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The Detroit Red Wings hit the road for a trip north of the border starting tonight as they take on the Winnipeg Jets with puck drop set for 8:00 PM. This is the Red Wings’ second and final matchup against the Jets this season, the Red Wings won the first matchup 7-5 in Detroit back on January 10th.
Detroit Red Wings (33-32-9) vs. Winnipeg Jets (41-31-3)
When: Friday, March 31
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Where: Canada Life Centre (Winnipeg, MB)
Channel: Bally Sports Detroit
Red Wings vs. Jets Scoring Leaders
Red Wings vs. Jets Goaltender Comparison
Why it matters
Winnipeg is entering tonight having not played since Tuesday, while the Red Wings played just last night. Winnipeg is currently sitting in a Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. The Red Wings sit in 13th in the Eastern Conference.
The Red Wings over their last three games against the Winnipeg Jets are 2-1-0 and have outscored them 10-9 in those three games. The lone game the Jets beat the Red Wings in those last three was back on January 13, 2022, by a score of 3-0. Two of the three goals scored in that game for Winnipeg came from Andrew Copp who now plays for the Red Wings.
After last night’s win and now traveling to Winnipeg Red Wings head coach, Derek LaLonde said it wouldn’t be fair to start Alex Nedeljkovic, and with Ville Husso not being available for this back-to-back all signs point to Magnus Hellberg getting the start in between the pipes. Hellberg has never faced the Jets in his career. This season with Detroit, Hellberg is 4-7-1 and has stopped 331 of the 370 shots he has faced.
Red Wings vs. Jets by the numbers
Tonight’s Red Wings player to watch: Andrew Copp
Andrew Copp is in his first season with the Red Wings and has had an underrated season. Many fans are unhappy with his play because of his numbers, but he is a solid two-way player for the Red Wings. Copp in his career has played in 556 games scoring 91 goals and 151 assists. For his career is a plus 72 and has a 51.1 % Face Off win percentage. Copp has played in every Red Wings game to this point scoring nine goals and 31 assists. Copp this season is also only one of two current Red Wings to have a plus in the plus/minus category with a plus three and he’s also won 49 percent of his faceoffs this season.
- Copp ranks eighth on the team in goals.
- Copp ranks third on the team in assists.
- Copp ranks fourth on the team in points.
Andrew Coop’s expected line shifts
Copp is expected to play on the second line tonight with Pius Suter and Lucas Raymond. Copp will also play on the second power-play unit with Joe Veleno, Jonatan Berggren, Dominik Kubalik, and Jake Walman.
- Copp has one power-play goal, and four power-play assists this season.
- Copp has 11 power-play goals, and 17 power-play assists in his career.
Copp’s career vs. Winnipeg
Copp started his career with Winnipeg playing in 467 career games with them before being traded to the New York Rangers. Since being traded Copp has now played in only two games against the Jets and in those two games he has tallied four points all coming off assists.
Wrap Up
It may have been the wrong time for the Detroit Red Wings to get hot which has probably upset the fans that are saying “tank for Bedard” but this is great to see as the team continues to build for the future. There will be needs in the offseason but what the team currently is doing with what they have is fun to see. This team is playing with heart and beating teams that are currently playoff teams.
With last night’s win, the Red Wings surpassed the point total of last season’s Red Wings team and they still have eight games remaining this season. This is the first time they have surpassed 75 points in a season since the 2016-17 season so a step in the right direction for the Detroit Red Wings.
What is the Detroit Red Wings’ schedule?
Remaining Detroit Red Wings Schedule:
