The Winnipeg Jets traveled to Evander Kane’s hometown of Vancouver for tonight’s game against the Canucks, but he wasn’t on the ice as head coach Paul Maurice decided to list him as a healthy scratch. Without Kane, Winnipeg suffered a 3-2 overtime loss to Vancouver.
For a while it looked like a broken stick would be the difference as Canucks defenseman Alexander Edler missed a chance to clear the puck with his team down a man for that reason. Andrew Ladd capitalized on the situation by claiming the puck and feeding it to Bryan Little, who fired it past goaltender Eddie Lack.
Forward Ronalds Kenins, 23, stepped up in his third career game though to score the game-tying goal. The contest went to overtime, but Vancouver only needed 36 seconds to finish off the Jets, courtesy of a Luca Sbisa marker.
“The puck was bouncing around a bit, but we stuck to our game,” Sbisa said, per the team’s Twitter feed. “We can’t play like we’re afraid to lose.”
It’s a key victory for Vancouver as it provides the squad with a four-point cushion in the playoff race after Colorado and Minnesota won tonight. It also moves the Canucks from the second Wild Card seed to the third spot in the Pacific Division, ahead of the Calgary Flames.
The Jets have now lost five straight, although they still have a six-point edge in the battle for a postseason berth.
Lots are asking if Evander Kane has been traded and that's why he's been held out of lineup - my intel says that's not the case. Discipline.
— gary lawless (@garylawless) February 4, 2015
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