Ducks forward Sam Colangelo said. “(The Jets) won the Presidents’ Trophy, so it’s going to be a hard test for us, but we’re looking to close the season out with a win.”
Colangelo scored his 10th goal of the season on Tuesday in his 31st game, his ninth in 19 games since he was recalled for a second time from AHL San Diego on Feb. 27.
“I’m playing with unbelievable players, so it’s a good accomplishment, but ultimately a win would have been more important,” he said. “I wouldn’t be able to get 10 goals without playing with the guys I’m playing with.”
Anaheim’s Alex Killorn scored his 19th goal of the season on Tuesday. One more against the Jets on Wednesday and the Ducks would have six 20-goal scorers for the first time in team history.
Tim Washe made his NHL debut against the Wild three days after he helped Western Michigan win the NCAA title. The 23-year-old forward played 6:24 and had one shot on target.
–Field Level Media
