The Jets aim to win four crucial divisional games over the Colorado Avalanche next season.
The Jets are coming off a historic year with franchise best numbers across the board. If they want to find themselves in a similar position, they'll need to win crucial games starting in the Central Division. The Central is tougher than ever and with only three available spots plus a pair of wild card spots, they need to win these games.
These two always put on elite showdowns as both sides have top end talent on both sides of the ice. The Avalanche finished last season with the sixth-best offence, led by Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas, and the 12th-best defense, led by Cale Makar and Devon Toews.
They'll need to make some adjustments, however, after losing key defenseman Ryan Lindgren to the Seattle Kraken and parting ways with Miles Wood and Charlie Coyle, leaving holes in their middle-six forward group. To bolster their lineup, they re-signed elite center Brock Nelson, who they acquired before last season’s playoff push and added Victor Olofsson, a former 49-point scorer, to help offset the offensive loss caused by Wood and Coyle’s departures.
Winnipeg will aim to maintain their dominance in the matchup, but it won’t come without challenges following some notable roster losses. Top-six winger Nikolaj Ehlers departed in free agency, while Mason Appleton, a key piece of the Jets' elite third line also moved on. Additionally, the team chose not to re-sign Brandon Tanev.
In response, the Jets made several hopeful additions, bringing in three-time Stanley Cup champion Jonathan Toews, veteran forward Gustav Nyquist, who followed up a career-high 75-point campaign in 2023–24 with a career-worst 28-point season last year and lastly Tanner Pearson, who is expected to help fill the void in the bottom six left by Appleton’s departure.
The lineup changes will hopefully keep the Jets listed as Stanley Cup contenders and help them repossess their numbers from last season as a top four offence and the league's best defense.
The upcoming series is shaping up to be one of the closest yet, as both teams have made major lineup changes that are sure to bring a fresh dynamic to their four-game showdown next season.
The rivalry kicks off on December 19th as an early Christmas treat for fans. The action continues with a home game for the Jets on March 14th, followed by a home-and-home series on March 26th and 28th.
