3 highlights from the Winnipeg Jets' 2-1 win over the Penguins

It's been a long time since the Winnipeg Jets last won a hockey game. After a five-game losing streak and the All-Star break in the middle of it, Nikolaj Ehlers said, “Yeah, it's been a while, we've been trying to figure out who's had the Jackets, and that shows you how. there was a lot.”

The Jets came out on top tonight, beating the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1 as Connor Hellebuyck stopped 35 of 36 shots.

The top line of Connor-Scheifele-Ehlers dominated the offense

The Jets had suffered a major offensive slump going into this game, and during Saturday's morning skate, they switched their lines in hopes of an offensive spark. They scored two goals on the night, but newly formed Ehlers, Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor attacked the team and looked dangerous from start to finish.

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When asked about his play, Ehlers said, “I think we've skated, all three can skate and when we use it, we can make it hard for the defense to come up on us. It creates time and space to make the plays that we know we can make… Overall, I think we played pretty well, but there are still things we need to clean up as a line, so it's been exciting.”

It's safe to say that playing Ehlers in a high-profile role has directly contributed to the Jets' offensive success this season. Despite missing more than five weeks with Connor's injury, Ehlers stepped up and helped the Jets win a franchise-record eight games in the process. Ehler in a top-line role has had several positive results for Winnipeg's forward core, and given his recent play, he shouldn't lose that role anytime soon.

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The move resulted in Cole Perfetti, Sean Monahan and Gabriel Villardi in the second row. With three slow players in the Jets' forward core, they had several shifts of constant pressure to keep the puck down, and they seemed to work well off each other. I expect Rick Bowness and the Jets coaching staff to go a few plays with this top-six configuration tonight, despite the two goals. Both Bowness and Ehlers noted the Jets' ability to create chances tonight and felt they could have won this game much more than they did.

Nino Niederreiter scored in 15 games

The Jets third line of Adam Lowry, Nino Niederreiter and Mason Appleton hasn't been scoring at the erratic pace they've been scoring in the early part of the season, but lately they've been known to create good chances but not finish them. In Niederreiter's case, a streak of 15 games without a goal was the night's drought.

After returning to his 'office' to score the Jets' second goal and his 13th of the season, Nino Niederreiter said: 'Yeah, I'm going to try to get to it as much as I can, which means it's not easy. there, so the pucks will be delivered while you're there, so it's just a matter of time, so I'm glad I found the puck tonight.”

Niederreiter has had several shutouts in his career, and this season is no exception. He's off to a hot start to the year, with multiple two-goal games in December, and if he starts to heat up again in February, the Jets could get that second point they've been sorely lacking in the last couple. weeks.

Bowness and Niederreiter highlighted the potential of the third straight in a loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday, February 8, and they carried over their strong play into that game as Niederreiter hit the game-winner.

As the Jets struggled, Connor Hellebuyck stepped up

Hellebuyck's brilliance continued tonight, stopping 35 of 36 shots and giving the Jets another quality start. Both Bowness and Ehlers expressed displeasure with the teams' effort in the second period after the game, with Bowness even calling it “frustrating.”

Even though the Jets played well in 20 minutes of this game, their Vezina-caliber goaltender was up to the task as usual, and even Ehlers praised him after the game, saying it was just one of hundreds of times he's been praised.
it is so stable.

Now that the Jets have a win in their system, they need to build a game against the San Jose Sharks on February 14th. If they can't win this game by a comfortable margin, many of the concerns of a disappointing home defeat could resurface. Winnipeg is currently third in the Central Division behind the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche, both with games in hand.