Jets slip past pesky Sens 3-2

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This article was published 14/04/2021 (1608 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Jets desperately required a special third period Wednesday night — so they went out and generated one.

Deadlocked with the vastly improved Ottawa Senators for a huge chunk of time, the Jets were ignited by the work of their special teams en route to a 3-2 victory in the nation’s capital.

Mathieu Perreault scored a power-play goal about two minutes into the final frame to break a 1-1 tie and Trevor Lewis increased the lead with a short-handed tally midway through the period.

Jets back-up goalie Laurent Brossoit, who received his first starting assignment since March 27, turned aside 27 shots in a sound performance.

Winnipeg improved to 26-14-3 and is trailing only the Toronto Maple Leafs in the North Division, pulling three points ahead of the idle Edmonton Oilers.

Ottawa fell to 14-26-4, however, the Sens hardly resembled basement dwellers in two spirited efforts with the Jets this week.

“It was a tight game throughout the whole thing. We knew they were going to come hard and we needed to keep it simple. In the third there, we got a big power-play goal by Frenchie (Perreault). That was an awesome shot, and then with the short-handed goal, it was a big win for us,” said Lewis.

“We knew they were going to come hard, they were going to grind us. It was going to be a hard-fought game, it always is against them. I thought we kept it simple, got on the forecheck and when we did, we got pucks back and had our chances. It definitely was a big win for us.”

Perreault’s ninth goal of the year snapped a long stretch with clubs locked up 1-1. The feisty forward moved in from the wall, pulled a nifty leg lift and rifled the puck to the top corner, short side, on goalie Matt Murray.

The 33-year-old winger, in his seventh campaign with Winnipeg, plays a relentless game, defensively and on the forecheck, but continues to flash his offensive instincts.

“Yeah, that was pretty sweet. Hit the water bottle like that, (it) doesn’t happen really often, so the sound that it makes is pretty cool,” Perreault said, of his bullet over Murray’s shoulder.

“Obviously, there’s been a few injuries where I got a chance to play a little bit more, so that will always help. The more you get on the ice the more chances you’ll get. I always believed that I was still able to be a difference maker in games for this team, even last year, and coming into this year. And so far this year I’ve been able to work hard, finishing my checks, doing all the right little things, blocking shots. And eventually when I get my chances I just let my skills take over. So, far it’s been good.”

Lewis, a veteran fourth-liner, streaked in alone and pumped in his third goal of the year — and second while killing a penalty — at 9:39.

Ottawa head coach D.J. Smith might well have been irritated by the effort of his top defenceman on the play. After failing to retain possession at the Jets blue line, Thomas Chabot took a couple of leisurely strides before recognizing Lewis was in hot pursuit of the puck.

The visitors killed off four of five Ottawa power-play opportunities, while the Jets were 1-for-3 with the man advantage.

“There wasn’t a whole lot of offence, nothing clean really going for either team. So, a power-play goal, Matty’s, you know they’re really, really aggressive on their penalty kill. So your power play is going to look pretty poor until you score. They’re going to run and be really aggressive, and then you’ll get a break, Matty will come off the wall and have a lane and beat the goalie,” said head coach Paul Maurice.

“And the short-handed goal as well, our penalty kill was really strong tonight (and) has been for a while. Those were the difference makers tonight. (Brossoit’s) play and special teams.”

Brossoit must have wondered at times where all his white-clad colleagues had gone. He was left to fend for himself as the Senators dashed in on a couple of of odd-man rushes and slipped behind cover deep in Jets territory.

Defensive partners Neal Pionk and Derek Forbort collided going for the puck carrier near the blue line, freeing up Nick Paul to carry the puck in — with Colin White alongside — on a 2-on-0 and he ripped it past Brossoit at 1:19.

The Jets pulled even on Mark Scheifele’s 16th at 3:24. The centre, still firmly imbedded in the NHL’s top-10 in scoring, had an open look after a brilliant pass to the low slot from Nikolaj Ehlers, the slick Dane’s 300th NHL point.

Ryan Dzingel hit a post on a 2-on-1 early in the second frame, while Brossoit turned aside Brady Tkachuk on a partial breakaway a few minutes later.

He showed no hint of rust after nearly three weeks as a spectator to the work of Connor Hellebuyck.

“Of course, getting into a rhythm is a huge help. But when you can’t play for a few weeks it is all about your practice habits and what not. I was feeling good leading up to this game,” said Brossoit.

“You know, it’s the preparation leading up to it, days before, in the morning, in the game, ticking off all the boxes. You make sure you’re feeling good so that the first save doesn’t feel like a first save. So, I felt like I did that well tonight.”

The Jets didn’t exactly have the Sens under siege at any point in time through 40 minutes, propelling Maurice to shuffle his top-six forward group in the third period. He threw Stastny out between Ehlers and Andrew Copp, and Scheifele with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Kyle Connor for the third.

Sens forward Josh Norris blew a one-timer by Brossoit to close the gap with just 10 seconds left in the game, with the Paul Stastny and Dylan DeMelo confined to the penalty box. Actually, it was a 6-on-3, as Murray was lifted for an extra attacker.

Connor Brown had his goal streak end at eight games for Ottawa.

On Monday, the Jets suffered a humbling 4-2 defeat to the Senators.

There won’t be a drawn-out celebration over the team’s return to form. Winnipeg concludes a five-game road trip Thursday night in Toronto against the North Division-leading Maple Leafs. Game time is 6 p. m.

It will mark the first of eight consecutive contests — including six at home — against the three teams likely to join Winnipeg in the playoffs. The Jets have four meetings with Toronto, three with the Edmonton Oilers and one with the Montreal Canadiens to complete the month of April.

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell