Jets fill the net on Avs
Wheeler, Scheifele explode for 3-point games as Winnipeg routs Colorado
WINNIPEG — Scoring twice and adding an assist to end a 15-game goal drought was no big deal for Blake Wheeler.
The Winnipeg Jets captain basically shrugged off the notable numbers he delivered as the Jets downed the Colorado Avalanche 6-1 on Friday.
“With the amount of ice time I get, the guys I play with, the expectation would be that you’d score a goal once in a while,” said Wheeler, who has 16 goals and 48 assists through 58 games.
“Sometimes it doesn’t happen. It’s a crazy game. I had 13 shots the last two games before this one, and one behind the goal line goes in. I don’t lose much sleep over it.”
It was his eighth three-point game this season.
Linemate Mark Scheifele picked up a trio of helpers, giving the centre seven points in his last three games. It was his fourth game back since he missed 16 with an upper-body injury.
“We did the right things all game,” Scheifele said. “We didn’t get away from it and it showed.” Winnipeg’s special teams were clicking. Wheeler’s second goal was scored on the power play, while Patrik Laine scored his team-leading 26th and NHL-leading 15th power-play goal of the season. Andrew Copp picked up his fifth goal of the season while the Jets were shorthanded.
Kyle Connor and Nikolaj Ehlers also scored for Winnipeg (34-15-9), which was playing the eighth of a 10-game homestand (5-2-1). Dustin Byfuglien and Tyler Myers each had two assists and Laine added one.
Winnipeg led 1-0 after the first period and 4-0 after the second.
Goalie Connor Hellebuyck made 30 saves to pick up his 30th win of the season.
It was the most wins by a Jets goalie since the franchise moved to Winnipeg from Atlanta prior to the 2011-12 season. Former netminder Ondrej Pavelec had 29 wins the first season.
Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen nixed Hellebuyck’s shutout bid when he scored unassisted on a wraparound with 5:56 left in the third period.
Colorado goalie Jonathan Bernier was replaced by Semyon Varlamov to start the third period after letting in four goals on 20 shots, but injury played a role.
“He got hit in the head there on a play around the net and was going in for the concussion protocol, so we put (Varlamov) in,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said.
Midway through the second period, Jets forward Nic Petan clipped Bernier as he went around the net and the goalie’s helmet came off. Bernier finished the period.
Varlamov stopped six of the eight shots he faced in relief for the Avalanche (31-22-4).
The Jets next host Florida on Sunday, while Colorado heads home to take on Edmonton that afternoon. The Avalanche may get Nathan MacKinnon back from injury to face the Oilers.
ISLANDERS 3, HURRICANES 0
RALEIGH, N.C. — Thomas Greiss stopped 45 shots for his first shutout of the season, and the New York Islanders beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-0 on Friday night.
Johnny Boychuk, Anthony Beauvillier and John Tavares scored to help the Islanders move past the Hurricanes into the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Greiss got his eighth career shutout one night after Jaroslav Halak had 50 saves in a 3-0 home win over the crosstown Rangers.
Cam Ward finished with 20 saves for the Hurricanes. They lost their second straight and fell into a tie with Columbus, a point behind the Islanders for the conference’s last playoff spot.
STARS 2, BLUES 1
DALLAS — Ben Bishop stopped 27 shots and Dallas beat St. Louis to move past the Blues into third place in the Central Division.
Mattias Janmark and Stephen Johns scored for Dallas. The Stars had a seasonlow 16 shots on goal while winning for the sixth time in seven games.
Brayden Schenn spoiled Bishop’s shutout bid with a power-play goal with 1:14 remaining.
FLYERS 2, BLUE JACKETS 1 (OT)
COLUMBUS — Sean Couturier scored 1:52 into overtime and Philadelphia ended an 11-game losing streak in Columbus.
Wayne Simmonds also scored for Philadelphia, and Michael Neuvirth — filling in for the injured Brian Elliott — stopped 35 shots to pick up his eighth win of the season.
The Flyers’ streak on the Blue Jackets’ home ice dated to 2005.
Cam Atkinson tied it for Columbus late in the third period.
MINOR MOVES
There were two minor trades in the NHL on Thursday as the Toronto Maple Leafs sent forward Nikita Soshnikov to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for the Blues’ fourth-round draft pick in 2019.
Soshnikov will report to St. Louis once he attains a U.S. work visa, but wasn’t able to debut in Friday’s loss at Dallas.
The other move saw the Ottawa Senators trade forward Chris DiDomenico to the Chicago Blackhawks for defenceman Ville Pokka, who has primarily played in the AHL since 2014.