Tag: Winnipeg Jets

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Mary Lisa: Jets can’t stop Blues 2nd period 4 goal barrage in 5-2 loss; St Louis forces a game 7 Sunday in Winnipeg

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St Louis center Brayden Schenn (third from right #10) celebrates with teammates after scoring a second period goal against the Winnipeg Jets in game 6 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Enterprise Center in St Louis on Fri May 2, 2025 (AP News photo)

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Mary Lisa:

#1 Cam Fowler, Brayden Schenn and Nathan Walker all scored goals in 2:13 in the second period for the St Louis Blues. The effort pushed the Winnipeg Jets out of the game 6 picture as the Blues force a game 7 as both teams will meet in Winnipeg on Sunday for the deciding game.

#2 The Blues Phillip Broberg scored a goal and got an assist teammate Alexy Toropchenko got a goal and the Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington stopped 21 shots.

#3 Jet’s goaltender Connor Hellebuyck stopped 18 shots but allowed the four goals of that second period and was pulled out of the game for Eric Comrie who saved four shots. Hellebuyck is struggling he has allowed four goals in road games in seven games. If the Jets plan to advance Hellebuyck needs to gear up for Sunday’s game.

#4 The Jets could only muster two goals one by Cole Perfetti in the second period and Nino Niderreiter in the third period. The Jets just couldn’t get any offense going enough to keep up with the Blues.

#5 The Blues head to Winnipeg for game 7 how much momentum do you see the Blues coming off their game 6 win and how much of an advantage does the Jets have having home ice in game 7?

Mary Lisa does the NHL Stanley Cup Playoff analysis Saturdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Len Shapiro Fri Apr 25, 2025:Panthers take 2-0 series lead over Lightning; Leafs win in OT edge Sens 3-2 for 3-0 series lead; plus more NHL news

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Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) makes as teammate defenseman Niko Mikkola (77) clears Tampa Bay center Brayden Point (21) in the first period during game 2 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amailie Arena in Tampa Bay on Thu Apr 24, 2025 (AP News photo)

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast:

#1 Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 19 shots and the Panthers went onto shutout the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0 in the first round of the Eastern Conference at Amalie Arena on Thursday night in game 2 of the series. The Panthers now take a 2-0 series lead.

#2 The Toronto Maple Leafs have taken a 3-0 lead in their series against the Ottawa Senators. The Leafs edged the Senators 3-2 in game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals at the Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday night. The Leafs Simon Benoit scored at 1:19 in the overtime stanza to get the Leafs the win.

#3 The Minnesota Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov scored two goals for the second consecutive game. The Wild now take a 2-1 lead in the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs after defeating Vegas Golden Knights 5-2 at the Xcel Energy Center on Thursday night. Marco Rossi and Matt Boldy each scored goals. Goaltender Filip Gustavsson stopped 30 shots.

#4 The St Louis Blues Pavel Buchenvich got a hat trick scoring three goals it was Buchenvich’s first career playoff hat trick who also picked up an assist as the Blues landslide the Winnipeg Jets in game 3 with a 7-2 win in the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. With the win the Blues take a 2-1 series lead.

Len Shapiro does the NHL Playoff podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Mary Lisa Sun Apr 20, 2025: Jets jump to a early 1-0 lead on Blues; Aves leave no doubt in 5-1 win over Stars

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Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (29) is thrilled after scoring a power play goal against the Dallas Stars during game one of the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the American Airlines Center in Dallas on Sat Apr 19, 2025 (AP News photo)

On the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Mary Lisa:

#1 On Saturday night in game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs the Canada Life Center in Winnipeg was a house of blues for the St Louis Blues who were on the wrong end of the 5-3 score against the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets Kyle Conner score at 1:36 left in the game to give the Jets the lead and never looking back.

#2 In front of 15,225 fans in Winnipeg Connor added two assists and Jets team captain Adam Lowry scored an empty netter with 53 seconds left for the two goal 5-3 win.

#3 The Jets are the Presidents Cup winner and led the Western Conference for most the season. The Jets are a favorite to get to the Finals. What impresses you most from what you saw of them on Saturday night?

#4 The Colorado Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon was pretty busy all night long against the Dallas Stars in the Aves 5-1 win in game 1 of this edition of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. MacKinnon took a stick to the face. He scored two of Colorado’s goals and scored an empty netter that was his 50th career playoff goal.

#5 Mary Lisa you might remember MacKenzie Blackwood who you used to see in San Jose back in the day. Blackwood stopped 23 shots and allowed just one goal for the Aves to win the first game of the playoffs series.

Join Mary Lisa throughout the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs for coverage of the playoff podcasts Saturdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Len Shapiro Fri Apr 18, 2025: Playoffs begin Saturday night; Eight games in total

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The Winnipeg Jets Dylan Samberg (54), Neil Pionk (4), Cole Perfetti (91), Nino Niederreiter (62), celebrate Pionk’s goal against the Anaheim Ducks in the second period on Wed Apr 16, 2025 during the final regular season game in Winnipeg. The Jets are the favorites in the Stanley Cup Playoffs to make the finals as they face off against the St Louis Blues on Sat Apr 19, 2025. (Canadian Press photo via AP)

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Len Shapiro Fri Apr 18, 2025:

#1 Len, lets take a run down of the the NHL Playoff series. Starting with the St Louis Blues (44-30-8) and Winnipeg Jets (56-22-4). The Jets are the winner of this year’s presidents cup do you see them as the favorites in the Stanley Cup on Saturday night?

#2 The Ottawa Senators (45-35-7) going against the Toronto Maple Leafs (52-26-4) on Sun Apr 20th.

#3 The battle of the Florida teams it’s a real rivalry going on with the Florida Panthers ((47-31-4) they’ll take on the Tampa Bay Lightning (47-27-8) starting Tue Apr 22.

#4 Mon Apr 21 it’s the Montreal Canadiens (40-31-11) going up against Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals (51-22-9) at the Capital Center on Mon Apr 21st.

#5 New Jersey Devils (42-33-7) against the Carolina Hurricanes (47-30-5) this Sun Apr 20th.

#6 Sat Apr 19 it’ll be the Colorado Avalanche (49-29-4) at the Dallas Stars (50-26-6).

#7 Sun Apr 20 Minnesota Wild (45-30-7) at the Las Vegas Golden Knights (50-22-10)

#8 The Edmonton Oilers (48-29-5) will be facing off against the Los Angeles Kings (48-24-9) on Monday Apr 21st at Crypto.com Arena.

Len Shapiro does the NHL Stanley Cup Playoff podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Utah HC Shoots Down NHL Leading Jets 4-1 Keeping Wild Card Hopes Alive

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Utah Hockey Club center Clayton Keller (9) shoots and scores on the Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) in the first period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Sat Apr 5, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Utah took a 3-0 lead into the 3rd period and held off the league’s #1 team to remain mathematically in the hunt for the final Wild Card spot for a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets.

If you ask Utah head coach André Tourigny or any of the players, they will emphatically tell you that every game is a playoff game and that there is no quit in this team. Saturday afternoon they had a chance to prove it against the top squad in hockey, the Winnipeg Jets.

Utah grabbed an early power play opportunity just a few minutes into the game when Winnipeg defenseman Dylan Samberg went to the box for tripping against Dylan Guenther. Just 7 seconds later, the Jets turned over the puck behind their own net and Barrett Hayton fed it to captain Clayton Keller who cashed it in for his 26th goal of the season. With 11 seconds remaining in the frame, Winnipeg forward Mark Scheifele went to the sin bin for holding against Sean Durzi which set Utah up with another power play to begin the second period.

Less than a minute into the middle period, Keller fired off a cross-ice pass to linemate Dylan Guenther who immediately found the stick of Hayton in front of the net who knocked the puck in for his 19th of the season. At 16:57 of the second period, Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev sent a pass from the defensive blue line to Kevin Stenlund who received it at the offensive blue line and smashed a shot over the shoulder of Jets netminder Connor Hellebuyck from the top of the faceoff circle for his 13th goal of the season to make it 3-0 for the home team heading into the final frame.

Nearly two minutes into the third period, Utah cracked open the door for a Winnipeg comeback when Olli Määttä was whistled for hooking against Nino Niederreiter. On the ensuing power play, Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka turned away two rapid fire shots from Kyle Connor and Cole Perfetti, but was out of position when Mark Scheifele drove home the final rebound for his 38th goal of the season, closing the gap to 3-1. Vejmelka, playing his career high 20th consecutive start, closed the barn door the rest of the way, saving 32 of 33 shots overall for his 23rd win of the season. At 17:19 of the third, Nick Bjugstad would put the game away for good collecting his 6th goal of the season into an empty net, assisted by Stenlund and Määttä.

In the locker room, Stenlund talked about defeating his former club, the top-ranked team in the NHL. “It shows how good of a team we are when we play the right way, play our way. It was a good game.” With regard to the third period, Stenlund said, “[Winnipeg] pushed a bit into us early, but I think we controlled it pretty well. We got one goal and I think they had some chances, but not many.”

Captain Clayton Keller was asked about scoring his 500th career NHL point during the game. “It’s cool. I honestly had no idea coming into the game, so I was a bit surprised. Lots of hard work and sacrifice. So many people in my life sacrificed for me to get to this level so I’m just super thankful for everything that they’ve done for me, my teammates, and my coaches. There are so many people that have helped me get to where I am. I still feel like I have a lot more to give, and I’m just getting started.” About playing the NHL’s top team, Clayton said, “We had a good start and we played with a lot of speed. They’re a great team, tough to play against, and they have great players. The third maybe got away from us a little bit, but [Vejmelka] was unreal as usual, kept us in the game, and made key saves at the right times. It’s a good feeling to win at home.”

Head coach André Tourigny opened his post-game media session by saying, “We played rock solid. (Karel Vejmelka) again was really solid. But I think as a team, we played really solid. I think in the third (period), we got on our heels a little bit. But I won’t let that reflect on our game because we played against a really good team and we played a hell of a game. I’m really proud of the guys.” He offered particular praise for special teams. “Both were really good. (Winnipeg’s) power play is excellent, so the way our PK played (was good). Our power play produced; but more than that, they gave us momentum. They played, they attacked, they were under their toes. They played really solid. I think (Clayton Keller’s) play, not just on the power play but 5-on-5 play; he had a rock solid game. Captain; showed up; huge in a big game.” When asked about what he learns when playing a team like Winnipeg, Bear continued, “I like the fact that we’re not scared. We’re taking it the right way: ‘OK, let’s get at it.’ We want that and we believe in ourselves. We have no complex against those teams. We beat Winnipeg twice this year; how we played against Dallas, how we played against L.A., how we played against Colorado. All those games were hard-fought games. I think that showed the character of our team and the leadership of our team. That’s why we love our team.”

About those playoff chances, Tourigny said of his team, “They don’t want to hear anything. They just want to play, and play good. They are locked in. They’re straight on in what we have to do and play and win games. That’s it. They’re the easiest team to coach in the league right now. They’re tuned in, they’re locked in. We just need to lead a plan and they’re tuned in. They’re great.”

Next up for Utah is a visit from the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night at 7:00pm.

Utah Hockey Club game wrap: Los Angeles Kings Rule 4-2 Over Utah HC With Wild Card Slipping Away

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Los Angeles Kings right winger Adrian Kempe (9) fights with Utah Hockey Club’s center Logan Cooley (92) in the second period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Thu Apr 3, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–The Kings scored twice in a 44-second span in the third period to take control of a tight game which they would go on to win 4-2.

Utah HC entered Thursday night’s tilt against the Los Angeles Kings nine points out of the final Western Conference Wild Card slot with seven games to go in the regular season. Mathematically it isn’t impossible for Utah to make the playoffs, but they are running out of race track. The Kings had all but officially punched their ticket to the postseason, entering the matchup in second place in the Pacific Division behind the Vegas Golden Knights.

The two squads kept each other off the scoresheet in the first period, with Karel Vejmelka turning away all three shots which got past his defensemen, and Darcy Kuemper fending off 16 shots from the Utah offense. Vejmelka made his 19th consecutive start in front of the net for Utah, extending his career high.

At 6:56 of the second period, Los Angeles forward Andrei Kuzmenko shot the puck at the Utah net as Logan Cooley pushed Adrian Kempe into Vejmelka, deflecting the puck over the goal line to give L.A. a 1-0 lead.

At 12:21 of the frame, Utah forward Lawson Crouse found an impossibly small gap between Kuemper’s shoulder and the upper corner of the net for his 11th goal of the season, assisted by Josh Doan and Jack McBain to even things up at 1-1.

Early in the third period, Utah defenseman John Marino gave the puck away in front of the Utah net to Kevin Fiala who knocked it past Vejmelka unassisted for his 29th of the season. In frustration, Marino swung his stick at the goal post, his stick blade joining the puck in the back of the net.

44 seconds later, Trevor Moore took advantage of a Utah miscue in their offensive zone and raced across the length of the ice to put the Kings up 3-1 with his 18th of the season, assisted by Quinton Byfield. With Vejmelka pulled for an extra attacker, veteran L.A. defenseman Drew Doughty scored into an empty net at 18:10 to put the game out of reach.

As fans headed for the exits, Utah went on the power play when Brandt Clarke was whistled for tripping against Alexander Kerfoot with 27 seconds remaining. Utah controlled the faceoff and Jack McBain cut the deficit in half with 20 seconds left on the clock with his 13th goal of the season, assisted by Kailer Yamamoto and Sean Durzi, but it wouldn’t be enough to change the outcome.

With the loss, Utah remains nine points out of the Wild Card picture with just six games remaining.

In the locker room, Lawson Crouse spoke about his team’s effort. “Yeah, frustrating. … We were in the driver’s seat for the first two periods, and unfortunately, what happened on the four on four and they capitalized on two chances. That’s how quick the game can get away from you, and we were playing catch up from there.”

Forward Dylan Guenther, who played with a transparent cage after breaking his nose in the previous game, commented, “I honestly thought we played pretty well. Maybe get inside a little bit more and try to create more secondary chances. I think we know that they were pretty good in the neutral zone. They had more speed, but we just need to find a way to score more goals.” When asked what the team is learning at this point of the season, Guenther added, “I think how every play matters. Every shift, no matter what happens, all you can do is go out there and try to win your shift so just take it a step at a time.”

Head coach André Tourigny said, “I think we played a really solid game, I think there’s a few broken plays which made the difference in the game, but I think the guys were ready and we were really structured. We didn’t give up much. Unfortunately, a few breakdowns made the difference.” With regard to Guenther’s broken nose, Tourigny commented, “there’s not many guys in any locker room in the NHL at this point of the year who don’t have something wrong. You know that’s for sure. When you have a cage and a bubble and you have a broken nose and everybody sees it, but there’s a lot of it… it’s a tough sport, and there are tough players and they go through a lot, and they demand a lot from their bodies. It’s 82 games, and that’s the way it is. And I think I have tons of respect for all of them who battle through and manage their life 24/7 to make sure they’re capable of keeping playing at the elite level. So Gunner and others, tons of respect.”

Utah returns to the ice for the third game of the homestand on Saturday afternoon against the division leading Winnipeg Jets.

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro Fri Mar 7, 2025: Utah’s Veimelka 31 saves shutout Red Wings 3-0; Bjorkstrand scores game winner for Bolts 6-5 win over Sabres; plus more news

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Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Veimelka saved 31 shots for a 3-0 shutout against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Thu May 6, 2025 (AP file photo)

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro Fri Mar 7, 2025

Len before we start just a quick run down about the NHL trade deadline and the Washington Capitals Alexander Ovechkin’s run at the all time goal scoring record.

#1  Karel Veimelka stopped 31 shots for the Utah Hockey Club and Utah scored three unanswered goals against the Detroit Red Wings for a 4-2 win at Little Caesars Arena Thursday night in Detroit. Vejmelka just signed a five year extension before the game for Utah.

#2 Jake Guentzel had a big night for the Tampa Bay Lightning picking up a hat trick that helped the Bolts edge the visiting Buffalo Sabres at Amailie Arena on Thursday night 6-5. Oliver Bjorkstrand ended a 5-5 tie in the third period in his Tampa Bay debut with a goal. Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy made 28 saves.

#3 Florida Panthers Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 16 shots as the Florida Panthers picked up their fifth straight game in a shutout over the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-0 at Amerant Bank Arena Thursday night. Bobrovsky picked up his 433rd career win which tied goaltender great Tony Esposito for the tenth spot on the NHL all time list.

#4 Winnipeg Jets Mark Scheifele scored a goal and had two assists as the Jets got a convincing 4-1 win over Philadelphia Flyers at the Wells Fargo Center on Thursday night. Gabriel Vilardi picked up three assists teammate Kyle Connor scored a goal and got an assist. The Jets snapped a three game losing streak with the win.

#5  Carolina Hurricanes Seth Jarvis scored a key goal with 19 seconds left in regulation to get the Canes a 3-2 win against the visiting Boston Bruins at Lenovo Center in Raleigh on Thursday night. Jarvis scored his goal from the short side at the left hash marks after defenseman Nikita Zadrorov broke his stick in an attempt to clear the puck in the right circle.

Join Len Shaprio for the NHL podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Fall 2-1 in OT to Jets, Winnipeg Win Streak at 10; San Jose loss steak reaches six

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Winnipeg Jets Mark Scheifele (55) scored the game winning goal in overtime on San Jose Sharks goaltender Vitek Vanecek (41) at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg on Mon Feb 24, 2025 (Canadian press via AP)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 2-1 in overtime to the Winnipeg Jets, despite holding a lead for more than 40 minutes. The win was the tenth in a row for the Jets. For the Sharks, it was the sixth loss in a row. Josh Morrissey and Mark Sheifele scored for Winnipeg. Connor Hellebuyck made 17 saves for the win. William Eklund scored for the Sharks and Vitek Vanacek made 33 saves in the loss.

Vitek Vanacek was a big part of the reason that the Sharks hung in there for as long as they did. After the game, William Eklund said, of the goaltender: “Yeah, he was outstanding tonight.” Of his teammates, Vanacek said that “I think the guys played really well.” The Sharks came away from the loss disappointed but not ashamed of their effort.

After the game, Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said that the team:

“Worked extremely hard, each and every period, with things we talked about this morning. To fall short is a kick in the gut. Disappointed we don’t get the result but I’m really extremely proud of our group. Back to back, get in late last night, to have that type of effort against arguably the best team in the League.”

William Eklund started the scoring with a power play goal at 15:07 of the first period. Macklin Celebrini made a cross-ice pass to Eklund for a slap shot from the face-off dot. Celebrini and Will Smith got the assists.

Winnipeg outshot San Jose 10-6 in the first period. The teams took matching roughing minors near the middle of the period. The Sharks had the only power play of the period. The Jets outshot the Sharks 10-8 in the second period and 13-3 in the third. The Sharks had two power plays in the second period and killed one penalty. The Sharks had the only penalty in the third period and killed that.

Eklund’s goal gave the Sharks a lead that lasted until the final minute of the third period, when Josh Morrissey tied the game with the Jets’ net empty. Morrissey caught a bounce off of the side board and put the puck in the net on the short side from the top of the faceoff circle.

1:33 into overtime, the Jets extended their win streak when Mark Sheifele picked up a rebound right in front of Vanacek and poked it over the line. Assists went to Nikolaj Ehlers and Kyle Connor.

The Sharks next play on Thursday in Montreal against the Canadiens at 4:00 PM PT.

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro: Jets Ford scores first NHL goal; Wild goalie Fleury shuts out Habs 4-0; plus more NHL news

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Winnipeg Jets center Vladislav Namestnkov (7) puts a backhanded shot in the net past the Boston Bruins goalie Joonas Korpisalo (70) in the first period at TD Garden in Boston on Thu Jan 30, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the NHL podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 Winnipeg Jets Parker Ford who grew up rooting for the Boston Bruins as a kid scored in his NHL debut against the Bruins as well as the Jets scoring a total of four straight goals in the third period in a four goal 6-2 win over the Bruins.

#2  Minnesota Wild goaltender 40 year Mark Andre Fleury stopped 19 shots and recorded his 76th NHL shutout for the Wild’s third straight win 4-0 over the Montreal Canadiens. Fleury picked up his first shutout since March 14th. This could very well be Fleury’s last game in Montreal as he is retiring after this season. Fleury who grew up a Canadiens fan lived in Sorel, Quebec just an hour from Montreal.

#3 The Washington Capitals Alexander Ovechkin scored his career 876th goal and needs 19 to surpass former Los Angeles Kings NHL goal leader Wayne Gretzky who has 894 career goals. Despite the Ovechkin goal the Caps lost to the Ottawa Senators 5-4 at Canadian Tire Center in Ottawa on Thursday.

#4 Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andre Vasilevskiy stopped 28 shots in the Lightning’s 3-0 shutout over the Los Angeles Kings at the Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay. For Vasilevskiy this was his third shutout for the season and his 37th career shutout. The Lightning got two goals from Brandon Hagel and a goal from Anthony Cirelli.

#5 Mikko Rantanen scored his first goal since joining the Carolina Hurricanes in their 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks at Lenovo Center on Thursday night. Rantanen who came over to Carolina from the Colorado Avalanche that involved a three trade deal that included the Blackhawks forwards Martin Necas and Jack Drury and a 2025 second round NHL draft pick.

Len Shapiro does the NHL podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Utah HC Cools The Jets 5-2 To Close Homestand On Winning Note

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Utah Hockey Club goaltender Conner Ingram (39) blocks a shot against the Winnipeg Jets center Morgan Baron (36) in the third period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Mon Jan 20, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–After 36 scoreless minutes, Utah scored four consecutive goals en route to 5-2 victory over division-leading Winnipeg.

On a day when the United States celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day and inaugurated a new president, the Utah Hockey Club wrapped up its 7-game homestand on Monday against the Central Division leading Winnipeg Jets. Whereas our neighbors to the north have thus far resisted becoming America’s 51st state in the opening hours of the new administration, fans in attendance were treated to local recording artist Oba “Obeeyay” Bonner’s stirring renditions of O Canada and The Star-Spangled Banner prior to the opening faceoff.

The first period was all defense on both ends of the ice. In a battle of the Connors, Winnipeg netminder Connor Hellebuyck turned away all 10 shots he faced, while Utah goalie Connor Ingram stopped 11.

The initial 16 minutes of the second period remained a defensive draw until Olli Määttä found the back of the net for his first goal in a Utah sweater, assisted by Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller. Keller had just returned to the ice after sitting out most of the period after being hit in the face by a deflected puck and receiving a dozen stitches in the locker room. In the closing seconds of the period, Barrett Hayton fed a breakaway pass to Logan Cooley who put Utah up 2-0 at the end of the second with his 15th goal of the season.

Nearly 5 minutes into the third period, Hayton would score his 9th of the season, assisted by Josh Doan and Kevin Stenlund, and just a few minutes after that, Utah would go up 4-0 on the 8th goal of the season from Matias Maccelli, assisted by Doan and Hayton. If anyone began to feel like Utah might have the game in the bag at this point, those thoughts were quickly dashed as Winnipeg got one back 28 seconds later on a shot by Nino Niederreiter, and then cut the lead in half a few minutes later with Dylan DeMelo putting the puck past Ingram. Recent 3rd period lapses at home suddenly caused concern that another one might slip away in the closing minutes. This time, however, Utah held the line on defense and Clayton Keller sealed the result with an empty net goal, his 16th goal of the season assisted by Schmaltz, to officially put the game away with two minutes remaining.

Though Utah closed out the homestand with a 3-4 record, the team felt good about hitting the road on a positive note having won the final two. After the game, head coach André Tourigny began his media session by joking, “I wish we stay at home for a little while, man, now we’re rolling!” Tourigny praised his captain’s return to the game from his injury. “That’s a hockey player. The other thing is that he went at the net and got a puck right in the eye and came back on his first shift–no hesitation…Kicked the puck out on entry, went right at the net and got rewarded. Coming back without hesitation, without a doubt in his head; that was great.”

Tourigny continued commenting on his team’s performance, “They believe in the way they play, they believe in themselves, they believe in the consistency in our game. Every loss or every stretch (is) not necessarily positive, unfortunately…We have a different mindset; there’s no doubt about it. The key moment in the game was in the first period. The first 17 and a half minutes, we didn’t give anything. You’ll tell me we didn’t get a lot–but that’s the Winnipeg Jets. That’s one of the best defensive teams in the league. There was a bunch of nothing happening, which was fine. There’s a few calls we didn’t get. Then we got emotional a little bit…And they dominated the last two (and a half) minutes. We came back in the second calm (and) collected and we played well. Even when they had a push the rest of the game, I never felt the boat was rocking. We had great leadership, we had a great presence. I’m really proud of the way we weathered the storm and stayed with it. I think that made a difference. When we took the lead, we didn’t change the way we played. We kept playing the same way. We started the third period, we didn’t back down or get nervous, we kept playing–playing the right way. For me, that is the key moment.”

Captain Clayton Keller spoke to the media in the locker room, his stitched-up eyebrow on full display, “I’m feeling great. I got lucky; (the puck) didn’t catch my eye. When it happened, it happened so fast. You don’t really feel much. But I tried to look through my eye and I knew I could, so I wasn’t really too worried after that.” Keller immediately moved on to talking about the game itself. “I think we tried to be simple and try to have some traffic, get to the net. I think we did a good job of that. (Hellebuyck is) one of the best goalies in the league. He’s so hard to score on. Credit to the guys for going to the net and bearing down on our chances.”

Forward Josh Doan, who picked up a couple of assists in the game and is holding his own since being recalled from Tucson, commented about playing the Jets. “Any time you play a division opponent it’s a huge game. (Winnipeg) is such a great team…I think we did a good job tonight of taking what was there and not forcing it. I think that’s something that maybe, earlier in the year, we wouldn’t have done.” With regard to Keller returning to the game in the second period, Doan said, “Yeah, I think it does a lot for the bench knowing that he’s willing to do that and come back and go right back to the net front next shift and get rewarded. It’s one of those things where it’s part of the game, but you hate to see it happen and for him to bounce back like that was huge for us and our momentum. Obviously you heard the crowd’s reaction. It meant a lot to them too.”