Jets edge Penguins 2-1 to snap five game losing skid Featured

Written by  Published in Winnipeg Jets
Winnipeg, Manitoba (NHN)-The Winnipeg Jets got all the offence they needed off a pair of first period goals and Connor Hellebuyck stopped 35 shots as they edged the visiting Pittsburg Penguins by a 2-1 score Saturday night to snap a five-game losing skid.

Mark Scheifele and Nino Niederreiter scored for Winnipeg.

Connor Hellebuyck won his 24th game of the season as the Jets moved to 31-14-5.

Bryan Rust scored the lone goal for the Penguins.

Tristan Jarry turned aside 29 shots for Pittsburgh, who dropped their second straight game.

Mark Scheifele opened the scoring 10:20 into the first when he one timed a Nikolaj Ehlers feed past Jarry to make it 1-0 Jets.

The Penguins turned the puck over at the Winnipeg blue line on a delayed offside as Ehlers knocked down an errant pass before breaking in on a two-on-one before sliding the disc to Scheifele, who promptly rocketed the puck past a shocked Jarry to score his 15th goal of the season.

Nino Niederreiter gave the Jets a two-goal lead at 15:39 when he snapped up a puck off the end boards off a Nate Schmidt shot from the point and poked it past Jarry to make it 2-0.

The goal snapped a 16 game goalless drought for him and was his 13th of the season.

Pittsburgh carried the edge in play in the second period, outshooting the Jets by a 16-7 margin.

Bryan Rust got the Penguins on the board 14:08 into the second stanza when he redirected an Erik Karlsson shot from the point past Hellebuyck at 14:08.

The goal was his 13th of the season.

Winnipeg had a chance to extend their lead just under the halfway point of the third whene Kyle Connor sent Nikolaj Ehlers in on a partial breakaway off a pass from the high slot but the Jet winger was stymied by Jarry.

There was no scoring in the third period.

SHOTS-PITTSBURGH 36 WINNIPEG 31

ATTENDANCE-15,225

NOTES-Jets winger Kyle Connor played in his 500th career game on the night.

Philip Paul-Martin

A well rounded journalist with experience in both print and broadcast mediums, Philip has written news stories with impact, broken national news while at the CBC, anchored radio news and hosted talk show radio. His coverage includes feature writing, game stories and more in-depth pieces during the off-season as well as writing about the National Hockey League and the Winnipeg Jets. He calls Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada home.