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Jets to welcome back Antropov, Jones
By
KEN WIEBE, QMI Agency
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  Winnipeg Jets forward forward Nik Antropov warms up before National Hockey League action against the Ottawa Senators at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg on Tues., Nov. 29, 2011. (JASON HALSTEAD/QMI Agency) |
The Winnipeg Jets expect to welcome a pair of healthy bodies to the lineup as they close out a five-game homestand against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Nik Antropov (who sat out the past three games with an undisclosed injury) is expected to be back playing with Andrew Ladd and Kyle Wellwood, while Randy Jones (out since Nov. 3 with an ankle injury) will be paired with Mark Flood.
“I usually kind of keep with the old KISS system,” said Jones. “It’s the old cliche, just keep it simple. That’s basically about it.”
The Jets are riding a three-game winning streak and have already beaten the Hurricanes twice this season, but they won’t be resting on their laurels after defeating the Boston Bruins 2-1 on Tuesday.
“We have to keep our foot on the pedal,” said Jets defenceman Zach Bogosian. “We can’t get satisfied and think because we beat Boston that we’re going to win the Stanley Cup. We have to make sure we push forward and not get complacent.”
The Hurricanes are coming off a 5-3 victory over the Edmonton Oilers and made a trade on Friday morning, sending defenceman Tomas Kaberle to the Montreal Canadiens for Jaroslav Spacek.
“They’re in a little bit of turmoil,” said Jets head coach Claude Noel. “They’re trying to reorganize and reshuffle. They did it with a coaching change and now they did it with a player change.
“We’ll be ready and we’ll have to be ready to go. We have to start well and be sure we’re into the game.”
Chris Mason gets the call in goal for the Jets, while Cam Ward is expected to start for the Hurricanes.
"We knew we weren't getting results or playing well," said Hurricanes forward Jeff Skinner. "In the last week, we've picked it up and we started competing better. We've been in games, it's been a good start to kind of getting back on track."
