Mud comes ‘as advertised’

PITTSBURGH – Now that’s a positive first impression.

The Winnipeg Jets swept a two-game road trip, thanks in part to Clay (Mud) Stevenson making 30 saves in his debut with the team that claimed him off waivers one week earlier.

Stevenson was excellent in a 3-2 victory for the Jets over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night at PPG Paints Arena.

“He obviously made some big big stops, right up to the end of the game there,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “He was real solid and confident and looked comfortable. It was great to see a kid come in here like that, a new organization late in training camp. He came as advertised.”

Playing in the building where he made his NHL debut in April 2025, Stevenson felt a level of comfort and that was enhanced by seeing former Hershey Bears head coach Todd Nelson on the bench with the Penguins as an assistant.

“It just felt like I was preparing for the game for maybe a while here and maybe I wanted a lot of redemption for this one from my NHL debut a while back (in Pittsburgh),” said Stevenson, who appeared in his sixth NHL game. “It was very heartwarming to get this one for this group.”

Stevenson made a bunch of high quality saves, but none was bigger than a glove save off Penguins captain Sidney Crosby that came after a turnover in the defensive zone.

“I honestly don’t even have the words, but it means a lot. That’s for sure,” said Stevenson. “I really wanted to just be there for those guys in this moment. I honestly don’t (have) much else. Other than that, I was just trying to stay pretty calm and collected in the net.”

It showed.

In a battle of the backups — Sergei Murashov was in the Pittsburgh net — Stevenson provided an effort that could provide confidence to his teammates and the coaching staff.

“I thought he was solid all around,” said Jets captain Adam Lowry. “He really let us settle into the game, especially early. I think it took us the first 10 minutes to get our feet under us, and he made some real good saves. He looked so calm, composed, and he made it look pretty easy back there.”

The Jets, who improved to 2-0-1, are back in action on Wednesday as they host the Colorado Avalanche to open a three-game homestand at Canada Life Centre.

Let’s take a closer look at what transpired on Monday:

The response

After a fairly quiet first two periods where the Jets fell behind on a ridiculously talented redirection from Penguins centre Ben Kindel, four goals were scored in a span of four minutes and 19 seconds in the third period.

Three of those were by the Jets, who found their collective legs and got all of the markers at even strength, which was an area they were looking to improve.

“It wasn’t like we were on our heels and they were attacking us like crazy,” said Arniel, who was asked about the quick response after Declan Carlile evened the score at 8:53 of the third period. “It was a tough turnover, it is what it is, I just like the way we put it behind us. There were a few turnovers where they got opportunities, but if you dwell on that one you’re not going to be very good the next shift out.

“I really loved the way our top line stepped up there. That was a big goal.”

Working blender

In an effort to unlock the offence, Arniel made changes to three of his four forward lines for the third period.

Lo and behold, the line centred by Lowry (with Alex Iafallo and Isak Rosen on the wings) scored on consecutive shifts to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead.

“I just think there was another level that we were looking to get to, and sometimes just the spark that you need,” said Lowry. “I thought we just played a lot faster in the third. We were moving the puck. We were getting pucks below the goal line, and we were able to get a forecheck. We were able to then create off the rush.”

Arniel was happy to see the changes pay immediate dividends.

“It was three games in four nights,” said Arniel. “That was a mental game more than it was a physical one. We knew Pittsburgh had a real good transition game and we really weren’t getting pucks down below the goal line.

“Just blended it up to kind of give everybody a different feel. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. But at the end of the day we did a better job in the third of just staying dialled in and staying with our structure.”

The key play

Cole Perfetti scored the game-winner on a one-timer nine seconds after the Penguins tied the game in the third period.

THE THREE STARS

1. Clay Stevenson, Jets: 29 saves
2. Alex Iafallo, Jets: One goal, one assist
3. Ben Kindel, Penguins: One goal, one assist

The debut II

The Jets made a pair of changes to the skater group on Monday, inserting defenceman Jack St. Ivany for Tyrel Bauer and forward Cole Koepke for Nino Niederreiter.

Arniel said on the weekend that he was hoping to not have too many of his healthy scratches sit for too long. Blue-liner Haydn Fleury is the lone healthy roster player that has not appeared in a game yet.

Bauer made his presence known during his first two NHL games, winning scraps with Mark Kastelic and Keegan Kolesar, but this was a chance to get St. Ivany in against his former team.

St. Ivany took 20 shifts for 14:10 of ice time, recording one hit and one blocked shot on the third pairing with Mario Ferraro.

Koepke took 15 shifts for 8:29 of ice time, including 70 seconds on the penalty kill.

It was a quiet start to the season for Niederreiter, who has yet to record a shot attempt through two games.

Extra, extra

There was plenty of talk about special teams going into the contest, but both teams played disciplined, with three minor penalties taken. The Jets finished zero-for-one on the power play, while the penalty kill finished two-for-two … Jets left-winger Kyle Connor had a team-high six shots on goal and is up to 20 for the season … Jets centre Mark Scheifele has gone three games without recording a point.

winnipegfreepress.com/kenwiebe