Jets edge Blues 2-1 to take 2-0 series lead
Written by Philip Paul-Martin
“Only game-winners. Ha, I’ll take it," said Connor afterward.
“It’s good. Obviously, we talked about our mentality going into tonight. You saw, it was a tight-checking game, run around, not a ton of space and not a ton of odd-man rushes. They weren’t going to be beat that way, we weren’t going to be beat that way. Just came down to who wanted it more. I thought once we did get that go-ahead goal, we did a great job of just kind of clogging up the middle, not allowing their (defencemen) to beat us up the ice and just playing good (defence) there," he added.
Mark Scheifele had a goal and an assist to pace the offence.
Connor Hellebuyck made 21 saves for the Jets.
Jimmy Snuggerud scored the lone goal for the Blues.
Jordan Binnington turned aside 20 shots for St. Louis.
Mark Scheifele opened the scoring 16:32 into the first when he drove the net hard and a hard backchecking Jimmy Snuggerud knocked the puck past Binnington.
"I mean that's how hockey goes," said Snuggerud. "I feel like there's that one play can make a difference in a game and it was unlucky for us that they got it."
The goal was Scheifele's 2nd of the playoffs.
St. Louis tied it up on the power play with less than a second left in the first when Pavel Buchnevich found Jimmy Snuggerud at the top of the faceoff circle and the rookie forward made no mistake, wiring a wrister and beating Hellebuyck high blocker side to make it 1-1.
The goal was his 1st of the playoffs.
There was no scoring in the second period.
Kyle Connor gave the Jets the lead scoring 1:43 into the third when Cole Perfetti fed him from behind the net.
The Jet winger made no mistake, beating Binnington cleanly with a wrister to make it 2-1 Jets.
St. Louis Head Coach Jim Montgomery pulled Binnington with 2:17 left in regulation following a time out.
He was succinct in his assessment of the series thus far after the game.
"Winnipeg's made one more play than us, you know, both games. Shots are dead even you know and they're just making one more play and their best players are making them," said Montgomery.
Jets Head Coach Scott Arniel echoed that sentiment, saying Scheifele has elevated his game in the playoffs.
"Well that's your best players playing at the top of their game and that's what Scheif has done. You can see he's taken on that challenge. He's going head-to-head against their best player and whether it's defending or whether he's offence with the puck he has a strong skill set that we have seen all 82 games and you can see he's taken it into this playoff series," said Arniel.
SHOTS-ST. LOUIS 22 WINNIPEG 22
ATTENDANCE-15,225
Connor nets game winner late in third as Jets take a 1-0 series lead
Written by Philip Paul-Martin
Mark Scheifele took a Josh Morrissey feed at the left hash mark along the boards before curling into the top of the circle and feeding Connor with a cross ice pass.
The Jets leading scorer in the regular season made no mistake, snapping the disc past Jordan Binnington, beating him glove side to give the Jets a 4-3 lead to complete the comeback.
Winnipeg trailed St. Louis after two periods before firing three third period goals to take game one.
“You’ve just got to stick with it, stay positive, knowing you’re doing the right things, getting the chances. You know a lot of plays like those cross-ice plays, even the one that Fetsy (Cole Perfetti) made on the power play. I’m trying to get that off as quickly as possible, near a lot of holes in the goaltenders if you can. It was obviously a great play by Scheif. Just try to get it off quick," said Connor.
Scheifele just wanted to get the puck on his stick and let Connor work his magic.
"Oh it’s amazing. All I want to do is put the puck in his hands and he does some fantastic things. Like I said before, I’m lucky to play with him. He’s absolutely fantastic, he shoots the puck fantastic, he does so many little things fantastic. Like I said a million times, he’s amazing to play with," he said.
Connor and Scheifele each had three point nights with a goal and two assists.
Alex Iafallo Jaret Anderson-Dolan and Adam Lowry also scored for Winnipeg.
Josh Morrissey had a pair of assists.
Connor Hellebuyck made 14 saves to pick up the win for the Jets.
Robert Thomas, Oskar Sundqvist and Jordan Kyrou scored for the Blues.
Justin Faulk had a pair of assists for St. Louis.
Jordan Binnington turned aside 21 shots for the Blues.
Robert Thomas opened the scoring on the power play 9:31 into the first.
With Luke Schenn off for interference, Thomas converted a Cam Fowler feed just inside the left face off circle and beat Hellebuyck with a glove side wrister.
The goal was his first of the playoffs.
Mark Scheifele tied the game at 13:38 with a power play goal.
With Jake Neighbors off for slashing, Kyle Connor got Scheifele the puck just outside the Blues crease.
Scheifele's shot went in off of Blues defenceman Ryan Suter's outstretched stick past Binnington to make it 1-1.
The Jets took the lead at 15:02 when both Morgan Barron and Jaret Anderson-Dolan tipped a Luke Schenn shot from the point past Binnington to make it 2-1.
Oskar Sundqvist tied it up 18:10 into the first when Luke Schenn blocked a shot with his skate and the puck ended up right on Sundqvist's stick.
He beat Hellebuyck with a high shot to make it 2-2.
Jordan Kyrou scored 1:13 into the second when he drifted a high wrister past a screened Hellebuyck to give St. Louis a 3-2 lead.
Alex Iafallo tied the game 9:18 into the third when he slid a puck from close in past Binnington to make it 3-3.
Adam Lowry added an empty netter to seal the win for the Jets.
Blues Head Coach Jim Montgomery was succinct in his assessment of his club's play in game one.
"I didn't think our puck management and decision making was quick enough," said Montgomery. "Our habits weren't very good tonight. We weren't very good tonight. We'll grow, we'll get better."
SHOTS-ST LOUIS 17 WINNIPEG 26
ATTENDANCE-15,225
The game had little meaning for both teams as Edmonton will face the Los Angeles Kings in the first round while Winnipeg clinched the Central Division less than 24 hours earlier after they beat Chicago in a shootout.
They also clinched the President's Trophy for first place overall in the NHL after the Washington Capitals lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets this evening.
The Jets scratched regulars Connor Hellebuyck, Josh Morrissey, Adam Lowry, Nikolaj Ehlers, Neal Pionk and Luke Schenn.
Connor Brown, Adam Henrique and Viktor Arvidsson also scored for Edmonton.
Connor McDavid had a pair of assists.
Stuart Skinner turned aside 17 shots for the Oilers, who moved to 47-28-5.
Alex Iafallo scored the lone goal for the Jets.
Eric Comrie made 35 saves for Winnipeg, who dropped to 55-22-4.
Winnipeg lost defenceman Dylan Samberg to a Connor McDavid shot off his foot late in the second period and did not return.
There was no scoring in the first period.
Connor Brown got the Oilers on the board just under a minute into the second when he beat Comrie with a backhand shot at 59 seconds after Connor McDavid picked Alex Iafallo's pocket just inside the Winnipeg blue line and sent the Oiler winger in alone on Hellebuyck.
The goal was his 13th of the season.
Alex Iafallo tied the game 6:16 into the second with a power play marker after he snagged a rebound off a Mark Scheifele shot and knocked it past Skinner to score his 15th goal of the season.
Adam Henrique gave Edmonton the lead 12:39 into the second moments after their power play expired as Corey Perry got him the puck just outside the crease and he lifted the puck past Hellebuyck.
The Jets were down a man in effect as defenceman Dylan Samberg was lying on the ice after getting hit with a puck shot by Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard.
He left the game and did not return.
Corey Perry gave Edmonton a 3-1 lead 12:25 into the third when Derek Ryan hit him driving the net.
Perry drifted a wrister past Comrie, beating him high glove side to make it 3-1 Oilers.
The goal was his 18th of the season.
Viktor Arvidsson added an empty netter with 1:20 remaining in regulation to seal the win for the Oilers.
SHOTS-EDMONTON 39 WINNIPEG 18
ATTENDANCE-15,225
The Jet winger cashed in on a rebound off a Kyle Connor shot, snapping the disk past Joel Hofer to give Winnipeg a one goal lead in the final frame.
Connor Hellebuyck made 14 saves for Winnipeg, who moved to 53-21-4, which is the most in their NHL history.
Pavel Buchnevich scored the lone goal for the Blues, who saw their 12 game winning streak snapped.
Joel Hofer turned aside 23 shots for St. Louis, who dropped to 43-29-7.
There was no scoring in the first period.
Morgan Barron opened the scoring 2:34 into the second period when he beat Mathieu Joseph to a loose puck deep in the Blues zone before dropping his shoulder and beat Hofer with a low wrister to make it 1-0 Jets.
The goal was his second of the season.
Pavel Buchnevich evened the score at 7:27 when Robert Thomas hit him in the slot from behind the net.
The Blues winger made no mistake, snapping a low shot past Hellebuyck to make it 1-1.
The goal was his 18th of the season.
Alex Iafallo gave Winnipeg the lead 7:05 into the third after he pounced on a rebound off a Kyle Connor shot and buried it to make it 2-1.
Adam Lowry hit the empty netter with 8.5 seconds left in regulation to seal the win.
SHOTS-ST. LOUIS 15 WINNIPEG 26
ATTENDANCE-15,225
Jets down Canucks 3-1 to close out four game homestand
Written by Philip Paul-Martin
The Jet winger located a puck in the blue paint and slid it past Thatcher Demko off an Adam Lowry shot close in to give the Jets their NHL leading 51st win.
Kyle Connor had a goal and an assist for the Jets while Cole Perfetti scored the other Jet goal off a nifty move in the third period.
Connor Hellebuyck turned aside 23 shots for Winnipeg, who moved to 51-19-4.
The win gave Winnipeg some breathing room in the NHL's Western Conference as they extended their lead on the second place Dallas Stars to six with 106 points.
Pius Suter scored the lone goal for the Canucks.
Thatcher Demko made 24 saves for Vancouver who dropped to 34-27-13 and further out of the Western Conference playoff picture, losing four of their last six contests.
Pius Suter opened the scoring late in the first period when Tyler Myers gained the blue line and hit Suter as he drove the net and he made no mistake beating Hellebuyck with a short side wrister to make it 1-0 Canucks.
The goal was his 22nd of the season.
The Jets had the play reviewed for being offside but the goal was allowed to stand.
Kyle Connor got the Jets on the board 9:26 into the second when he skated into a Mark Scheifele feed before moving in on Thatcher Demko and snapping a wrister through his pads to knot the score at 1.
The goal was his 38th of the season.
Mason Appleton gave the Jets the lead 6:24 into the third when he knocked a loose puck in the crease past Demko that stood still after a Nikolaj Ehlers shot hit Adam Lowry's skate.
The goal was his 10th of the season.
Cole Perfetti scored at 12:11 of the third off a solo effort where he turned Canucks defenceman Derek Forbort inside out before moving in and snapping a high wrister past Demko to give Winnipeg a 3-1 lead.
The goal was his 16th of the season.
Winnipeg visits Los Angeles on Tuesday while Vancouver returns home to host Seattle Wednesday while.
SHOTS-VANCOUVER 24 WINNIPEG 27
ATTENDANCE-15,225
Ehlers scores game winner in OT as Jets edge Capitals 3-2
Written by Philip Paul-Martin
Dylan Samberg banked a long pass off the neutral zone boards that the Jet winger skated into before moving in and snapping a wrister past Logan Thompson, beating the Washington netminder high glove side to score his 24th goal of the season.
Mcleod has 4 point outing as Sabres drop Jets 5-3
Written by Philip Paul-Martin
The win snapped a two-game losing skid for the Sabres.
Winnipeg, who were attempting to clinch a Western Conference playoff berth, will have to wait until Tuesday to do so when they host the Washington Capitals.
J.J. Peterka, Rasmus Dahlin, Alex Tuch and Tyson Kozak also scored for the Sabres.
Jacob Bernard-Docker had a pair of assists.
James Reimer turned aside 34 shots for Buffalo, who moved to 28-35-6.
Nino Niederreiter, Colin Miller and Nikolaj Ehlers scored for the Jets.
Logan Stanley had a pair of assists.
Eric Comrie stopped 12 shots for Winnipeg, who dropped to 48-19-4.
Peterka got the Sabres on the board 9:15 into the contest when he took a feed from Jacob Bernard-Docker before moving off the boards into the slot and before beating Comrie glove side with a hard wrister to make it 1-0 Buffalo.
The goal was his third in the last three games.
Nino Niederreiter tied the game just over two minutes into the second on a power play when his shot was stopped by James Reimer before Sabres defenceman Beck Malenstyn knocked the disc into his own goal with his skate.
The goal was his 15th of the season.
Rasmus Dahlin scored late in the second period when he converted a Jacob Bernard-Docker cross ice feed, blasting a slap shot past Comrie at 18:46 of the second.
The goal was his 13th of the season.
With Mark Scheifele off for tripping Buffalo scored on the power play when Tyson Kozak slid a backhand shot past Comrie 7:13 into the third to make it 3-1 Sabres.
Buffalo's two-goal lead was short lived as Colin Miller took a Mark Scheifele feed at the blue line before moving in and parking a shot just under the crossbar just 22 seconds later to make it 3-2.
The goal was Miller's 3rd of the season.
Alex Tuch scored shorthanded 13:21 into the third after Ryan Mcleod sent him in alone.
The goal was his 27th of the season.
Nikolaj Ehlers scored with 3:28 left in the third when he streaked down the left wing boards and hammered a slap shot past Reimer to pull the Jets to within a goal.
The goal was his 23rd of the season.
Mcleod added an empty netter with 46 seconds left in regulation to seal the win for Buffalo.
SHOTS-BUFFALO 17 WINNIPEG 36
ATTENDANCE-15,225
Vladislav Namestnikov and Gabriel Vilardi scored for Winnipeg.
Cole Perfetti had a pair of assists.
Connor Hellebuyck made 21 saves for the Jets, who moved to 45-17-4.
Winnipeg extended their Western Conference lead to 9 points over the second place Dallas Stars with 94.
Igor Shesterkin turned aside 22 shots for the Rangers, who have now lost their last four games to drop to 31-28-6.
Mika Zibanejad scored New York's lone goal on the night.
Vladislav Namestnikov gave Winnipeg the lead just over the five minute mark into the contest when he deflected a Cole Perfetti feed past Shesterkin at 5:18.
Mika Zibanejad tied it up on the power play at 11 minutes even when he converted a J.T. Miller feed and beat Hellebuyck high glove side from the middle of the slot..
The goal was his 15th of the season.
Gabriel Vilardi gave Winnipeg the lead on the power player 5:06 into the second when Cole Perfetti found him alone in front of the net.
Vilardi lifted the puck past Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin's glove to make it 2-1.
The goal was his 27th of the season.
Dylan DeMelo appeared to give the Jets the lead just over five minutes into third when he beat Shesterkin through a screen provided by Morgan Barron but New York challenged, citing interference.
The challenge was successful the score remained 2-1.
There was no scoring in the third period.
The Rangers visit Minnesota Thursday while Winnipeg hosts Dallas on Friday.
SHOTS-NEW YORK 22 WINNIPEG 24
ATTENDANCE-14,278
NOTES-Both newly acquired Jets Brandon Tanev and Luke Schenn were in the Jets lineup Tuesday night.
The Flyers have won four of their last five contests.
Jamie Drysdale scored the other goal the Flyers.
Ivan Fedotov turned aside 30 shots for Philadelphia, who moved to 27-26-8 on the season.
Mark Scheifele scored for the Jets, who dropped their second straight game.
Connor Hellebuyck stopped 30 shots for Winnipeg, who moved to 42-16-3 on the season.
Mark Scheifele got Winnipeg on the board halfway through the first period when he converted a slick backhand pass from Gabriel Vilardi past Fedotov to make it 1-0 Jets.
The goal was his 34th of the season.
Jamie Drysdale tied the contest 3:48 into the second when he worked a give-and-go with Noah Cates along the blue line before moving in from the top of the face off circle before unleashing a wrister which beat Hellebuyck to make it 1-1.
The goal was his 4th of the season.
There was no scoring in the third period.
Winnipeg had a chance to take the lead late in the third when Flyers defencemen Jamie Drysdale and Rasmus Ristolainen both took obstruction penalties but the Jets were unable to score.
The game remained tied and went to overtime.
There was no scoring in overtime and the game went to a shootout.
SHOOTOUT-PHILADELPHIA-Konecny (miss), Michkov (score)
WINNIPEG-Scheifele (miss), Connor (miss), Vilardi (miss).
SHOTS-PHILADELPHIA 32 WINNIPEG 31
ATTENDANCE-14,436
Jets shutout Canes 3-0 to win 7th straight
Written by Philip Paul-Martin
The win was the Jets 7th straight.
The shutout was Comrie's first of the season.
Nino Niederreiter, Neal Pionk, Rasmus Kupari scored for the Jets.
Winnipeg who moved to a league leading 38-14-3 on the season.
Pyotr Kochetkov turned aside 27 shots for Carolina who dropped to 32-18-4.
Carolina appeared to have taken the lead when Jackson Blake took a drop pass from Seth Jarvis and beat Comrie high blocker side but the Jets challenged goaltender interference successfully after Mikko Rantanen made contact with the goaltender.
Nino Niederreiter gave the Jets the lead on the power play in the last minute of the first period.
With Sean Walker off for tripping, Nino Niederreiter snapped a puck past Kochetkov after Alex Iafallo found him wide open in the right side faceoff circle and slid him the disc at 19:18f.
Neal Pionk gave the Nets a two-goal lead 3:13 into the second period on the power play when he snapped up the puck after Dimitri Orlov blocked a Cole Perfetti shot and blew a slap shot past Kochetkov, beating him high glove side to make it 2-0 Winnipeg.
The goal was his 8th of the season.
Vladislav Namestnikov appeared to give Winnipeg a 3-0 lead with 6 minutes remaining in regulation but his goal was disallowed due to him kicking the puck into the net.
The disallowed goal was the first of two to go against Winnipeg as Rasmus Kupari appeared to score with 3:41 remaining in the third on second effort but his pending tally was also waved off.
The Jets challenged the ruling and the goal was allowed to stand to give Winnipeg a three-goal cushion.
The goal was his 5th of the season.
SHOTS-CAROLINA 29 WINNIPEG 30
ATTENDANCE-13,802
