DiVincentiis shines as Jets fall to Oilers in opener of Young Stars Classic

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This article was published 15/09/2023 (771 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Goaltender Domenic DiVincentiis was in fine form Friday night. The rest of his teammates on the Winnipeg Jets prospects team? Not so much.

The result was a sloppy, undisciplined 3-1 loss to the young guns of the Edmonton Oilers in the opening game of the Young Stars Classic in Penticton, B.C.

DiVincentiis, the reigning Ontario Hockey League netminder of the year who was selected in the seventh round of the 2022 draft, was a a human highlight reel. He saw a barrage of rubber, turning away 33 of 36 pucks including many of the five-star variety.

His masked counterpart at the other end of the rink, Nathan Day, had a relatively easy night at the office as Winnipeg mustered just 14 shots.

Connor Levis, who was drafted this past June in the seventh round, was the only Jets skater to beat Day. His goal with 19 seconds left in the first period gave his club a 1-0 lead. No doubt that felt good for the 19-year-old Vancouver winger, who has spent the past three seasons playing with the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL.

Levis’ tally came off a nifty feed from Danny Zhilkin, a 2022 third-rounder who spent last year with the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL.

Unfortunately for the Jets, it was all downhill from there as the Oilers took over the final 40 minutes. Much of that momentum was helped by a parade to the penalty box by Winnipeg skaters. They gave Edmonton a total of eight power plays on the night, while drawing five of their own.

Edmonton’s Jake Sloan tied the game at even strength less than two minutes into the middle frame, then gave his team the lead just past the midway mark when he struck again. Oilers prospect Beau Akey then added some insurance with a power-play tally with just over nine minutes left.

Any hope of a late Winnipeg rally was snuffed out when Brad Lambert and Tyrel Bauer took penalties 19 seconds apart with just over two minutes remaining.

The Jets brought 24 skaters out west, meaning four had to be healthy scratches. Forwards Mark Liwiski and Connor McClennon and defencemen Wyatt Wilson and Simon Kubicek drew the short straw. Thomas Milic, the reigning Western Hockey League goaltender of the year, was the backup to DiVincentiis.

Winnipeg has two games remaining as they’ll face the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday (4 p.m. CT) and the Calgary Flames on Monday (Noon CT). They will be streamed live at www.winnipegjets.com.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X: @mikemcintyrewpg