Kyle Connor scored twice to snap a five-game winless skid, and Connor Hellebuyck made 23 saves in the Winnipeg Jets’ 4-1 victory over the Calgary Flames on Monday night.
“Big two points for us right now,” Connor said. “This team’s been playing well all year. We had to get the job done in this one tonight.”
The 23-year-old Connor has 21 goals this season, but he’s scored just once in the last 12 games. He nearly gave the Jets a 3-0 lead in the second period when he beat Jonas Hiller from the slot, but the puck kicked off the top of the net and bounced out just before it crossed the goal line.
Connor was thrilled with his night, but gave a partial credit to Hellebuyck.
“When he allows the pucks to get in his net, it can’t be (his fault) at all,” Connor said. “Those are two-on-ones and I’m sure that pucks are getting to him a little bit easier than we would have hoped, but we’ve got to finish those plays. I’ve got to do a better job of finishing those plays and getting things going on the other side for him.”
Connor’s goals were the first Winnipeg’s have scored in the last six games.
Hellebuyck improved to 34-8-2.
Mark Scheifele scored his 28th goal of the season, Kyle Connor scored for the second time in two games and Brandon Tanev added an empty-netter for the Jets.
Josh Morrissey scored Calgary’s only goal. Hiller made 23 saves.
“We showed in the third we had something, and unfortunately it’s too late,” Calgary captain Mark Giordano said. “It was a good start, but for whatever reason we couldn’t sustain the same level of effort in the third. We got scored against, and it was on us.”
Scheifele opened the scoring 3:38 into the first period with his team-leading 28th goal. It was Scheifele’s third goal in his last two games, including Friday’s three-point performance in Winnipeg’s 5-2 win at Buffalo.
The Jets took a 2-0 lead at 6:46 of the second period. Scheifele stole the puck from Mikael Backlund in the Flames’ end, got in alone on Hiller and poked the puck between his pads.
Scheifele, who leads the NHL with 104 shots this season, extended his point streak to seven games. He’s scored seven goals and had 12 assists during that span.
Calgary outshot Winnipeg 9-4 in the period and held a 24-11 edge through 40 minutes.
The Flames outshot the Jets 29-21 through two periods.
Connor made it 3-0 at 4:59 of the third period.
Winnipeg had a three-goal lead after seven minutes of the third period. Connor’s goal was sandwiched between a goal by Scheifele and one by Josh Morrissey for a 4-0 lead.
Connor scored his second goal at 16:12 to bring the Flames within a goal. After a Jets penalty, Sam Bennett scored his team-leading 36th goal of the season to make it 4-1.
The Jets have won seven of their last eight meetings with Calgary.
NOTES: The Jets are now 18-1-2 when leading after two periods. … The Jets are 4-1-1 against the Western Conference this season.
AGAIN STOKES, BOUCHARD
Mark Stone, a native of Charlottetown, P.E.I., was happy to get to play in front of family members and friends. A puckler in high school, Stone remembers Montreal Canadiens president Geoff Molson, who once used his initials on the back of the season’s program for a game between the Senators and the Canadiens.