Winnipeg Jets forward Kyle Connor will return to the lineup on Tuesday, Jan 16, against the New York Islanders. Rick Bowness told reporters after Tuesday’s morning skate that Connor is good to go and confirmed that he will return to game action.
The Jets’ leading scorer on the season remains Connor, despite him missing the last five weeks of play. He’s got 17 goals on the season to go along with 11 assists, and found himself in the Rocket Richard Trophy race before his injury as he even led the league in goals late in Nov.
Connor took part in the morning skate, and after fully participating in practice on Monday, he is healthy and will play his first game since suffering a knee injury back on Dec. 10 against the Anaheim Ducks. The Jets were shut out in their last game against the Philadelphia Flyers, so the re-addition of their leading goal scorer is a welcome one.
When Gabriel Vilardi returned from his six-week injury, the Jets placed him on the fourth line for a game to allow him to knock the rust off and get back up to speed. Based on the line combinations from the morning skate, it looks as though Connor will slot right back onto the top line and number one power-play unit.
To make room for Connor on the active roster, the Jets placed Mark Scheifele on injured reserve (IR) retroactive to Jan 13. Scheifele is currently day-to-day with a lower-body injury which he suffered on Thursday, Jan 11 against the Chicago Blackhawks. He will be eligible to play on Saturday, Jan 20 if he is healthy enough to do so.
The Jets will look to get back in the win column on Tuesday as they saw their franchise-record eight-game winning streak come to an end on Saturday, and now they will look to start a new streak with their leading goal scorer back in the lineup. The New York Islanders played last night and got thoroughly outplayed by the Minnesota Wild, so they can expected a desperate group coming into Canada Life Centre tonight.