Jets’ Lowry busts loose

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This article was published 10/12/2014 (3934 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

DALLAS — With Dustin Byfuglien moving from forward to defence in the past week and Evander Kane taking a seat in the press box Tuesday night as he began to serve a two-game suspension, the Winnipeg Jets needed someone other than the usual suspects to step up with some offensive production.

Well, come on down, Adam Lowry.

Just when an injury-depleted Jets team needed him most, the rookie forward stepped up with a career night at American Airlines Center, pumping in two goals in a span of 2:19 in the second period to bust open what had been a tight 2-2 game and pace Winnipeg to a 5-2 win over the Dallas Stars.

And so with that, Lowry’s goal production this season doubled in one memorable night from two goals to four.

“It’s always nice to get a couple, especially when you’re missing key guys like Evander,” Lowry said. “To contribute to the win like that, it’s a pretty good feeling.”

In an offence-starved season in which the Jets have had all kinds of scoring chances but very little luck actually putting the puck in the net, Lowry admitted he got a little bit lucky on his first goal as he handcuffed Stars netminder Kari Lehtonen on a shot between the pads.

“I’d be lying if I was saying I was trying to shoot five-hole,” said Lowry. “It would have been nice if it had gone short-side shelf. But they count just the same, so I was pretty happy when I caught him with a bit of a change-up and it went five-hole.”

Lowry’s teammates, meanwhile, were happy for him.

“He’s been close all year,” said Jets forward Blake Wheeler, who had a goal and an assist Tuesday night. “When he’s playing physical and he’s playing fast, he creates a lot of havoc out there for himself and his linemates.

“He’s just a big body and great instincts on the ice… It’s great to see him get rewarded for all the good things he’s done for our team this year.”

Forward Michael Frolik, who also had a goal and an assist, said Lowry’s rewards had been coming. “When you go to the net, good things happen,” said Frolik. “I’m very happy for him.”

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Lowry wasn’t the only Jets player to raise some eyebrows Tuesday night, either. Mark Scheifele dropped his gloves in the second period and took on Dallas defenceman Jason Demers when Scheifele took exception to a hit on Frolik moments earlier.

Scheifele is known for his hands, just not when it comes to fighting, and head coach Paul Maurice was asked after the game what he thought of the youngster coming to the aid of a teammate.

“Well, I thought we were doing that a lot maybe to the point we didn’t need to do that all the time,” said Maurice. “I’m careful not trying to control that too much. These guys are a really close-knit group. They spend a lot of time together and they like each other, so some of that is just reaction.

“We’ve got to make sure that we understand that hits are going to happen in this game and we’ve got to not react to every one. I love a young player like that feeling like he’s really a part of the team and every one of those guys is his teammate.”

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @PaulWiecek