Jets top line powers Winnipeg past Wild 5-2
Key takeaways
- The Winnipeg Jets beat the Minnesota Wild 5-2 on Tuesday night.
- Cole Perfetti scored twice, and the top line had seven points.
- Kirill Kaprizov scored both Wild goals and now leads the NHL with eight.
The Winnipeg Jets beat the Minnesota Wild 5-2 on Tuesday night. The game took place at Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg. The Jets never trailed in the game.
Cole Perfetti led the way with two goals. His top-line mates helped too. Mark Scheifele had one goal and two assists.
Kyle Connor had one goal and one assist.
The three forwards had seven points between them. That is a big night for any line. It was the story of the game.
What happened
Winnipeg struck fast. Cole Perfetti scored just 1:50 into the game. Neal Pionk shot from near the blue line.
Perfetti tipped the puck past Calvin Pickard. The Jets led 1-0.
Minnesota tied the game in the first period. Kirill Kaprizov stole the puck from a Jets player. He raced in alone on goal.
Stuart Skinner stopped the first shot. Kaprizov buried the rebound. The score was 1-1.
Winnipeg went back in front late in the period. The Jets had a power play. Scheifele set up in the slot.
He fired a one-timer past Pickard. It was his first goal of the season. The Jets led 2-1.
The lead did not last long. Just 44 seconds later, Kaprizov scored again. He tipped a shot from Quinn Hughes past Skinner.
The game was tied 2-2. The period ended that way.
The second period had only one goal. Perfetti scored it on the power play. He took a pass from Gabriel Vilardi.
He fired a one-timer from the slot. The Jets led 3-2.
The third period belonged to Winnipeg. Connor made it 4-2 early in the period. He carried the puck from left to right.
He cut to his forehand. He fired a rising wrist shot past Pickard. It was his seventh goal of the season.
Cole Koepke closed the scoring. He scored on a 2-on-1 rush. That made it 5-2.
The Jets locked the game down from there.
Why it matters
The Jets top line is rolling. Perfetti is off to the best start of his career. He now has five goals this season.
Last year, he needed 40 games to reach five goals, according to Sportsnet.
Scheifele also hit a mark on the night. His assist on the first goal was his 300th career assist on home ice. He is the third player in team history to reach that mark.
Blake Wheeler and Thomas Steen are the other two, according to the NHL.
Connor keeps scoring too. He has goals in three straight games. He has scored in five of six games this year, according to Sportsnet.
The Jets won for the fourth time in five games. They finished a three-game home stand with two wins. Their record is now 4-1-1.
Skinner made 19 saves on 21 shots. He has yet to lose in regulation this season. His record is 3-0-1, according to Sportsnet.
The Wild fell to 4-2-1. They played the second game of a back-to-back set. They had beaten the Vegas Golden Knights the night before, according to Sportsnet.
They had beaten the Vegas Golden Knights the night before, according to Sportsnet.
Kaprizov did all he could. His two goals gave him eight for the season. That leads the NHL.
Hughes picked up an assist. That stretched his point streak to seven games. He has two goals and eight assists in that run, according to Sportsnet.
Pickard made his season debut in goal for Minnesota. He allowed five goals on 25 shots, according to Reuters.
What happens next
The Jets hit the road next. They visit the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday. The Wild go home.
They host the St. Louis Blues on Thursday, according to Sportsnet.
Winnipeg will try to keep the top line hot. The trio has found fast chemistry. Perfetti said the key is to think fast and move fast, according to the NHL.
Minnesota will try to rest and reset. The Wild played two games in two nights. They get a day off before Thursday.
The game was part of the NHL Frozen Frenzy night. All 32 teams played on the same night. You can read the full night in our Frozen Frenzy recap.
For another Frozen Frenzy result, see our Hurricanes rally past Capitals recap.
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