Nikolaj Ehlers scored a pair of goals and Connor Hellebuyck made 31 saves to fuel the host Winnipeg Jets to a 6-1 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Sunday.
Pierre-Luc Dubois collected a goal and an assist and Nino Niederreiter, Morgan Barron and Kyle Connor also tallied for the Jets (43-31-3, 89 points), who have scored six goals in back-to-back games.
Blake Wheeler and defenseman Josh Morrissey each notched a pair of assists to propel Winnipeg within one point of the Seattle Kraken for the top wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
New Jersey captain Nico Hischier spoiled Hellebuyck’s bid for his fourth shutout of the season and 32nd of his career by tucking home a loose puck with 14 seconds remaining in the third period. Hischier’s goal was his career-high 31st of the season.
Vitek Vanecek yielded four goals on 21 shots before being relieved by Mackenzie Blackwood (four saves) for the Devils (48-21-8, 104 points), who fell three points behind the first-place Carolina Hurricanes in the Metropolitan Division. The Hurricanes skated to a 2-1 victory over the New York Islanders earlier on Sunday.
Wheeler warded off a defender and wired a centering feed from below the goal line that Ehlers deposited home to open the scoring at 4:59 of the first period.
Wheeler helped double the advantage after he redirected a pass from Vladislav Namestnikov to Niederreiter, who made no mistake with 3:45 left in the first period. The goal was Niederreiter’s 24th of the season.
Barron was awarded a penalty shot after being hauled down by Devils defenseman Damon Severson at 2:42 of the second period. Barron made New Jersey pay by beating Vanecek between the pads to give Winnipeg a 3-0 lead.
Connor reached the 30-goal plateau for the fifth time in his career after scoring from in front at 10:34 of the second period.
Dubois one-timed Morrissey’s cross-ice pass for his 26th goal of the season midway into the third period. Ehlers capped his two-goal performance nearly four minutes later by converting on the power play.
–Field Level Media
