Jets complete stunning sweep of favoured Oilers
WINNIPEG — In a series that was so much tighter than the final result would indicate, it was only fitting that a dogtired group of Winnipeg Jets finished it off with yet another exhilarating overtime victory.
After four games of fearless shot blocking, hard checking, energy-sapping end-to-end action and three games that went into overtime, the Jets finally emerged with a sweep of the Edmonton Oilers in the North Division semifinal.
Winger Kyle Connor was the hero this time, scoring the Game 4 winning goal at 6:52 of triple overtime Monday night at Bell MTS Place. It was the Jets’ second overtime win in as many nights, coming after Nikolaj Ehlers scored in extra time Sunday night to give the Jets a 5-4 win and a 3-0 lead in the series.
Connor finished the Oilers off with a goal on a partial breakaway. He beat Oilers goalie Mike Smith with a wrist shot to the blocker side to end the marathon.
“Those games were a battle,” said Jets centre Mark Scheifele, who led the Jets with two goals Monday night. “It definitely didn’t feel like a sweep, that’s for sure. We grinded every single game, there was no easy ice out there. (The Oilers) played fantastic too.
“They pushed us to the limit and we were just on the right side of it for those four games. It was a battle each and every game, each and every shift. But we had every guy out there sacrificing, taking hits, making hits, blocking shots. It was a full team effort and I’m definitely proud of every single guy in this room.”
The Jets will move on to play either the Toronto Maple Leafs or the Montreal Canadiens in the North Division final. The Leafs led that series 2-1 heading into Game 4 in Montreal on Tuesday night.
Emblematic of the kind of sacrifice the Jets players made throughout the series, captain Blake Wheeler blocked a slap shot late in the third period with his nether regions. He was on the ice in immense pain and went straight to locker room when he got up, but he was back out there for the first overtime.
“I’m sure everyone has had experiences like that or something similar, not necessarily a slap shot,” Wheeler said. “We have three beautiful kids and we’re not having anymore, so …”
“I mean, everyone on our
team did that all series long, all game long. Early in this game we put an emphasis on getting to the shot at the point, and Matty Perreault blocked two shots. So, then and there set the standard that every single guy was going to put their body in front of the puck. And third period of a tight game, you’ll put anything in front of it.”
The Jets blocked a remarkable 47 shots in the game, with all but two players credited with at least one block. Stalwart defenceman Josh Morrissey led the way with seven blocks and led all Jets with 41:54 of ice time.
That was a low number compared to Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse, who came close to an NHL record with 62:04 of ice time in the fiveplus period game.
The Jets swept the series
despite playing against NHL leading scorer Connor Mcdavid and 2020 Hart Trophy winner Leon Draisaitl.
Those two stars were very dangerous in Games 3 and 4, combining for nine points, but the Jets shut them down when it counted most, late in games and in the overtime periods.
Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck wound up making 151 saves on 159 shots in the series (.949 save percentage) and only allowed one goal after the end of the second period in any of the games.
The 2020 Vezina Trophy winner was quick to credit his hard-working teammates.
“I feel like I’ve been saying this all year, that this team and these guys can do everything,” Hellebuyck said. “We need to shut down a game, we shut down a game, we need to score, we score. We need a comeback with 10 minutes left in the third, we do that. Being behind these guys has been a pleasure and it’s been fun to watch.”
The Oilers put up a hell of a fight in an elimination game that was being played just a day after the Jets staged an incredible comeback from three goals down to win Sunday night. The two teams then went out and played the equivalent of almost two more games on the second half of a back-to-back, a remarkable test of internal fortitude in itself.
It was the longest game in Jets history.
It also marked the first time the Jets ever swept an opponent in their NHL playoff history and it was their first NHL playoff series win ever over the Oilers.
It had been 31 years since the two teams even met in a playoff series but few long-time fans in Winnipeg could ever forget their team blowing a 3-1 lead and falling in seven games to the eventual Stanley Cup champs in 1990. That loss marked the sixth straight time the Oilers beat the Jets in the playoffs and it stung more than any other.
But Winnipeg fans can finally celebrate after the modern Jets did so much right on their way to the four-game series win.
“It took all pieces of our game,” Jets coach Paul Maurice said. “(Edmonton) is a very, very good team (with) the two best offensive players in the world. In a bunch of those games, it was very close, much like the series. They’re all onegoal games.
“There was a piece to our game that got better in each one of those.