New line works wonders for Jets as they dominate Flames 5-1

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This article was published 30/03/2021 (1622 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Of all the line juggling the Winnipeg Jets have done this season, there was one combination head coach Paul Maurice seemed to resist.

Mark Scheifele has anchored the No. 1 line all year, but never had he played with both Nikolaj Ehlers and Kyle Connor on his wings. On Monday, Maurice finally gave the trio an honest look, dropping Blake Wheeler and Paul Stastny to the second line to play with Pierre-Luc Dubois.

The move paid off in spades.

Scheifele scored twice and added an assist, Ehlers recorded three assists and Connor chipped in two assists as the group combined for eight points in a dominating 5-1 victory over the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome.

It was the kind of performance that made you wonder “what took so long?”

“Some of it had to do with the matchup from our last game, but some of it had to do with the lines you write out six weeks ago, or two months ago after we get Pierre-Luc back in our lineup,” Maurice said. “When you get to the end of a really, really long road trip and your team has played well and had a tough loss, sometimes you need something to kind of almost fill up a little interest, if that makes sense.”

The victory capped off a season-high seven-game road trip for the Jets, who opened the stretch with two straight losses against the Edmonton Oilers, followed by a pair of wins over the Vancouver Canucks before finishing off in Calgary for a three-game set. The Jets and Flames split the first two games, setting up a rubber match Monday.

What made Saturday’s loss so disappointing for the Jets was that their top two lines were held off the score sheet. It’s not often that happens, making a rebound evening for the new Scheifele line all the more rewarding.

“It was a bounce-back game for everyone tonight. It was a bounce-back game for the team,” Ehlers said. “That’s what we do, that’s kind of how our playoff mentality is, to bounce back after a loss and we’ve been able to do that really well this season. Obviously, you don’t want to lose games, but being able to go out and play the way we played tonight after a loss shows how special this group is.”

The Jets are now 22-12-2 on the year, and remain in second place in the Canadian Division, one point behind the Toronto Maple Leafs for the top spot. The Jets were briefly in third place Monday evening after the Oilers recorded two points in a 3-2 overtime win over the Leafs, who have a game in hand on the Jets and Oilers.

The loss puts Calgary’s playoff hopes in serious jeopardy. The defeat dropped the Flames to 16-18-3, putting them tied for fifth place with the Vancouver Canucks,with 35 points.

The Flames and Canucks are just two points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the fourth and final playoff spot, but the Canadiens have six games in hand on both clubs.

Connor Hellebuyck returned to the net after a break Saturday. He finished with 29 saves, including on a number of quality chances from the Flames, to improve to 17-9-2.

“If one beats me, it doesn’t change my game plan,” Hellebuyck said. “I want to show that I’m a rock back there and anytime that I get beat, I’m going to force them to make the perfect shot, or at least try to, and I’m going to show my team that I’m not fazed.”

Jacob Markstrom was back between the pipes for Calgary, but lasted just two periods before being replaced by David Rittich. Markstrom finished his night allowing 4 goals on 23 shots.

The Flames didn’t wait long to find pay dirt.

A hooking penalty against Andrew Copp led to a Calgary power play just 33 seconds into the game and Elias Lindholm made it a 1-0 game.

The Jets fought back to tie and then take the lead before the end of the period, scoring twice over a span of 1:54.

Nate Thompson redirected a pass from Dylan DeMelo with his skate to even the game at the 16:19. The goal was reviewed but the call stood. Scheifele then converted on a perfect 2-on-1 pass from Connor to put the Jets on top.

Scheifele was back at it in the second period, jamming home his own rebound just minutes in to make it a 3-1 lead. The goal was set up by some fancy footwork by Ehlers, who drove the net and beat a defender by dropping the puck from his stick and kicking it up with his skate before feeding it to Scheifele in front.

The Jets lead swelled to 4-1 before the second period was over, with Andrew Copp scoring his 11th goal of the season.

That would set up a third period that opened with a goal from Dubois just more than a minute in.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

twitter: @jeffkhamilton