Hellebuyck tames Laine as Jets roll past Habs

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This article was published 14/12/2024 (298 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Connor Hellebuyck isn’t the type of guy who requires any additional motivation.

Nor is he the type of player who’s scouring social media for any particular bulletin-board material in the hours leading up to puck drop.

So it came as little surprise that the Winnipeg Jets all-world goalie didn’t hear former teammate Patrik Laine joking about Hellebuyck having the “Paddy flu” in the three previous meetings when he spoke to reporters on Saturday morning.

“No flu tonight,” said Hellebuyck, who finished with 26 saves in the 4-2 win for the Jets over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday before a sold-out crowd of 15,224 at Canada Life Centre. “He had a lot of shots. He’s a good shooter. But nothing for him.”

Nothing indeed, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying as Laine had seven shots on goal and nine shot attempts in the contest as he had just over 16 minutes of ice time against the organization that chose him second overall in the 2016 NHL Draft.

Hellebuyck is up to a league-leading 19 wins in 25 starts this season to go with a 2.11 goals-against average and .926 save percentage.

“He’s unbelievable, the best goalie in the league, in my view,” said Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey. “I get to see it every night and probably take it for granted when you watch it over and over and over again.

“He makes it look easy, but I guarantee it’s not. Just a special, special talent, and really a generational goalie in my view.”

The Jets, who improved to 22-9-1 on the season, are heading out on the road for a pair of games in California against the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday and the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday.

Let’s take a closer look at this one:

SPECIAL STUFF: The Jets power play finished two-for-six, cashing in once at five-on-four on a fantastic backdoor pass from Kyle Connor to Gabe Vilardi that tied the game 1-1, then added another from Connor on a one-timer with just two seconds remaining in a two-man advantage.

“It’s huge. That’s how you win in this league,” said Hellebuyck. “Especially at this time when things are getting tighter and teams are figuring out their game, and bouncing back from bad games or what not. Your big guys have got to bring their A-game on a consistent basis and I thought they did.”

The Jets recently leaky penalty kill, which had allowed a goal in five consecutive games, locked things down in this one — finishing four-for-four while short-handed.

ASSESSING THE HOMESTAND: With the win, the Jets took home five of a possible eight points during this homestand and they’ve now secured nine of the 12 points available in the past six games.

“You have to do that. You have to take advantage when you’re home here,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “We just like the way we came out and got our points.”

The hot stretch has allowed the Jets to move back into top spot in the Central Division standings, one point ahead of the Minnesota Wild, who hold two games in hand and face the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday.

“It was a good homestand and now a couple days off here and we’d like to finish strong before Christmas,” said Morrissey.

THE RETURN: Although he’s suited up in Winnipeg as a member of the visiting team previously, this was a special appearance for Laine.

The second-overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft was suiting up in his first game here since coming out of the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program.

Laine suited up in his sixth game of the season on Saturday and generated several dangerous scoring chances, including a blistering one-timer late in the second period during a Canadiens power play.

“It’s one of those things where say if I screw up, I can make a good save,” said Hellebuyck, who had lost his stick for a second before pushing across to make a blocker save. “By the time I picked it up, it was on its way to the net. So the only thing I could do was just flail and try and make something cool, and thank God I did.”

Did Hellebuyck think the puck was going to cross the goal line if he didn’t snag it out of the air?

“It was coming down right on my head, and there’s two guys crashing the net. So you can play any type of what-if game you want,” said Hellebuyck. “But I got my glove on it, stopped it and sent it out.

Laine has three goals and four points since returning from a knee injury he suffered in his second pre-season game back in September.

THE KEY PLAY: With two seconds left in a two-man advantage, Connor blasted home a one-timer that ended up being the game-winning goal.

THE THREE STARS: 1. Connor Hellebuyck, Jets, 26 saves, including several of the highlight-reel variety; 2. Josh Morrissey, Jets, two more assists in 23:37 of work; 3. Kyle Connor, Jets, scored the game-winner and set up another with the man advantage.

EXTRA, EXTRA: Adam Lowry scored his eighth goal of the season at 16:40 of the first period to put the Jets up 2-1, converting a beautiful pass from Nino Niederreiter. Lowry is up to eight goals in 32 games as he continues to chase his career-best of 15 that he produced during the 2016-17 campaign…

Vladislav Namestnikov rounded out the scoring for the Jets, scoring into the empty net with 5.4 seconds to go in regulation, moving him to eight goals on the season…

The Jets made one lineup change, inserting Colin Miller on the third pairing for Ville Heinola. Miller had three shots on goal and 13:41 of ice time in his 26th game of the season…

Canadiens defenceman Lane Hutson scored his first NHL goal in the first period, beating Hellebuyck with a quick shot. Hutson also has 19 assists this season and his offensive skill is impressive to watch…

Canadiens D-man David Savard returned to the lineup on Saturday and made his presence felt, finishing with three hits and three blocked shots.

Savard, 34, is someone that has been on the Jets’ radar previously and he’s on an expiring contract. He’s got size, is no stranger to shot-blocking and killing penalties and has 57 games of Stanley Cup playoff experience on his resume — winning the Stanley Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2021 after he was acquired in a deadline deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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