Scheifele comes up clutch for Jets

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/12/2024 (307 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

CHICAGO — Mark Scheifele wasn’t going to pretend that he wasn’t disappointed that his country didn’t come calling earlier this week.

But the Winnipeg Jets centre put on a brave face and said all the right things.

His actions on the ice have reinforced that Scheifele fully recognizes what is necessary for him to remain on Team Canada’s radar, either as an injury replacement in February or to leave an early impression for the 2026 Olympic team.

The latest contribution was delivering the game-winning goal on Saturday afternoon as the Jets defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 4-2 at United Center.

“Obviously it’s tough, but my main focus is with the Winnipeg Jets. I just want to play my best,” said Scheifele, who has 14 goals and 30 points in 28 games.

“It’s disappointing. But being in Canada, there’s a lot of fantastic players to pick from. Obviously you want to be picked, but that’s just the way she goes. There’s a reason for everything. Really, really happy for Josh (Morrissey). He deserved it.”

Since the rest of the roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off was unveiled publicly, Scheifele has contributed a goal and two assists as the Jets posted consecutive victories on the heels of four straight losses.

Earlier this week, Jets head coach Scott Arniel spoke about the importance of getting back to having an attack mentality and getting to the net and the Scheifele goal at 10:18 of the third period was a prime example of that.

Scheifele won an offensive zone draw, Kyle Connor got the puck to the net from a sharp angle, Gabe Vilardi drove to the net, creating some additional chaos as Scheifele got to the front and banged home the rebound.

“K.C. fires one from the bad angle. Now it becomes a scramble,” said Arniel. “Nobody knows where the puck is and Scheif did a good job of getting there. (In) games like this, when they’re tight. You need your top people to score goals.”

The Jets flew home on Saturday night and will open a four-game homestand Sunday at 5 p.m. against Sean Monahan and the Columbus Blue Jackets.

CLAMPING DOWN: The Jets gave up a power-play marker to Alex Vlasic after Tyler Bertuzzi provided a good screen inside the blue paint but didn’t make contact with goalie Connor Hellebuyck. Winnipeg then had a lapse with 13 seconds in the first period when they didn’t pick up Blackhawks defenceman Alec Martinez off the rush to fall behind 2-1.

But during the final two periods, the Jets stuck to their structure and gave up a total of six shots on goal (three in the second and three in the third) and limited the number of high-danger chances to one in what was a sound defensive effort.

“That’s the first time in a while where I feel like we outworked the other team,” said Jets winger Nino Niederreiter. “We were, for the most part, very smart with the puck. We didn’t gave them any room on the inside. I think that’s something which helped us a lot.

“(In) the other games, we tried to do it the other way, and the other way didn’t work for us. We’ve got to stay with it. We’ve just got to believe and trust in our system. If we do what we’re supposed to do, usually good things happen.”

DOUBLE DIGITS: Niederreiter evened the score at 2-2 at 13:10 of the second period after an excellent shift for the Adam Lowry line.

Appleton had the puck down low and found Niederreiter at the side of the net before Niederreiter buried his backhand for the lone goal of the middle frame.

For Niederreiter, it was his 10th goal of the season in just his 27th game.

The eight-time 20-goal scorer is well on his way to reaching the mark again.

“Obviously, it’s great to contribute and get some goals, but in the end, nothing is more fun than winning hockey games,” said Niederreiter.

The Lowry line got an insurance marker from Appleton on an afternoon they also held Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard off the scoresheet at even strength.

“They could have had five (goals),” said Arniel, when asked about the Lowry line. “They were really good. They’re heavy. They’re hard to play against when they do that and they get that cycle game going. There were a number of plays where I thought they had some really good looks because first and foremost, they got the puck in and they went to work.”

The Swiss forward became the fourth member of the Jets to hit double digits this season, joining Connor (14), Scheifele (14) and Gabe Vilardi, who scored his 11th of the campaign in the first period on another excellent tip after a point shot by Logan Stanley.

It was the second time in as many games Vilardi has shown off his hand-eye coordination.

“He’s really special around that net. He’s probably one of the best I’ve ever seen,” said Scheifele. “He gets a touch on everything and has a knack around that net to put it in the right spots. He’s a special player down there.”

THE WHIFF: Jets rookie forward Brad Lambert had a couple of glorious opportunities to find the back of the net for his first NHL goal in this one.

Lambert’s first chance came in the first period when a rebound kicked out to him at the side of the net, but the puck was rolling, so he wasn’t able to get much on his shot.

The even better chance came in the second period when Vladislav Namestnikov made a slick feed to Lambert in the slot.

But once again, the puck rolled a bit and Lambert appeared to rush his shot ever so slightly and the puck sailed wide, causing the Finnish centre to look to the sky in disbelief.

“He missed a gigantic one. He’ll be having nightmares about that one, that wide open net,” said Arniel. “It’s hard for young players. It wasn’t like he got to start the season with us from Game 1 and gradually grow. He’s kind of grown while the water’s running fast. And he’s been doing a pretty good job of that.”

If Lambert, who had 12:06 of ice time, keeps playing with pace and getting to the right spots on the ice, it won’t likely be long before he finds that memorable marker.

“He looked like he was more comfortable. That’s the biggest thing. It takes time,” said Scheifele. “It’s a different speed than the AHL, timing and stuff like that. I thought he played fantastic. I thought he was in the right spot, he used his speed, he did the right things. That was a good showing by him. The more experience he gets, the better he’s going to get.”

THE KEY PLAY: Scheifele buries a rebound at 10:18 of the third period to put the Jets ahead for good.

THE THREE STARS: 1. Mason Appleton, Jets, scored one goal, added one assist, three shots on goal; 2. Mark Scheifele, Jets, scored the game-winning goal, had three shots on goal, six shot attempts; 3. Kyle Connor, Jets, two assists and two shots on goal.

EXTRA, EXTRA: Hellebuyck finished with 12 saves in what was the 22nd start of the season for the reigning Vezina Trophy winner. Hellebuyck will get a well-deserved rest on Sunday as Eric Comrie makes his seventh start of the season against the Blue Jackets…

The Blackhawks had to call Arvid Soderblom out of the bullpen at 10:46 of the first period when Petr Mrazek suffered a lower-body injury during a scramble around the crease…

The healthy scratches for the Jets included forward David Gustafsson and defencemen Colin Miller and Dylan Coghlan. Miller has been a healthy scratch in four of the past five games, but it’s not because the coaching staff has lost confidence in him.

Miller needs to stay patient as the Jets try and find out what they have in Ville Heinola and Logan Stanley, who had an assist on Vilardi’s goal but was unable to clear Bertuzzi out of the front before the power-play goal by Alex Vlasic.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @WiebesWorld