*Photo from TSN*
The Jets are roaring quite loud in the Canadian Province of Manitoba. Mark Scheifele had two assists, Kyle Connor scored a hat trick, and the Winnipeg Jets defeated the Anaheim Ducks with a 3-2 victory on Thursday night in Winnipeg.
With the win, the Jets continue their strong start to the season after a lost year in 2021-2022. They are second in the Central Division with a 10-4-1 record and are 8-1-1 in their last 10 games, including two wins in a row. They were paced by Connor, who only had two goals entering play on Thursday.
Winnipeg head coach Rick Bowness said of Connor scoring that "It was just a matter of time. Had some really good looks early that didn't go in. I think that first one gave him a big boost, and you could see all of a sudden the stride picked up, the enthusiasm picked up a lot. A little bit of a weight off his shoulders."
It was the Ducks who got on the board first. 10:17 into the game, Troy Terry found the back of the net, giving the Ducks a 1-0 lead on his 7th goal of the season. On the power play 12:32 into the second period, Connor scored his first of the night to tie the game 1-1, with assists from Josh Morrisey and Pierre-Luc Dubois.
Late in the 3rd period, Connor scored again, giving the Jets a 2-1 lead 14:15 into the final period. Up next just 28 seconds later, Trevor Zegras scored for the Ducks, tying the game 2-2 on his 8th goal of the season. With just 54 seconds left on the clock, Connor scored to cap the hat trick and the win for the Jets.
Scheifele said of Connor after the game that "Kyle has been awesome. He's made so many good plays. I've been lucky to be on the receiving end on a bunch of his really nice passes. It was nice to pay him back tonight. What a fantastic pass that Gagner made on his second goal."
Getting the start in net for the Jets was a familiar face, Connor Hellebuyck. He picked up the win by saving 29 of 31 Ducks shots, which was good for a sturdy .935 save percentage. His record now sits at 8-3-1 to start the season.
Opposing Hellebuyck was Ducks top netminder John Gibson. He played almost as well as Hellebuyck, stopping 29 out of the 32 shots the Jets had, recording a .906 save percentage as his record dipped to 3-9-1 so far this season.
Anaheim head coach Dallas Eakins gave his thoughts on the loss, saying postgame that "Zegras scored a massive goal to get us back in the game at 2-2, but it's a great reminder, especially to all of our younger players, that keeping pucks out of our net is just as important as putting them in their net."
Both teams resume play on Saturday night. The Jets will send Hellebuyck out to start when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins, while Gibson is the projected starter for the Ducks against the St. Louis Blues.
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