Instant Reaction: The Winnipeg Jets fall in game 2 vs. the Colorado Avalanche 5-2

Well, that was rather unfortunate. The Jets went into game 2 tonight in their 1st round matchup against the Colorado Avalanche looking to build off their 7-6 win in game 1. Nobody could have predicted how game 1 went, with a combined 13 goals in what was just a crazy game. Game 1 also made game 2 very unpredictable, since nobody knew how both teams would respond. All I can say is that game 2 didn’t go the Jets way. It was a game where both teams had their chances and opportunities throughout the game, but the Avalanche just seemed to be able to take advantage at the right time when given a quality opportunity. Time to get right into how game 2 went down in Winnipeg.

Even before the game began, the Winnipeg Whiteout showed up once again in full force. You knew that after seeing the energy the fans brought in game 1 that they would show up ready to cheer on the Jets in game 2. The Whiteout party was rocking outside, and inside the building the fans were focused on doing whatever they could do to help cheer on their hometown Winnipeg Jets.

The game started out in the first few minutes with a good pace on both sides, with both teams getting some shots on goal early, more so for the Winnipeg Jets. After a scramble in front off a rebound, David Gustafsson made it 1-0 for the Jets just 3 minutes in.

The shots early on were 9-2 for the Jets, and they were pushing the pace and building off the momentum from the first goal. The Jets then got the first powerplay of the game after a tripping call. Unfortunately, the Jets took a penalty of their own which made it a 4 on 4 for 1 minute and 30 seconds and neither team capitalized during that time.

From there, the rest of the 1st period went a little more in the favour of the Avalanche, with the shots ending in favour of the Avalanche 15-12 after the 1st. The Jets went into the break up 1-0, but it was 2nd period where things went rather sideways for the Jets.

The Avalanche got on the board just 2 minutes into the 2nd right off a faceoff in the Jets zone. Miles Wood got the Avalanche going, and it looked like the Avalanche were finding their game again. Things got worse for the Jets after a double-minor high sticking penalty from Kyle Connor on Cale Makar. The Avalanche got some chances in the 4 minute advantage, but the Jets held them off for a giant penalty kill which included some big saves from Hellebuyck and 3 blocks from Dylan Samberg that seemed to spark their energy once again.

Hardly any time went by after the penalty expired before Gabe Vilardi came in on a 2 on 1 and found Mark Scheifele who redirected the puck past Alexandar Georgiev to give the Jets a 2-1 lead.

The Avalanche didn’t seem to get too flustered after the go ahead goal though, and pushed back against the Jets with some chances of their own. A shot from the point from Cale Makar found its way past Hellebuyck after being deflected in by Arturri Lehkonen with just under 6 minutes left in the 2nd.

Just 3 minutes later, a very unfortunate misplay by Hellebuyck led to Zach Parise giving the Avalanche a 3-2 lead. It’s the type of goal you never want to see happen, especially in a tie game in the playoffs at home.

That wasn’t all for the Avalanche in the 2nd period though, as after another failed powerplay from the Jets the Avalanche struck again. Josh Manson sprung out of the box, and on a breakaway slid the puck past Hellebuyck to give the Avalanche a 4-2 lead just before the end of the 2nd period. Shots in the 2nd were 14-10 for the Avalanche.

The 3rd period was when things settled down a little bit on both sides. It was clear that the Avalanche wanted to protect their 2 goal lead, making sure the game didn’t get out of hand like it did in game 1. The shots in the 3rd were only 8-3 for the Jets, bringing the final total up to 32-30 for the Avalanche.

The Jets had another powerplay with 8 minutes left where they had some of their best chances in the 3rd, but no luck. The Jets would continue the pressure late into the 3rd but couldn’t execute on their chances. It was a good final push from the Jets, but Georgiev had himself a bounce back game. With 1 minute to go, Valeri Nichushkin found the empty net and the Avalanche went home with game 2 by a final score of 5-2. The series is now tied at 1 with the next 2 games being played in Colorado.

The stats for both teams were pretty similar, including each team going 0 for 3 on the powerplay. The game mostly came down to the Avalanche capitalizing when given the opportunity in key points of the game. The Jets didn’t quite play a full 60 minutes, and it was the 2nd period where the Avalanche scored 4 times that really set this game in their favour. The Jets will look to rebound from their performance tonight in game 3, which will be played in Colorado. Tune in on Friday night for all the action. It’s going to be a late start time in Winnipeg, with puck drop for game 3 at 9 pm CT.