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Jets know they have a ‘tall mountain’ to climb, down 3-0 to Ducks

Ducks right wing Corey Perry is congratulated by teammates after scoring against the Jets in the second period of Game 3.

Ducks right wing Corey Perry is congratulated by teammates after scoring against the Jets in the second period of Game 3.

(Trevor Hagan / Associated Press)
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Base camp is the first goal for the Winnipeg Jets, looking at the long journey up the mountain, also known as a 3-0 playoff series deficit against the Ducks.

“It’s been done. It has been done,” Jets forward Chris Thorburn said after Wednesday’s morning skate. “It’s obviously a tall mountain. The only thing we can worry about is one game. We’ll break it down, period by period, and get after it that way.”

His teammate, forward Drew Stafford, had an insightful take about the mental aspect of the series.

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“I think it’s just a situation where we just need to relax a little bit more. It’s almost like we’re thinking too much,” Stafford said. “When you over-analyze, you over-think out there. Your body kind of loses control. You kind of stand still, you stop skating.

“So I think that’s one thing that we kind of need to focus on, making sure that belief’s there in each other. That we’re going be just fine.”

Four teams have rallied from a 3-0 series deficit — including as recently as last year when the Kings did it against the Sharks in the first round of the playoffs. Jets Coach Paul Maurice made a reference to that series between the Kings and Sharks.

Game 4 is tonight at MTS Centre in Winnipeg.

“We’ll take the pieces of our game that we like and there should be some confidence for that,” Maurice said. “I don’t know if that affects Game 4. I would just say that, because the last 3-0 series that I watched, L.A. was down 3-0 and they lost 6-3 and 7-2 in the first two games and those were flattering scores.

“And I’m not exaggerating. It could have been 12-3 and 15-2. [The Kings] were dominated in those games and then they lost their third game in overtime.

“Where you come from, what you use out of those previous games, it’s not important where you come from. It’s how focused you get on this game here tonight. I believe, because of the investment these players have made this year, in the hard work in training camp, the hard work in practices, the mental toughness that it took to make the playoffs in the Central Division, in suffering our injuries, that we will get our best tonight.”

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