Oilers too slick for falling Jets

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This article was published 11/12/2016 (3270 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

EDMONTON — Patrik Laine has fired some highlight-reel goals in his rookie season in the NHL — but the blast into his own net Sunday night against the Edmonton Oilers takes the cake.

He even ties Nikolaj Ehlers for the Winnipeg Jets club lead in that ridiculous category.

Consider the circumstances.

The struggling Jets were faring well against the high-flying Oilers, locked in a 2-2 battle with under 10 minutes left in the third period.

Centre Mark Letestu had scored earlier in the period for the Oilers, his fifth of the year and fourth against Winnipeg this season to tie it up in front of a sold-out Rogers Place crowd.

Yet, the Jets were pressing for the winner, showing a grit that was seriously lacking Saturday night in an ugly 6-2 loss to the Calgary Flames.

But with less than nine minutes left, Letestu’s blast was kicked out by Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck. Laine, standing in the circle, whacked at the puck to clear it from harm’s way but, instead, found the back of his own net.

Final score: Oilers 3, Jets 2, Re-tweeted gifs of the goal 1,000,000.

“Everybody saw what happened,” said Laine, who has 17 goals and 25 points in 32 games this season. “I don’t know. I just tried to get rid of the puck right away. It was just a bad decision for me and an unfortunate goal.”

His captain quickly rushed to his defence.

“He’s 18 years old and he feels terrible. These things happen. I’ve done it many times, it’s just a bad bounce,” said Blake Wheeler. “He’s done a hell of a job for us this year. He’s obviously a huge part of our team and you hate to see a guy have to feel that way after the game.”

Wheeler, who got banged up a couple of times in the game, including a backwards spill into the boards, moved beside Laine on the bench, threw his arm around the teen and offered some encouraging words.

Letestu, a true Jets killer this season, was credited with the unassisted goal, his sixth.

Winnipeg lost in similar fashion Nov. 11 in Denver when Ehlers shot the puck past goalie Michael Hutchinson in overtime to give the Colorado Avalanche a 3-2 win.

Clearly, someone’s got it in for the Jets (13-16-3), who have lost three straight and are winless in four. The Oilers (15-11-5) snapped a four-game winless skid with their third victory over Winnipeg this season, including a shutout in the outdoor Heritage Classic in late October.

Jets head coach Paul Maurice said the players rallied behind the distraught young Finn.

“I didn’t say anything to him. The right guys on the bench said something to him,” said Maurice. “Every guy in the (NHL) has a goal like that one, every defenceman, goes in off him.

“So, he’s got a story to tell now.”

 

Line shake-ups

Sometimes, Maurice pulls out the blender and a bland-tasting concoction pours out. Other times, like Sunday night, the finished product is close but doesn’t quite pass the taste test.

Maurice’s habit of tinkering with the look and feel of his forward lines generated some offensive punch for the visitors. Veteran forward Mathieu Perreault has been out of sorts since returning from an injury earlier this month and, against Calgary, he filled a fourth-line role with Drew Stafford and Chris Thorburn.

The shakeup worked out for Perreault, who scored his second goal of the season to open the scoring at 14:50 of the first period to snap a 16-game scoring drought, popping in a loose puck after defenceman Jacob Trouba’s blast from the point was redirected off the post by Little.

Perreault’s last goal came in the Jets season-opener against the Carolina Hurricanes. He played the first 11 games of the year, missed 14 with an upper-body injury and then returned to the lineup Dec. 1.

The count is now up to 44 second-period goals given up this season by the Jets after defenceman Oscar Klefbom picked up a big rebound by Hellebuyck and snapped in his fifth goal of the season less than two minutes into the middle frame to tie the game.

Maurice bumped feisty winger Marko Dano to the fourth line with tough guy Chris Thorburn and Stafford, and the trio produced a goal of its own. Thorburn, who had an earlier scrap with forward Zack Kassian, regained a one-goal lead for the Jets when he ripped a one-timer off a feed from Dano past goalie Cam Talbot at the 12-minute mark of the second.

Kassian appeared to have tied the game just over two minutes later when he snuck in behind pair of Jacob Trouba and Toby Enstrom and beat Hellebuyck, but the goal was wiped out on a coach’s challenge as Kassian was ruled to be off side on the play.

The third period was the Letestu and Laine show. It will live on in re-runs for an eternity. 

A light week

The Jets get a day away from the rink Monday and might even have Tuesday off, too, although the club indicated that’s still to be determined.

Winnipeg has a practice slated for Wednesday morning and then players will make their annual holiday visits to local hospitals in the afternoon.

The Florida Panthers pay a visit to the MTS Centre Thursday night for a 7 p.m. start. 

jason.bell@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @WFPJasonBell