Winnipeg sports news: the Winnipeg Jets and Tampa Bay Lightning are scoreless late in the first period at Canada Life Centre, and both goalies have stopped everything thrown at them in a game Winnipeg needs to keep its winning run alive.
By Maplestime Sports Desk | Winnipeg, Manitoba | November 8, 2026
Sources: Sportradar live scoreboard | Game On Sign live scoreboard | Last updated: November 8, 2026
Key Takeaways
- Winnipeg 0, Tampa Bay 0 late in the first period at Canada Life Centre, with 4:24 left on the clock at last check
- Stuart Skinner has stopped all 7 Tampa Bay shots and Andrei Vasilevskiy has stopped all 5 Winnipeg shots
- Tampa Bay is on a late power play after Haydn Fleury took a high sticking minor with 4:24 left in the period
- Josh Morrissey is out tonight after head coach Scott Arniel ruled him out following the morning skate
- Winnipeg is chasing a third straight win after beating Montreal in overtime and Vancouver 6 to 2
Both Goalies Sharp in a Scoreless First Period
Neither team has found the net yet, and the goalies are the story so far. Skinner has turned aside all 7 Tampa Bay shots, including a Nikita Kucherov slap shot with 6:20 left in the period and a Pontus Holmberg deflection with 4:35 left. Vasilevskiy has been just as steady at the other end, stopping all 5 Winnipeg shots, including a Gabriel Vilardi wrist shot and a Neal Pionk slap shot seconds apart with about 6:40 left.
The shots read 7 to 5 in favour of Tampa Bay at last check, which fits the shape of the period. The Lightning came in as one of the best teams in the league at 11 wins, 3 losses and 2 overtime losses, and they have carried more of the play. Winnipeg has defended well enough to keep it level, and the crowd at Canada Life Centre has had little to cheer about yet but plenty to watch.
Fleury Penalty Hands Tampa Bay a Late Power Play
The biggest moment of the period so far came with 4:24 left, when Haydn Fleury was called for high sticking on Pontus Holmberg. Tampa Bay went to the power play with the game still scoreless, and the next two minutes will say a lot about how the first period ends.
Winnipeg has to kill this one off cleanly. The Jets have already survived the Lightning’s best looks at even strength, and giving Tampa Bay a man advantage this late in the period is the kind of opening a team that good does not usually waste. If Winnipeg gets through it, the Jets will head to the first intermission tied with a team that beat them 6 to 4 in Tampa on October 29.
Morrissey Out as Jets Chase a Third Straight Win
Winnipeg is doing this without its top defenceman. Morrissey skated in a regular jersey at practice on Saturday for the first time in a month, but Arniel ruled him out after the morning skate, and he will not play tonight. Elias Salomonsson is also away from the team for personal reasons, which is why Henry Thrun was recalled from the Manitoba Moose on an emergency basis.
That makes the clean sheet so far even more encouraging for Winnipeg. The Jets have won two straight, a 5 to 4 overtime comeback in Montreal and a 6 to 2 win over Vancouver on Thursday, and a win tonight would give them their first three game winning streak of the season. It would also be a measure of revenge after the 6 to 4 loss in Tampa late last month. Tampa Bay, meanwhile, arrived in Winnipeg on the second half of a back to back after a 4 to 3 overtime win in Minnesota on Saturday night.
The game is also the Jets’ fifth annual Filipino Heritage Night at Canada Life Centre.
Maplestime will provide updates from Jets vs Lightning as the game continues tonight.
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Can the Jets kill off this late Tampa Bay power play and take a tied game into the first intermission, or will the Lightning strike first? Tell us in the comments. And share this with every Canadian following the Jets tonight.
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