Winnipeg Jets Look to Extend Winning Streak to Eight Against Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday

The Winnipeg Jets look to continue their historic start to the season when taking on the Tampa Bay Lightning on the road.

It'll be a tough task for the Jets to win their eighth straight game against a Lightning team that started off the season winning seven of their first ten games but have since lost four straight.

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They are due for a win and Winnipeg will give superstar netminder Connor Hellebuyck a well-deserved night off and the team will look to start backup Eric Comrie. The 29-year-old Edmonton native has been stellar this season with an undefeated 3-0-0 record and a 2.67 goals against average.

He will face off against Andrei Vasilevskiy, who has continued solidifying his status as a Hall-of-Fame netminder with a 2.43 goals against average through his first 12 starts this season. It could be a very low-scoring game with every goal mattering.

The Jets have won five consecutive games against the Lightning, and their recent matchups have been high-scoring affairs, with nine of the last 11 games between the two teams totaling six or more goals.

Winnipeg has the best offence in the league this season with a 4.56 goals per game average due to the epic start to the season from first line forwards Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele.

The longtime dynamic duo for the Jets have combined for 20 goals in the first 16 games this season and have helped Gabe Vilardi grow his game as he's also contributed seven goals himself.

Tampa Bay's offence is very good as well as they rank top eight in goals per game average at 3.50 thanks to superstar forward Nikita Kucherov. The two-time Art Ross trophy winner has started the year hot once again with 11 goals and 12 assists for 23 points in 14 games.

It'll be a very thrilling matchup and should be a solid game between two quality hockey clubs. Catch the game on Sportsnet at 6:00 PM MT, or catch the live broadcast on Power 97, the FM home of the Winnipeg Jets. If you are in the Tampa Bay area, tickets are very reasonable for Jets versus the Bolts with the lowest pair being sold at roughly $28USD.