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Maurice, Jets face tough test in Anaheim

Jan 21, 2014 - 4:28 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - The Winnipeg Jets are about to find out how far they have come under new head coach Paul Maurice.

The Jets hope to secure a fourth straight victory on Tuesday night when they try to hand the Anaheim Ducks their first regulation loss at home this season.

Winnipeg's current winning streak, its longest since winning a season-high four in a row from Nov. 8-15, has come under Maurice's first three games since replacing Claude Noel as the team's head coach. The Jets lost each of Noel's final five games as coach before making the switch on the bench.

After outscoring their opponents 10-3 in the first two games under Maurice, the Jets engaged in a closer battle with the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday and came away with a 3-2 victory in overtime as Jacob Trouba's second goal of the game came 1:10 into the extra frame.

Trouba and Mark Scheifele both scored in the third period to erase a 1-0 deficit, though the Oilers netted the game-tying goal with two minutes left in regulation. Trouba then muscled his way to the front of the net in overtime and tipped home a feed from Blake Wheeler, whose initial shot on the play missed the net.

Wheeler had two assists and Ondrej Pavelec made 20 saves for the Jets.

"We're just having fun and kind of rolling with it. Nobody really got down when we got down a goal or when they tied it at the end. We responded well and I think everyone was pretty happy with how we played," said Trouba.

Winnipeg is slated to have forward Evander Kane in the lineup tonight for the first time under Maurice. Kane has missed the last four games with a lacerated right hand, an injury suffered during a fight versus Tampa Bay on Jan. 7.

Kane has 14 goals and 25 points in 38 games this season.

The Jets will need all the firepower they can muster as they battle a Ducks club that is 20-0-2 at home this season and has won 19 of its last 21 games overall. That has Anaheim atop the NHL standings with 79 points, four ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Ducks had an eight-game win streak snapped with Friday's road loss to the Blackhawks, but rebounded to beat the hosting St. Blues 3-2 on Saturday.

Ryan Getzlaf had a goal and an assist, giving him five goals and six helpers over a seven-game point streak as he matched a career high with his 25th goal of the season.

Cam Fowler and Matt Beleskey also scored and Frederik Andersen made 34 saves as Anaheim nearly blew a 3-0 lead.

"We're very happy about it. Our goal every week is to win the week. We needed this game," said Ducks forward Nick Bonino, who had two assists. "We came out, got a lead. They battled back like we knew they would. We shut the door at the end."

The Ducks are set to play two straight and seven of their next eight at home and may soon have defenseman Luca Sbisa back in the lineup. The blueliner has missed the past 24 games due to a torn tendon in his right hand and also sat out the first 15 games of the campaign with a lower-body injury.

The 23-year-old was with the Ducks for practice on Monday following a two-game conditioning stint in the minors.

Anaheim figures to go with Jonas Hiller in net tonight after he saw his personal 14-game winning streak snapped in the loss to the Blackhawks. Hiller is 0-1-1 with a 3.09 goals against average in three games (2 starts) versus the Jets.

Hiller did not play in Anaheim's 3-2 road win over Winnipeg on Oct. 6, a win that snapped the Ducks' four-game series slide to the Jets franchise.

Pavelec started and yielded three goals on 34 shots in facing the Ducks for the first time.

Winnipeg has won four of its past six games in Anaheim.