Winnipeg Free Press https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/teams-aware-of-soaring-jets-456540473.html

Teams aware of soaring Jets Coaches around league not taking lightly

By: Mike McIntyre

LAS VEGAS, Nev. — If the thought they might be able to sneak up and surprise an opponent, those days appear to be over.

Because game after game, city after city, a theme is emerging — the rival coach typically sings the praises of the Jets as they prepare for battle.

Last week it was of the , who said the Jets are playing like a "pack of wolves."

Such was the case again Thursday, as head honcho Gerard Gallant was gushing about the team his squad will face tonight at T-Mobile Arena.

"I think they’re one of the great teams right now. They’re playing a hard game. They play a heavy game, they got a lot of young skill and young talent," Gallant said following his team’s practice. "When you watch Winnipeg on TV, I mean they started the year real tough. But right now, watching them play you know what they’re going to bring. They have some great skill, great talent."

Expansion team Vegas has turned many heads with a strong start to the season, especially having already had three goalies go down to injury. While they are coming off a tough 1-4-1 road trip, the Golden Knights are still playing with house money at 9-5-1.

The Jets come into the game having enjoyed some time in Sin City, which included a day off Tuesday and practices Wednesday and Thursday. They’re expected to go with the same lineup that kicked off the road trip with a 4-1 victory in Dallas Monday night.

"It’s exciting. Just the whole experience with a new team, the fans are excited. They’ve had a really good start, they’ve got the same number of points that we do. It’s a different concept of an expansion team, it has nothing to do with years past," Jets said following Thursday’s skate at T-Mobile Arena. "These guys can play hockey and they’re a good team. So there’s not the casual feel about playing an expansion team. They have a real good understanding of how good they are."

Winnipeg then plays Saturday night in Arizona against the Coyotes. It’s possible Steve Mason could return to the crease to give workhorse goaltender Connor Hellebuyck a break on the back-to-backs.

The Jets are flying high at 8-3-3, including points in eight straight games (5-0-3) and 11 of their last 12 (8-1-3).

Forward Mathieu Perreault continues to work his way back from injury and participated in Thursday’s practice, but is still at least a few days away from returning to game action and needs to be cleared by doctors, Maurice said.

A large, pro-Jets crowd is expected at T-Mobile tonight. They’ll also get the chance to look at a couple Winnipeg-born Golden Knights in Cody Eakin and Brendan Leipsic, although the latter may be a healthy scratch, as he was in their last game Tuesday against the Canadiens in .

"Things started off pretty well for me. As of late, I’ve kind of been on the outside looking in. I’m waiting for my opportunity, staying patient, staying positive. I’ve been in worse places than being an extra in Las Vegas. I’m just enjoying every day and when I get my chance, I’ll be ready," Leipsic said Thursday. https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/winning-takes-work-especially-in-vegas- 456500483.html

Winning takes work, especially in Vegas Jets can't take Knights lightly during hot streak

By: Scott Campbell

The surging Winnipeg Jets are enjoying a few days in Las Vegas and fans can’t be blamed for looking at the club’s next three games and licking their chops.

Tonight they play the Vegas Golden Knights, who are coming off a 3-2 loss to the on Tuesday. The Jets were enjoying a day away from the ice in Vegas while that happened.

This seems to be set up as a perfect matchup for the Jets — the expansion Knights are currently using their fourth-string goalie as their starter due to injuries. When you look at their roster, and what they’ve been through, their 9-5-1 record is outstanding, but it’s hardly scary.

The Jets follow that game up with a home-and-home series against the worst team in the NHL, the , starting Saturday in Arizona.

It should be three easy wins for a very confident Jets squad that’s posted a 5-0-3 record in their last eight games, right?

That "confident" part got me thinking about some of the "c" words that contribute to winning hockey and how they fit with the Jets.

Confidence not cockiness There’s a fine line here and your definition of being cocky may be different than mine.

Unfortunately, I remember the times when some of my teammates and I would have too much swagger when playing a lesser-talented lineup.

It was usually followed up the next day with a bag skate at practice. The coach — who had warned us the day before the game, at the pre-game skate and right before game time — would get his revenge on us after losing because of a lack of effort.

I have to admit, some days I’d listen and nod at the coach’s pre-game histrionics but internally I wasn’t sold. Then I’d go out for warm-up — a quick look at the inferior opposition confirmed my beliefs. It turned out I wasn’t alone.

I got better at this as I learned there was something to the coach’s idea of having to be at your best every night to succeed.

When coaching later, karma hit me in the face. The players got me back, acting as I once did.

I bring this up as the Jets have a young crew of players finding their way. We’ve likely seen all we’re going to get from the older guys.

Players’ maturity from both age groups will show itself over these three games. I’m big on confidence, just wary of the size of the swagger.

I actually have a strong belief at times with this club, depending on how they’ve played into the latter part of the second period. If they’ve been good up to that point, I’m not anxious about the third period, like I’ve been in the past.

The two wins against the Dallas Stars are good examples of that. Even the 2-1 win felt right, even though the Jets barely hung on.

The 5-4 overtime loss to the Montreal Canadiens was the opposite. When the Jets jumped ahead 4-2 in the third period, their play didn’t justify that lead and they deserved the result.

As someone who likes analytics, my favourite part is actually "feeling" the game. Of course, one can get fooled at any point.

Competition The Jets have had some injuries and their forward depth (particularly Moose call-up Kyle Connor) has been contributing lately.

It’s tough to replace Mathieu Perreault, but Connor has been excellent playing with stars Blake Wheeler and . Barring injury, Perreault’s impending return to the lineup is salivating.

I’ve long written about having three scoring lines and it seems obvious what’s possible here. Perreault is terrific at driving the play into the opposition’s end, which is something the Jets definitely need improvement in.

The battle among current bottom-six forwards will be significant, if they can get this group healthy for a bit. There’s no better motivation to play hard every night than having someone more than ready to take your place.

Their external competition has been good, despite some of the teams struggling, like the , where they grabbed three of four points. The Jets’ record serves them well here.

Challenges There will be many significant challenges in a long season, with lots of hardships to overcome.

The Jets have already endured a few, including losing out on goaltender-interference challenges after a is scored. Jets head coach Paul Maurice became part of social media folklore as he told the referees what he thought of them after a lost challenge, but I can’t repeat it here if you missed the video. I understand his frustration at not knowing what that call actually is anymore.

I stay clear of "the referees are against us" thing because the calls even out over time. There’s no league-wide controversy as some fans say, but maybe one or two referees don’t like the team. They are human, so who knows?

Coaching As I said last week, full props to Maurice for getting this group believing in what he’s preaching.

There are many questions to be answered, but all he has to do is point to the standings at this point.

Connor-tending While there’ve been some good performances from the skaters, goaltender Connor Hellebuyck is the biggest reason for the confidence in this team, whether it’s inside or outside the dressing room.

Maurice has been warning everyone that Vegas has a good club and will be tough to play against, so he’s doing his part to curb any cockiness from settling in.

The only question is whether his players are listening.

Winnipeg Sun http://winnipegsun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets/jets-determined-not-to-be-distracted-by- glitz

Jets determined not to be distracted by glitz

By Ken Wiebe

LAS VEGAS – The Winnipeg Jets are determined not be swept away by the potential distractions after spending three full days in Sin City prior to facing the Vegas Golden Knights.

While the Jets (8-3-3) are riding high after Monday’s 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars, they know they can’t afford a letdown against a Golden Knights (9-5-1) squad that is coming off a 1-4-0-2 road trip but is 6-1 at T-Mobile Arena this season and currently holds down a playoff spot in the Pacific .

“They’ve had a really good start, they have the same number of points as we do and it’s a different concept of an expansion team,” Jets head coach Paul Maurice told reporters after today’s skate at the game rink. “It’s not like in years past. These guys can play hockey and they’re a good team. There’s not the casual feel of playing an expansion team. We have a real good understanding of how good they are.”

Since starting the season 0-2 and getting outscored 13-5, the Jets have only lost once in regulation and have collected 19 of 24 available points.

It’s safe to say folks have taken notice.

“I think they’re one of the great teams right now,” said Golden Knights head coach Gerard Gallant. “They’re playing a hard game. They play a heavy game, they got a lot of young skill and young talent. When you watch Winnipeg on TV, I mean they started the year real tough. But right now, watching them play you know what they’re going to bring.”

Connor Hellebuyck starts in goal for the Jets, while the Golden Knights counter with Maxime Lagace.

Golden Knights starter Marc-Andre Fleury has resumed skating, but he’s not ready to be activated from injured reserve just yet. http://winnipegsun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets/jets-hopes-to-keep-hot-streak-going-in- vegas

Jets hopes to keep hot streak going in Vegas

By Ken Wiebe

Winnipeg Jets at Vegas Golden Knights

9:30 pm CT, T-Mobile Arena, TV: TSN. Radio: TSN 1290

THE BIG MATCHUP

Mark Scheifele vs Golden Knights defence The Jets’ top centre has been on fire lately, as he’s up to a team-high nine goals and 18 points (second on the team) in 14 games this season. Chances are pretty good he’ll get a steady dose of Nate Schmidt and on Friday night.

KEYS TO THE GAME

Driving the bus Jets Blake Wheeler is currently on one of the hottest runs of his career, chipping in four goals and 13 points during the past five games. Most importantly, he’s leading the way with his work ethic and his teammates have followed suit.

Strong starters The Jets continue to be one of the best teams out of the gate in the NHL this season. By outscoring the Dallas Stars 3-1 on Monday, the Jets have a plus-14 goal differential in the opening 20 minutes of action (24 goals for, 10 goals against) – which is tops in the NHL to date. The Jets are second in first-period goals to the , who have 26 but the Jets have three games in hand.

Bring your work boots The one constant you’ve heard about the play of the Golden Knights this season relates to their work ethic. This group has embraced the mantra of head coach Gerard Gallant and made hard work a fundamental piece of their identity. If you’re not ready to put in the effort against the Golden Knights, you won’t win.

Home cooking No matter what the reasons, the Golden Knights have already established an outstanding home-ice advantage as they’ve posted a 6-1 record at T-Mobile Arena, the lone loss coming on Oct. 13 against the .

Beware of Real Deal Neal Golden Knights sniper James Neal has made a habit of coming up big against during his career, collecting 18 goals and 26 points in 25 games. He’s already produced eight goals and 12 points in 15 games this season.

Global Winnipeg https://globalnews.ca/news/3852895/winnipeggers-flock-to-las-vegas-to-see-the-jets-faceoff- against-the-golden-knights/

Winnipeggers flock to Las Vegas to see the Jets faceoff against the Golden Knights

By Tamara Forlanski

While it will be all business on the ice in Las Vegas Friday, several Winnipeggers are making a vacation out of the Jets first game in Sin City.

“When we heard Vegas was getting a team and saw the arena we made an agreement we would be back here for the first game the Jets played and here we are,” Jeff Sichello, a Winnipegger who has been in Las Vegas since Monday said. “We have seen a lot more fans over the past few days.”

It isn’t just fans Sichello has spotted. On Tuesday he and his wife, Jocelyn, were walking on the Strip and ran into six of the players they were there to see.

“My wife was in shock,” Sichello told Global News over FaceTime. “Her favourite player, Blake Wheeler, was in the crowd so she almost fainted… she calls him her boyfriend,” he said jokingly.

Wheeler, along with Marko Dano, Mathieu Perreault, Mark Scheifele, Brandon Tanev and Josh Morrissey, all graciously took a picture with the couple.

“They just seemed like normal guys on the street,” he said. “Most people here didn’t recognize them but the Winnipeg people did.” Sichello took the chance to congratulate the players for how well the team is doing and wished them luck for Friday’s game. The Jets and the Golden Knights are currently tied for third place in the Western Conference.

“Hopefully its an exciting game,” Sichello said. “Apparently there are a lot of Vegas fans so there should be good competition between Jets fans and Vegas fans.”

Sportsnet.ca http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets-prospect-report-pipeline-still-full-intriguing- talents/

Winnipeg Jets prospect report: A pipeline still full of intriguing talents

By Rory Boylen

The Winnipeg Jets are, still, a young team on the rise and building towards a brighter future. And if you look at their pipeline of prospects, there are a number of players to get excited about.

To start, the AHL’s is a much more skilled and depth-filled roster than they were last season, with a few players who project as NHLers and some who could even earn a cup of coffee if the injury bug hits the big club this season.

Further down, the Jets also have some intriguing talents in the OHL, the Finnish and even the USHL, where another impressive goalie is quietly excelling as the best stopper in that circuit.

Here’s a look at some of the top prospects at various levels of development:

AHL Tucker Poolman, 24, D Drafted: Round 5, 127th overall in 2013 Season to date: 3GP | 0G | 0A | +1

On a deep Jets defence that has every NHL spot spoken for, Poolman was able to crack the lineup out of camp in a depth/security role, which is quite the accomplishment for a player fresh out of the NCAA and in his first professional season. The fifth-round pick took great strides in three years with the University of North Dakota, nearly doubling his point totals from Year 1 to Year 3. He averaged 15:40 of ice time in the three NHL games he got into this season.

Reason for optimism…

There’s nothing negative to be drawn from Poolman’s demotion to the AHL. On the contrary, he will play a significant role with the Manitoba Moose in a big-minute role to get up to pro speed.

Poolman’s journey to this point has been an improbable route after going undrafted to an NHL team as an 18- and 19-year-old before the Jets took a chance on him with a late-round pick in his third year of eligibility. He went from the low-minors NAHL, to the USHL and earned a scholarship. Now he’s on the cusp of the NHL, and another year or two of fine-tuning with the Moose could end with him in a top-four spot on the Jets blue line.

Michael Spacek, 20, RW Drafted: Round 4, 108th overall in 2015 Season to date: 8GP | 0G | 3A | +1

Drafted out of Pardubice in the Czech Republic, Spacek came to North America the following season and scored 139 points in 120 games across two seasons with the WHL’s — he even got a taste of the AHL at the end of last season and got an assist in four games.

In his first full pro season, it was hoped Spacek could add at least a depth scoring dimension to a team that was in the bottom half of AHL offence last season. He got off to a fine start with three assists in eight games, but hasn’t played since Oct. 27 when he took an awkward hit along the boards.

Mason Appleton, 21, W Drafted: Round 6, 168th overall in 2015 Season to date: 3GP | 2G | 8A | +5

It’s fitting that the team leader in assists is the guy with “apple” in his name. Appleton has been a revelation as another player fresh out of the NCAA since moving on from Michigan State. He had 31 points in 35 games in his last season with the Spartans, but has stepped right into the AHL producing at a level you’d expect to see from a veteran.

Maybe part of that is because Appleton is playing with two vets: Michael Sgarbossa and Buddy Robinson.

“I’m playing with two really good linemates and we complement each other well, so that helps,” Appleton told the Winnipeg Free Press. “I’m definitely getting more comfortable in the league, the pace is slowing down a little for me and the systems are coming more natural. I’m not having to think as much out there, just kind of making the reads and just playing hockey at a fast pace.”

At six-foot-three and 193 pounds, Appleton has a size that projects well for his NHL future and he’s using that size as a strength so far. The challenge for him, as any pro rookie, will be maintaining this level of performance over the demand of a full-season schedule.

Jack Roslovic, 20, C Drafted: Round 1, 25th overall in 2015 Season to date: 13GP | 6G | 8A | +3

The Jets’ top prospect on the AHL team right now, Roslovic was a leader on the Moose last season alongside Kyle Connor. When it came to talking about who would earn a call-up first, it was always between those two, but Connor’s goal-scoring potential gave him the inside track. Should the Jets need another forward call-up, Roslovic figures to be next on the list.

He’s picking up right where he left off last season, leading the Moose in scoring and sitting tied for sixth in the AHL early in the season. He managed 48 points in 65 games last season, but is on pace to eclipse that total by a wide margin in 2017-18. This is another build-up year for Roslovic, who will be counted on in a big role as the top-line centre for the Moose, and will hopefully get him one step closer to landing a full-time NHL spot.

Chase De Leo, 22, C Drafted: Round 4, 99th overall in 2014 Season to date: 13GP | 1G | 4A | -1

De Leo has just one goal (a game-tying marker late in a game against Belleville), but is top-20 in the AHL in shots, so the hope is his percentages rise and he can get back to approaching 20 goals in a season. It’ll be important to see progress in De Leo’s game in his third AHL season, since he went from 19 goals down to 14 from Year 1 to Year 2 and is now struggling to put it in the back of the net through nearly a quarter of Year 3.

Sami Niku, 21, D Drafted: Round 7, 198th overall in 2015 Season to date: 13GP | 1G | 6A | -3

Just two years after being picked in the last round of the NHL draft (14 picks away from the last in the draft), it’s amazing to see the impact Niku is having with the Moose in his first season as a North American pro. He’s a good skater and smart puck-mover, but certainly needs to add weight and strength before making any serious push for a spot full-time on the Jets. Nonetheless, he’s been a key player in the Moose’s top-four and increasingly looking like a diamond in the rough. Niku certainly has the potential to be an NHLer one day.

Eric Comrie, 22, G Drafted: Round 2, 59th overall in 2013 Season to date: 4-3-1 | 2.39 GAA | .924 SP

As Connor Hellebuyck thrives in the NHL this season in his bounce back from a down year, Comrie is reminding everyone that he too is going to be pushing for a spot on the Jets roster in years to come. This season, Comrie is behind a much better Moose defence and his numbers have so far recovered considerably. His save percentage has gone from .906 last season to .924 this season, while his GAA has dropped from 2.96 to 2.39.

Comrie had an underrated season in 2016-17 in facing the second-most shots of any AHL goalie. Currently facing the eighth-most shots, he should enjoy a much better season on a much-improved Manitoba squad and be squarely on the radar for the Jets crease after Steve Mason’s contract expires following next season.

FINNISH LIGA , 18, LW Drafted: Round 1, 24th overall in 2017 Season to date: 18GP | 4G | 7A | +2

At six-foot-three and 209 pounds, Vesalainen has the size to compete with men right now and is doing so in Finland’s top league. The reason the Jets drafted him 24th last summer (which they were able to do after swapping picks with Vegas) was because of the vast potential he’d flashed. The reason Vesalainen didn’t go earlier, however, is that while he excelled against players his own age (he won MVP honours at the U18 tournament), he didn’t show too much in a level or two up. He showed flashes in his draft season, but also struggled with consistency.

Vesalainen bounced between a few teams last season and after a falling out with Frolunda of Sweden’s SHL, he landed on loan with Finland’s HPK, for whom he tallied just one point in nine games. He’s continuing on with HPK this season and has so far been a much more productive player. We should expect to see him in the AHL next season.

CHL Logan Stanley, 19, D Drafted: Round 1, 18th overall in 2016 Season to date: 15GP | 4G | 8A | -3

A giant blueliner at six-foot-seven and 231 pounds, Stanley was drafted as a long-term project prospect who still figures to have a few AHL seasons ahead before an NHL spot becomes a reality. He’s coming off a year where he faced his first bit of adversity, missing most of the season with a knee injury before returning just in time to help Windsor win the Mastercard .

He may be a minus player so far in the OHL, but amazingly no one on his first-place team currently holds a plus rating — the team as a whole has scored just six more goals than it’s allowed.

This figures to be a huge year for Stanley, who will likely make a push for a Team roster spot at the world juniors after playing in the summer showcase. Not known for his offence, Stanley already has four goals for Kitchener this season, which is just one away from his career-high in major junior. He’s a big minute-eater for the Rangers, which will challenge him against all of the league’s top players.

Stanley will be playing for the OHL on that league’s two-game leg of the Canada-Russia Series (you can watch the first game Thursday night on Sportsnet) and was named an assistant captain.

USHL Mikhail Berdin, 19, G Drafted: Round 6, 157th overall in 2016 Season to date: 4-3-1 | 1.97 GAA | .948 SP

Drafted out of Russia’s junior MHL after a sensational season, Berdin crossed the ocean to join the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede and has taken more steps forward in his career. Berdin was second in the USHL with a .925 save percentage in 31 games last season and would have played even more had he not sustained an injury that forced him to miss 15 games — 14 of which the team lost.

If he stays healthy this season, Berdin has the potential for a monster season. Already he leads the USHL with an outstanding .948 save percentage and has faced the most shots of any goalie in the league.

Berdin played for Russia in the second game of the WHL leg of the Canada-Russia series and helped his country rebound from a 7-0 loss in Game 1 with a 29-save effort, plus a , that led them to a 4-3 win. Look for him as a potential starter for Russia at the world juniors. http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/connor-hellebuyck-jets-mvp-can-keep/

Connor Hellebuyck has been the Jets’ MVP, but can he keep it up?

By Andrew Berkshire

After signing Steve Mason in the off-season, it was expected Connor Hellebuyck would be the backup, or at least the secondary goaltender in a platoon situation, since he struggled in his first year as a starting goaltender.

Mason played brutal to start the season, which gave Hellebuyck an immediate opportunity to seize the starting job in a way he couldn’t last season, and so far he’s been brilliant, putting up league average or above save percentage in all but two of his starts, and boasting a .936 save percentage on the season.

Based on his career outside the NHL, Hellebuyck has been one of the more highly touted young goaltenders in the game, and some of the confidence in his ability was shaken last season as he put up a lacklustre .907 save percentage over 56 games. However, there was some reason to be positive he would rebound this year.

Despite his 2016-17 struggles, he maintained a slightly above league average high danger save percentage last season, the best indicator of future goaltender performance. Breaking the shots Hellebuyck faces down by zone, we can see where he’s made improvements this season.

Hellebuyck’s high danger save percentage has actually dropped a little compared to last season, but is close enough that it isn’t anything to worry about. His save percentage has improved in almost every other area, with the biggest jumps coming in the high slot and centre point, essentially meaning Hellebuyck has been much stronger at stopping shots from the middle of the ice.

His save percentage there likely isn’t sustainable, which makes sense because goaltenders don’t consistently post numbers as stellar as Hellebuyck has to start the season, especially as league average save percentage has dropped from .913 last season to .910 this season.

One reason why you might expect to see strong numbers continue for Hellebuyck in the slot, though, is his improved rebound control.

Last season Hellebuyck produced rebounds on a whopping 76.4 per cent of the shots he faced, sending 34.6 per cent of those rebounds into the inner slot, and another 6.6 per cent to the high slot. The percentage of his rebounds going into the inner slot this season is actually a bit larger, but the total number of rebounds is down so significantly that it’s impossible to not see improvement overall, with just 53.3 per cent of the shots he faces producing rebounds this season.

This improvement from Hellebuyck has come at a very convenient time for the Jets, who have struggled a bit to execute their game plan as effectively as they have in years past, with a substandard score-adjusted Corsi of just 46.59 per cent, down from 49.27 per cent last season, and 51.23 per cent the season before.

A lot of those struggles have been on the defensive side as well, which makes Hellebuyck’s performance even more impressive. Last year the Jets were relatively strong defensively and allowed the eighth-fewest high danger scoring chances against per game in all situations. This season, they’re allowing the 16th-fewest, about league average.

A similar problem rears its head when you look at pre-shot movement. Last season the Jets were about average at stopping passes to the slot from their opponents and gave up the 14th- fewest per game. This season they’re allowing the sixth-most passes to the slot, which makes Hellebuyck’s job much more difficult.

It’s not realistic to expect Hellebuyck to keep this level of performance going, but so far this season, he’s the Jets’ MVP, no matter how good some of their offensive players have been.

TSN 1290 (AUDIO LINKS) http://www.tsn.ca/radio/winnipeg-1290/cullen-scheifele-wheeler-connor-line-has-been- impressive-1.911149

Cullen: Scheifele, Wheeler, Connor line has been impressive

TSN.ca's Scott Cullen speaks to Kevin Olszewski about Kyle Connor's performance on the Jets top line, the top lines in the NHL and if the Jets start to the season is sustainable. www.winnipegjets.com https://www.nhl.com/jets/video/ufc-performance-institute-visit/t-277437442/c-54407303 (VIDEO LINK)

UFC Performance Institute Visit

On Wednesday afternoon a few members of the Winnipeg Jets toured the UFC Performance Institute and worked out with a Hall of Fame fighter! https://www.nhl.com/jets/news/jets-get-first-look-at-t-mobile-arena-at-thursdays-practice/c- 292804906

Jets get first look at T-Mobile Arena at Thursday's practice Maurice says Hellebuyck will start against Golden Knights tomorrow by Mitchell Clinton @MitchellClinton / WinnipegJets.com

LAS VEGAS, Nevada - Thursday's 45-minute skate at T-Mobile Arena was the first time the Winnipeg Jets got to check out the home facility of the Vegas Golden Knights, one day before the two teams face off for the first time since the city joined the NHL.

"It's very nice - first-class locker rooms, change rooms, facilities. It's been great," said Matt Hendricks. "You can tell they put a lot of effort and time into setting this up."

The Jets haven't seen game action since Monday night's 4-1 win over Dallas, the first of three stops on the road trip.

In the win, the Jets held Dallas' top-ranked power play to one goal on four opportunities, an improvement from the 5-4 overtime loss to Montreal, when the team's penalty kill gave up three on six Canadiens power plays.

"It's hard to pinpoint exactly, but we tried to take as much time and space away from those guys as we could," said Hendricks. "Any time you have that level of talent on a power play, and you give them time and space, they seem to make plays. When there were breakdowns, (Connor Hellebuyck) came up with the big save."

The penalty kill was one of the situations that was worked on during today's skate, along with the power play, which surged to the fourth best in the NHL, thanks to going 7-for-15 in the last five games.

The power play has also had a bit of a new wrinkle over that span, with Mark Scheifele and Patrik Laine rotating spots throughout the course of their time on the ice.

"Before that, in terms of where they end up standing, it's the movement. That's been the general theme," said head coach Paul Maurice. "I think when you look at trying to identify why our power play has gotten better and put pucks to the net, it's faster and it's moving quicker, and we're not nearly as stationary in our positioning.

"It started really with the four-on-three goal that Mark scored from the half wall. Then he and Patrik started to interchange quite a bit. We know Blake (Wheeler) and Dustin (Byfuglien) will do that as well. Now you've got more movement, which just makes you faster, which would also be also the thing that we'd like to think has been the difference in our five-on-five game as well."

The power play units remained the same, as did the full five-on-five line rushes from the win over the Stars:

Connor-Scheifele-Wheeler

Ehlers-Little-Laine

Copp-Lowry-Tanev

Matthias-Hendricks-Armia

Morrissey-Trouba

Enstrom-Byfuglien

Kulikov-Myers

For the second straight day, Mathieu Perreault took part in the full practice and continues to get closer to a return. He's been out since Oct. 14 with a lower-body injury.

"He's still not there yet, but he's back in the full drills," said Maurice.

"I can't give you a date and a time, he still has to be cleared by the doctors. But he can take bumping and grinding now. Then it's just conditioning."

Maurice also confirmed that Connor Hellebuyck will start in goal against the Golden Knights (9- 5-1), Hellebuyck has a 0.936 save percentage (third in the NHL among goalies with at least 10 games played), and a 8-0-2 record this season.

"It's a different concept of an expansion team. It has nothing to do with years past," said Maurice. "These guys can play hockey and they're a good team. There's not the casual feel of playing an expansion team. We have a real good understanding of how good they are." https://www.nhl.com/jets/video/practice--paul-maurice/t-277437442/c-54407103

PRACTICE | Paul Maurice

Jets Head Coach Paul Maurice on today's practice and his first experience in Las Vegas' arena