JetsNation Recap – Jets Overpower With Special Teams; Win 5-1

GAME THOUGHTS:

• Four power play goals! In the same game!! Is that even allowed?! That has to be against a league rule or something right?
• Patrik Laine’s debut was mostly uneventful save for him teeing off on a couple of one-timers from the “Ovi Spot” during the Jets power plays and a couple of nice rushes at other moments. As the game went on it seemed like nerves that may have had him playing a bit tentative early faded and he started to become a little bit more aggressive. He also seemed to have decent chemistry with fellow Finn Joel Armia. The kid will be just fine.

• Kyle Connor continued to impress and looked right at home playing on a top line with Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele. Again there may have been a few nerves as he lined up with a couple of established top line NHLers as opposed to the night before (trying to force a pass to Wheeler when he had a lane for an open shot early in the first period was a good indication of that) but like Laine he settled into his game and was the trigger man on a beautiful tic-tac-toe power play goal in the third.

• Are people still doubting Mark Scheifele and thinking he was a bit of a fluke near the end of last season? Again, we temper the following statements with “yes it’s just pre-season, but..” a four point night with a goal and three helpers – the goal was a laser beam that found the top far side corner beating Cam Talbot.

• The game wasn’t without it’s negatives. The defense still gets hemmed in it’s own zone far too often for far too long. At this rate, the task for defensemen to move the puck up to forwards to carry out of the zone could be a series of mini “Mission Impossible” episodes.

• Dustin Byfuglien was hurt – rumored to be a foot injury – in the second period and didn’t come out for the third period.

• Michael Hutchinson took his full game turn in net tonight and looked good stopping 33 of 34 shots against. He was especially good early on in the game when the Jets got off to that sluggish start. That’s back to back nights of Hellebuyck and Hutchinson posting a .964 and .971 save percentages respectively. Ondrej Pavelec likely will get the start on Sunday in Calgary and one would think (or is that hope) the pressure is on for him to keep pace.

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TL;DR GIF RECAP