Jets rally falls short

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This article was published 31/12/2024 (311 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

On this night, the third time was not a charm for the Winnipeg Jets.

After battling back on two separate occasions, the Jets fell behind a third time in the third period and the Colorado Avalanche pulled away for good, earning a 5-2 victory at Ball Arena on Tuesday.

The Avalanche broke the tie at 7:22 of the third period and put the game on ice with a pair of empty-net goals to snap the Jets’ four-game winning streak.

“Yeah, certainly, especially against a team like that, they always have a lot of o-zone time, a lot of skill,” Jets defenceman Neal Pionk told reporters in Denver. “So you give up the lead early, and you’re chasing the game the rest of the game, and it makes it tough.”

Ultimately, the Avalanche made the extra play when it counted.

“We had a lot of chances, a lot of looks there ourselves to maybe get ahead,” Jets head coach Scott Arniel told reporters. “But at the end of the day, it just wasn’t enough.”

The Jets and Avalanche are now square at 1-1 in the four-game season series and Winnipeg is now 9-4 against Central Division opponents.

“At the end of the day, it would have been nice to dig in a little bit more and find a way to come up with a win,” Jets left-winger Morgan Barron told reporters. “At the end of the day, it’s a 20-minute period and we had a chance to win a game. The effort is there. It’s just (about) finding ways to kind of make those plays at the end of the game. We’re a resilient group. We know that. We’ll reset, go home and kind of get on a streak here.”

With the loss, the Jets close out the calendar year with a record of 27-11-1, which leaves them first overall in the NHL in wins and points as they get set to open an eight-game homestand on Thursday against the Anaheim Ducks.

Let’s look a little closer at what transpired:

Familiar theme

Jets backup goalie Eric Comrie dropped a sixth consecutive game, but this was another night where he did his part to keep his team in the game.

Comrie finished with 33 saves in the contest, several of the highlight-reel variety, though his record dropped to 3-6 for the season.

“That’s the tough part. He’s played so well for us. We haven’t gotten him the win,” Arniel told reporters. “We feel awfully confident when he’s in there. We just have to find a way to get one for him. He’s been real good and he continues to give us a chance.”

Comrie won his first three starts of the season, but the Jets have scored 10 goals during his past six outings, which means he needs to be nearly perfect — which is tough when you consider several of those starts came in the back end of the team playing on consecutive days.

“He’s fantastic. Wish like hell we could get him a win one of these times because he’s playing great,” Pionk told reporters. “He made a couple big saves there. And you know (he’s) one of the hardest working guys. He deserves a win here.”

This was Comrie’s ninth start of the season and his 10th is likely to come next weekend, either on Friday against the Los Angeles Kings or Saturday in the third game of the season series with the Avalanche.

“He’s been great,” said Barron. “Going over his last number of starts, it’s kind of unfortunate that we’ve wasted his efforts and haven’t been able to get a few (more) wins for him.”

The streak

For the first time in his NHL career, Logan Stanley has recorded a point in three consecutive games.

The Jets’ defenceman set up Gabe Vilardi late in the second period to tie the game 2-2.

Stanley’s initial pass was blocked, but he stuck with it and knocked his second attempt over the net and onto the stick of Vilardi, who scored his 18th goal of the season.

Stanley didn’t get an assist on the Jets first goal, but his tight gap in the neutral zone was essential as it allowed defence partner Pionk to hit Barron with a stretch pass.

Stanley also delivered a big hit on Jusso Parssinen in the first period and finished with three in the contest.

However, on the first goal scored by the Avalanche, Stanley did a good job of knocking Artturi Lehkonen to the ground, but Lehkonen still managed to get his stick on the point shot from Josh Manson.

Stanley needs to win those one-on-one battles in front of the Jets’ net and this was a case where he did most of the job properly, but if he’s able to take care of the final piece — taking away the stick as an option for a redirection — that will boost his stock.

Another positive showing

Jets defenceman Dylan Coghlan was in the lineup for consecutive NHL games for the first time this season and once again, he did not disappoint.

Coghlan had two shots on goal, six shot attempts, one hit and one blocked shot in just under 16 minutes of work.

Much like Kyle Capobianco did a few seasons ago, Coghlan has done an excellent job of staying sharp despite some extended absences. If he can continue to play the way he has in his three NHL games this season, he’s going to force himself into the middle of the competition for playing time on the Jets’ third pairing.

Fourth line delivers

Jets forward Rasmus Kupari scored his third goal of the season at 10:20 of the second period, using his speed to drive to the far post and bury that pass from Barron.

Kupari has been in and out of the lineup as of late, but with Mason Appleton sidelined week-to-week with an injury, this is an opportunity to build his confidence and get into a groove.

“(Pionk) just made a nice quick up to me. I thought I kind of got a step on my defenceman and Rasmus jumped on the ice and drove to the back post and I heard him yelling,” said Barron. “So, it was good for him to finish that one.”

The key play

With the game tied 2-2, Casey Mittelstadt provides a perfect redirection of a point shot from Josh Manson at 7:22 of the third period to give the Avalanche their third lead of the contest.

The three stars

Josh Manson, Avalanche, Set up two goals, including the game-winner.

Casey Mittelstadt, Avalanche, Delivered the game-winning goal, snapping a 17-game drought.

Eric Comrie, Jets, 33 saves on 36 shots on goal.

Extra, extra

Jets defenceman Dylan DeMelo left the contest late in the third. Arniel didn’t have an update on his status, other than telling reporters he blocked a shot on the inside of the leg. The Jets are already without Dylan Samberg (broken foot) and Haydn Fleury (knee).

The Jets healthy scratches were defenceman Ville Heinola and forward Dominic Toninato.

Jets left-winger Kyle Connor had his seven-game point streak snapped on Tuesday.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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