8:30 pm CT – TV: Sportsnet/CBC; Radio: 680 CJOB/Power 97
WINNIPEG – As they prepare for Game 5 back at Canada Life Centre, the Winnipeg Jets have one of their top six forwards back.
Gabe Vilardi who has missed the first four games of the best-of-seven series which is tied at two games apiece, will be right where he left, alongside Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor when the Jets try to get back into the win column after dropping two straight to the St. Louis Blues.
“Yeah, it’s exciting. We know what he means to this team, means to our line,” said Connor following practice on Tuesday.
“It’s very encouraging getting a guy like that back. We know what type of game he brings, so it’s great for us.”
Vilardi, who missed the last 11 games of the regular season set career highs in goals (27), assists (34) and points (61), will hopefully add some punch back to the Jets offence which has gone cold. After scoring eight goals in the first two games, Winnipeg has only scored three times in the last two.
“First couple of shifts he’s going to have to get up to speed. It’s going to be a heck of a lot faster now than it was when he left us,” said Scott Arniel.
“But I’ve got all the confidence as I watched him the last few days in practice that he’ll be alright.”
WPG@STL: Vilardi scores goal against Joel Hofer
Vilardi has been skating with the team for almost a week now and says he’s hopeful that he will make a big impact.
“I have to go out there, I’m not going to be Superman or anything like that. I’m just going to go play and hopefully I can help those two out and help the team out,” said Vilardi.
“Hopefully we can get back and get a win tomorrow. But I’m not thinking too much about stuff like that. Just going in there, playing my game and hopefully making some good plays out there.”
Clearly where Vilardi has been missed the most is on the power play. Winnipeg had the best power play in the NHL during the regular season and it has struggled against the Blues at 16.7%, which is 13th amongst the 16 playoff teams.
“It’s a different look with a righty there. Obviously having the righty lefty in the down low in the slot guy is just a different dynamic, different type of respect if it’s over on my side on the half-wall and you have a one-timer, you’ve got to be aware,” said Connor.
“It’s just a way quicker shot to get off. And we know around the net, he’s tipped countless goals throughout his career and this year. So, it’s a huge advantage for us to have him back.”
Vilardi being in the lineup means that Alex Iafallo will move down to the left side with Vlad Namestnikov and Cole Perfetti, Nino Niederreiter will rejoin Adam Lowry and Mason Appleton, Morgan Barron, Jaret Anderson-Dolan and Brandon Tanev will be the fourth line. Logan Stanley will come back into the lineup alongside Luke Schenn for the Jets third defence pairing.
While adding some offence to the team is a nice bonus at this time of year, defending as well as they did in the first two games of the series would be a bonus. Winnipeg was the league’s top defensive team and need to give Connor Hellebuyck some help after watching him get pulled in back-to-back games in St. Louis.
“You want to win every game, you want to play your best every single game. There’s some disappointment and that’s OK. it’s all a part of it,” said Dylan DeMelo.
“Take it for what it is and move on and be ready to go. Guys are excited, I’m excited we get to play Game 5 and our home crowd, I think we’re really excited for that opportunity to take a 3-2 series lead, hopefully.”
Coming back to the whiteout has the Jets players excited especially since it’s a best-of-three now. The Blues used their crowd to get back into this series and now it’s Winnipeg’s chance to take back some momentum and bounce back.
“We’ve got a great opportunity here in front of us. It’s a best of three series, two at home, and it’s kind of like we’ve been doing all year,” said Connor.
“Guys have pulled on each other, really pushed each other to do the best they can.”
