Jets clinging to final playoff spot: 'You’d rather be in eighth spot than ninth'
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The Winnipeg Jets lost Sunday for the third time in their past four games as the team clings to the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
Their latest defeat - 3-0 to the St. Louis Blues - came despite outshooting their opponents 34-17, with Joel Hofer (33 saves) and Thomas Greiss (one save) combining for the shutout.
The Jets remain in the playoff picture, but the Calgary Flames are just four points back with a game in hand, while the Nashville Predators are five points back with three games in hand. The Jets picked up a 3-2 overtime win over the Predators on Saturday.
“We’re in eighth spot. You’d rather be in eighth spot than ninth,” Jets head coach Rick Bowness said after Sunday's loss. "Now it’s up to us to stay there and hopefully push up a little higher.”
Winnipeg has struggled to find their early-season success since the All-Star break in early February. The Jets are 7-10-2 since the break, averaging just 2.53 goals for per game and 3.37 goals against.
“You want to win games,” Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers added. "It doesn’t mean you have to win them with six goals every night but you want to score enough to win games and we haven’t been doing that. So, we know what we need to do; it’s just a matter of going out there and doing it.”
In a stretch starting Tuesday against the Arizona Coyotes, the Jets play four of their next five games against teams currently sitting outside the playoff picture. Winnipeg also has a home date against both the Flames and Predators as the schedule winds down in April.