The Winnipeg Jets defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 2-1 in overtime to win their home opener and go to 2-0 on the season. The Jets’ Mark Scheifele scored both goals, while Josh Morrissey, Kyle Connor, Nikolaj Ehlers, and Mark Scheifele recorded assists. In his 26 saves, Connor Hellebuyck helped the Jets, who will play Minnesota on Sunday.
PERSISTENCE
With the Jets’ incredible performance in Edmonton on Wednesday, everyone was curious to see if they could repeat. For most of the first period, Winnipeg controlled the play, and Kyle Connor missed a shot that would have made it 1-0. The Jets started the second quarter with a lot of scoring opportunities, but Chicago calmed things down a little. With 3:08 remaining in the middle frame, Ryan Donato beat Connor Hellebuyck to the stick side to open the score. The Blackhawks led 1-0 going into the third. The Jets persisted in the third quarter, and with 1:04 remaining in the game, Mark Scheifele tied the score with a backhand pass past Arvid Soderblom after grabbing a rebound from Nikolaj Ehlers.
Looking at the 60, I believe we fell short of our potential. We had plenty of opportunities to score early in the game, but we were unable to do so. After that, we stopped acting appropriately, and they effectively clogged the middle, so we tried to push it through,” Ehlers said.
“I believe the game looks much different if we continue as we did in the first ten, but that’s also a compliment to them. We still had more work to do, but we persevered and earned two points.
SCHIEIFFELE’S 300TH
Scheifele got right to work in overtime after tying the score. Scheifele ultimately played give-and-go with Kyle Connor after winning another faceoff, and his one-timer went over Soderblom’s glove for his 300th goal in the league.
Scheifele remarked, “Me, KC, and JMo have played together for a long time, so we just kind of know what coverage is.”