How about two CF-18 Hornet fighter jets and a 25-foot giant Budweiser Red Light?
Yes, please.
At roughly 7:08 P.M. central from Bell MTS Place Tuesday evening, two Canadian Armed Force pilots will do a flyby 500 feet above ground level over Donald Street, in preparation for opening face off – weather permitting.
Additionally, Budweiser has shipped out its mammoth 23.5 foot tall red goal light to Winnipeg for Tuesday’s contest.
The light has since arrived at Bell MTS Place and will be functional for Tuesday evening’s game. The party kicks off at 5:00 P.M. local time. The barricaded streets will re-open to the public at approximately 1:00 A.M. Wednesday.
The Jets held morning skate Tuesday, and all indications point to Head Coach Paul Maurice lacing the same lineup that he used on Sunday in Nashville. Joel Armia remained in a yellow non-contact jersey, while Mathieu Perreault switched back to a non-contact jersey of his own.
A surprising sight at practice Tuesday was the appearance of defenceman Dmitry Kulikov, who skated for the first time with his teammates since his removal from the lineup March 8th due to a back injury (in a non-contact jersey of course). In a small sample size of work, the rugged blueliner appeared in decent shape, and was fully able to shoot the puck without pain.
Winnipeg will look to jump out to 2-1 series lead with a victory Tuesday night from Bell MTS Place in game three of the Western Conference Semifinals against the visiting Nashville Predators. The teams split the opening two contests in Tennessee over the weekend, with the Jets picking up a 4-1 win on Friday, before losing in double overtime to the Preadators Sunday.
“It was a tough loss in Game two, but we need to bounce back now,” said Patrik Laine Tuesday morning. “I think we’ve been pretty good at that this year at home. I’m excited to be back and experience the whiteout.”
Winnipeg will put it’s 12-straight home victory streak to the test Tuesday night, however, the last time the Jets loss at Bell MTS Place was back in February, in a game against these same Nashville Predators.
Puckdrop from Winnipeg is set for 7:08 P.M. central time. Tuesday’s game can be viewed live on CBC.
By Carter Brooks
Photos provided by Olivia Saint-Cyr, Shannon Bileski and Budweiser Canada
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