Early look The full preview opens on Monday 26 October, three days before puck drop, with the expected goalies, the latest team news and game-day prices. Until then this page shows the matchup as it stands.
Early look · NHL 2026-27

Winnipeg Jets at Tampa Bay Lightning: game preview

Puck drop29 Oct · 7:00 PM ET
VenueBenchmark International Arena
All-time meetings34 completed
BasisLast 5 meetings + 2025-26
The thesis

Twenty-four points apart last season

Winnipeg finished last season 26th in the league on 82 points. Tampa Bay finished 5th on 106.

Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.

Head-to-head

Meeting number 35

Across 34 completed games, Winnipeg lead the head-to-head 19-10-5.

All-time record19-10-5Winnipeg's record in the series
Meetings played34This is number 35
2025-26 series—
Last 53-2Winnipeg
DateResultShotsPower playWinner
5 Mar 2026TBL 1 – WPG 4——WPG
29 Jan 2026WPG 1 – TBL 4——TBL
14 Nov 2024WPG 1 – TBL 4——TBL
3 Nov 2024TBL 4 – WPG 7——WPG
2 Jan 2024TBL 2 – WPG 4——WPG
Head-to-head finder

The table on each 2025-26 meeting night

DateWinnipegTampa Bay
29 Jan 202620-24-7 · 47 pts30th33-14-4 · 70 pts2nd
5 Mar 202620-24-7 · 47 pts30th33-14-4 · 70 pts2nd

League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 29 Jan 2026, Winnipeg were 30th in the league and Tampa Bay 2nd. By 5 Mar 2026 it was 30th and 2nd.


Where the shots come from · last 5 meetings

Tampa Bay out-attempted Winnipeg 120 to 109

Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.

Winnipeg Jets

109 att · 54 on goal · 5 G · 9.3%
Crease10 att · 1 G
Slot38 att · 3 G
Wing38 att · 1 G
Point20 att · 0 G
Neutral zone3 att · 0 G

Tampa Bay Lightning

120 att · 64 on goal · 5 G · 7.8%
Crease10 att · 0 G
Slot47 att · 4 G
Wing40 att · 0 G
Point20 att · 1 G
Neutral zone3 att · 0 G
GoalOn goalMissedBlocked

Expected goals

Tampa Bay have created the better chances, last 10 games

Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.

WinnipegTampa Bay
3.37xG for per game4.04
3.37xG against per game2.64
50.0%xG share60.5%
−1.1FinishingGoals minus expected goals−4.1
+2.1GoaltendingExpected goals against minus goals allowed+0.9

This season: 3 games for Winnipeg, 3 for Tampa Bay. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.

Every team’s xG →


Special teams

Power play and penalty kill, season and series

This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.

All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings

Winnipeg

Small sample
Power play · 2026-2750.0%
Power play · 2025-2618.5% · 24th
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-2788.9%
Penalty kill · 2025-2677.6% · 21st
Faceoffs · 2026-2744.6% · 79/177
Drawn · 2026-278 (2.67/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-279 (3.00/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Tampa Bay

Small sample
Power play · 2026-270.0%
Power play · 2025-2620.7% · 17th
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-2785.7%
Penalty kill · 2025-2682.6% · 3rd
Faceoffs · 2026-2748.2% · 81/168
Drawn · 2026-2713 (4.33/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-277 (2.33/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Skaters

Skaters to watch

Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away.

PlayerGPGAPP/GP
81Kyle Connor33251.67
91Cole Perfetti32351.67
17Adam Lowry31231.00
86Nikita Kucherov31341.33
59Jake Guentzel31231.00
38Brandon Hagel31231.00
Points leaders
PlayerGPGAPP/GP
44Josh Morrissey30331.00
2Dylan DeMelo31120.67
38Mario Ferraro31010.33
74John Carlson30220.67
27Ryan McDonagh30000.00
Defencemen stats

Goaltending

Who has stopped this matchup

Save percentage in the last meetings by goalie. Starters are confirmed on game day.

Expected startersAn estimate until the teams confirmEvery game tonight →

Expected starter after their game on 27 Oct: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Expected starter after their game on 24 Oct: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Winnipeg crease

WPG · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 26 Oct

Stuart Skinner.9092 GP · 1-0-1 · GSAx +1.1
Clay Stevenson.9381 GP · 1-0-0 · GSAx +1.0

No appearances against Tampa Bay in the last meetings.

Tampa Bay crease

TBL · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 26 Oct

Andrei Vasilevskiy.8983 GP · 2-1-0 · GSAx +1.0

No appearances against Winnipeg in the last meetings.


Totals

Scoring rates point to about 6.0 goals

No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.

Goals in the last 5 meetings

5 Mar 20265 · TBL 1–4 WPG
29 Jan 20265 · WPG 1–4 TBL
14 Nov 20245 · WPG 1–4 TBL
3 Nov 202411 · TBL 4–7 WPG
2 Jan 20246 · TBL 2–4 WPG

Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.

Scoring rates

Team26-27 GF26-27 GA25-26 GF25-26 GA
Winnipeg3.002.672.823.17
Tampa Bay2.672.333.542.82

Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.

Scoring rates suggest6.0Goals in this game
Last 5 meetings6.4Goals per game
Line—No total posted yet
Books at the line—With the game-day prices

Team news

7 on the injury lists

Winnipeg · injuries

Connor HellebuyckSuspensionIRReturn17 Oct
Elias SalomonssonShoulderIRReturn15 Oct
Garrett BrownLower BodyIRReturn9 Oct
Walker DuehrLower BodyIRReturn17 Oct

Tampa Bay · injuries

Dominic JamesHandIRReturn8 Oct
Emil LillebergUndisclosedOutReturn13 Oct
Yanni GourdeHipIRReturn2 Dec
10 Aug 2026 · WPG

Signed F Tyrel Bauer to a two-year contract.

15 Jul 2026 · WPG

Signed F Cole Perfetti to a five-year contract.

13 Jul 2026 · WPG

Signed F Viggo Björck to a three-year contract.

6 Oct · TBL

Placed C Jansen Harkins on waivers.

27 Sep · TBL

Placed D Michael Callahan on waivers.

27 Sep · TBL

Placed D Michael Callahan, G Mads Sogaard Nielsenon, LD Maxim Groshev, LW Jakob Pelletier and C Nicholas Abruzzese on waivers.

Injury report
#8Viggo BjorckRound 1 · DjurgardenC
#71Samuel HrenakRound 3 · FargoG
#116Zach WootenRound 4 · Green BayLW
#135Alexandre TailleferRound 5 · QuebecD
Full draft
#52Oleg KulebiakinRound 2 · HalifaxRW
#90Tomas KralovicRound 3 · BratislavaD
#134Morgan AnderbergRound 5 · VaxjoC
#154Cooper SollerRound 5 · Sioux FallsC
Full draft

Updated after every final