Winnipeg @ Carolina preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 14, 2018 ) Carolina 1, Winnipeg 3

Ten years have elapsed since the Carolina Hurricanes made the Stanley Cup playoffs and while their on-ice celebrations following home victories have garnered plenty of attention - and some criticism, they enter Friday’s home game against the Winnipeg Jets in postseason position. Carolina brings an 8-1-1 streak into the matchup and is tied with Montreal for the Eastern Conference wild-card spots, two points ahead of Columbus with 16 games to go.

And the Hurricanes confidence is growing, considering Tuesday’s road loss in overtime in Boston featured forward Justin Williams scoring the game-tying goal in the third period and Carolina earning a point against the second-place team in the East. “It was good, it was intense,” Williams told reporters postgame, citing that Carolina losing a two-goal lead in the contest was a valuable lesson learned. “It was exactly what we needed.” The Jets clearly need something as last season’s Western Conference runner-up lost for the sixth time in nine games Tuesday in a 5-2 defeat at NHL-best Tampa Bay but are one point behind first-place Nashville in the Central Division with three games in hand. “We want to get ourselves mentally prepared to hit the playoffs and survived two or three injuries,” Jets coach Paul Maurice told the media afterward, as Winnipeg continues to play without injured defensemen Dustin Byfuglien and Josh Morrissey.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, TSN3 (Winnipeg), FS Carolinas (Raleigh)

ABOUT THE JETS (39-23-4): Winnipeg has allowed 13 goals in four games since Morrissey suffered an upper-body injury Feb. 24 and since Byfuglien left with an ankle injury Feb. 14, the Jets are 3-4-1. Forward Blake Wheeler has scored six goals (eight points) in his past three games and remains second in the NHL with 63 assists. The Jets survived a scare when goaltender Connor Hellebuyck was knocked from Tuesday’s game after taking a shot off his mask, but he returned later in the contest.

ABOUT THE HURRICANES (36-23-7): Forward Sebastian Aho extended a pair of streaks with two goals Tuesday - a four-game goal streak (five goals scored in that span) and a six-game point streak (eight points). Forward Teuvo Teravainen is pointless in his past two games after registering nine (eight assists) in his previous four contests. Carolina ranked sixth in the NHL in goals allowed per game (2.7) entering Thursday, while the goaltending tandem of Curtis McElhinney and Petr Mrazek has combined to go 33-19-5.

OVERTIME

1. Carolina F Micheal Ferland left Tuesday’s game with an upper-body injury and his status for Friday is uncertain.

2. Winnipeg will have F Adam Lowry back in action Friday after he served a two-game suspension for a high-stick infraction against Nashville on March 1.

3. The Hurricanes face the best of the Central Division this weekend, traveling to first-place Nashville on Saturday.

PREDICTION: Hurricanes 4, Jets 2