St. Louis Blues vs. Winnipeg Jets. Game 7. Tonight, the Blues and Jets concluded their round 1 series with a “winner takes all” game 7 at Canada Life Centre. The Blues entered tonight’s game 10-8 in game 7’s, while the Jets were unfamiliar with game 7’s, going only 1-0 in this series deciding scenario. Mark Scheifele was out for tonight’s game, and the Jets made a few other tweaks to their lineup, as noted in their pre game rushes. All eyes were on Connor Hellebuyck tonight, as everyone wanted to see if he could continue to play well at home despite struggling in his 3 starts on the road. Tonight’s game started with the Blues jumping out to an early 2-0 lead, but after a final second game tying goal by Cole Perfetti, this game ended in double overtime with the Jets being the team that will be advancing to round 2 of the playoffs to take on the Dallas Stars. It was a certified classic game 7 tonight, and it was the type of game that you just had to watch as it was unfolding to truly understand and capture its best moments.

The Winnipeg Whiteout was out in full force tonight as it tends to be, and you knew they were going to try to do everything they could to help the Jets feel at home. Right after the puck drop, that “game 7 energy” could be felt inside and outside the arena. The 1st chance the Blues got they scored, immediately silencing the home crowd. 70 seconds in, the play started with a pass from Pavel Buchnevich to Colton Parayko. A quick two on one was started with Parayko and Jordan Kyrou. The pass to Parayko drew Connor Hellebuyck quite far over to Parayko, who found Kyrou open before he one handed it on the backhand into the open net.

This wasn’t the start the Jets were looking for, as they started to push for the tying goal. The physicality in this series has been very notable, and it picked up again after the 1st goal. Around 5 minutes later, Kyle Connor was trying to enter the Blues zone. After losing the puck prior to entering the blue line, Mathieu Joseph picked up the puck and went down the ice. Josh Morrissey was the last man back, just like in the 1st goal, but this time it was a direct wrist shot by Joseph that went under Hellebuyck’s arm, giving the Blues an early 2-0 lead.

After going down 2, the Jets knew they needed to get the offence going, but they were struggling to generate any good chance. The 1st period ended without any penalties, and the Blues led the Jets in shots on goal 7-3. The Jets only generated around 7 shot attempts in the first 20 minutes, one of their lowest totals in a period this season. The hits were 22-17 for the Jets in the 1st, and now it was Winnipeg that would have to try to do what the Dallas Stars did last night, come back from a 2-0 deficit.

Josh Morrissey wasn’t on the ice to start the 2nd period. It was difficult to pinpoint when the injury ocurred, but it looked like it could have happened when he was defending during either of the Blues goals. Morrissey finished this game with only 2 minutes of ice time. The first 5 minutes of the 2nd period were much better from the Jets, outshooting the Blues 4-0 while controlling the majority of play.

Hellebuyck looked better in the 1st half of the 2nd period as well, limiting any chances for rebounds, while being well positioned in his net even when there were unexpected bounces or deflections. Despite some positives throughout the Jets lineup this period, the score remained 2-0 Blues. With 8 minutes to play in the 2nd, the Jets got the 1st powerplay of the game after Oskar Sundqvist was called for slashing.

The Jets entered 4/20 in the series on the powerplay, but this one was extra important. 7 seconds into the powerplay, Neal Pionk set up Kyle Connor right at the top of the faceoff dot. After a quick look around, Connor passed it down low for Perfetti, who redirected the puck perfectly into the top corner past Jordan Binnington.

Now a 2-1 game, the Blues started to push back in an attempt to regain their 2 goal lead. The Jets defense came up big with several nice blocks, and Hellebuyck was playing as well as he usually does on home ice. In the last few minutes of the 2nd this game looked quite even, setting up for an exciting 3rd period.

With 40 seconds left, the Blues got a 3 on 2 after a Jets turnover. Nathan Walker passed it over to Radek Faksa, who wristed one top corner past Hellebuyck, making it 3-1 Blues. Seconds after the goal, Nikolaj Ehlers took a tripping penalty, and 8 seconds later it looked like it was going to be a 4 on 4, but a high sticking penalty wasn’t called on the Blues. Shots on goal in the 2nd were 11-9 Jets, as the Blues continued to lead in overall shots 16-14. The 2nd period was much better for the Jets, but they still found themselves down by 2 goals entering what could be their final 20 minutes of their season.

The Jets penalty kill was successful to start the 3rd, as the Blues fell to 0 for 12 in their last 12 powerplay attempts. Back to 5 on 5, the Jets started to push for a much needed goal to get closer in this deciding game. Teams traded chances, but this game remained 3-1 Blues with 10 minutes to go. Still without Morrissey, the Jets entered “crunch” time down 2 goals in this game that could’ve been their final one of the season if they couldn’t find any more offence.

This game stayed at 5 on 5 for the remainder of the game, and both teams continued to trade chances. Binnington made some solid saves, and the Blues continued to lead late into the this game. With just over 3 minutes left, Hellebuyck went to the bench for the extra attacker. The 6 on 5 got set up, with the Jets trying to direct pucks towards the net.

After getting set up, Dylan Samberg passed it across to Neal Pionk, before sending it down low to Vladislav Namestnikov. After a quick look in front, Namestnikov fired a wrist shot on goal, and it went past Binnington to make this a 3-2 game with 1:55 left.

The Jets began their final push, and nearly got one past Binnington as they crashed towards the net. Now with 1 minute to go, the Jets went all out to try and tie up this game. The Blues iced the puck a few times, and the Jets were down to 30 seconds to go before their season would come to an end. The following faceoff, the Jets got set up, and Nikolaj Ehlers fanned on a shot, but shortly after the puck went back to Ehlers, who found Kyle Connor at the side of the faceoff dot. With time running out, Connor fired the puck towards the front of the net, and Cole Perfetti was there to tip the puck into the top of the net with 2 seconds left.

The scenes inside and outside the arena were unbelievable, as the Jets found a way to tie this game at 3. The final horn went, and this game 7 was going to overtime. Shots on goal in the 3rd period were 15-4 Winnipeg, and the Jets led in shots after regulation 28-20. The final 10 seconds of this game were simply incredible, and now it was time for the players and fans to take a break before the start of overtime.

The Jets jumped out to a great start in overtime, generating the first 5 shots on goal. Shots on goal were now 33-20 for the Jets, and you could tell that the home crowd was helping the Jets gain confidence. The Blues first chance in overtime came off a bad turnover in the Jets zone, but Hellebuyck made a big save to keep this game going. Hellebuyck made another nice save off Kyrou as he skated into the Jets zone, and 5 minutes into OT the Blues were gaining some momentum.

Just after the 6 minute mark, Brayden Schenn accidentally lifted the puck out of his own zone into the crowd. A delay of game penalty was called, and the Jets went on their 2nd powerplay of the night. The 1st unit set up but couldn’t get a really good chance, and the 2nd unit followed with a better effort, getting close to ending this game and series.

Back to 5 on 5 this game went, and halfway into the overtime both teams were trying anything to get the game winning goal. Shots attempts in the whole game were 82-71 for the Jets up until this point, as teams continued to trade chances late into this 1st extra frame. Shots on goal in the 1st overtime were 11-4 for the Jets, and the final few seconds trinkled down with both of these teams still looking for the overtime winner. Double overtime was needed to decide this series.

The intense overtime action continued right after puck drop, with the Blues being the first team to get a few chances. The Jets quickly responded with a few chances of their own, including one from Cole Perfetti who was looking to get his 3rd goal of the night. After 90 minutes played, this game was still tied 3-3, and the Jets continued to lead in shots on goal 42-28. The longer this game went, the more nervous you could tell the fans of both teams were getting as they watched it unfold live on TV.

Finally, with just over 4 minutes left in double overtime, this thrilling game got its game winner. The Jets were applying pressure in the Blues zone, and got a few shots from the point towards the net. Kyle Connor found Neal Pionk back at the point. A little wrist shot by Pionk first went off a Blues player, followed by Adam Lowry in front and past Binnington into the left side of the goal.

The Winnipeg Jets are going to round 2 of the NHL playoffs to face the Dallas Stars.

What an incredible game. An instant game 7 classic. I really thought it was over when it was 3-1 with 2 minutes left. I was already starting to think of the off-season content that I would need to cover, but instead, the Jets are moving on to round 2. Connor Hellebuyck might have been 1 goal away from getting pulled again when it was 2-0, but he settled down and was great the rest of this game. NHL.com’s 3 stars of the game were quite fitting, with Hellebuyck the 3rd star (26 saves), Perfetti the 2nd star (2 goals) and Adam Lowry the 1st star with the game winner.

The final shots on goal in the 2nd overtime were 8-5 Jets, and the total shots on goal were 47-29 Jets. The 29 shots (in almost triple overtime) were the most the Blues have got in a game this series, which I found hard to believe. A big shoutout has to go to Neal Pionk this game, who got 3 assists and played a total of 46 minutes and 15 seconds, a new Jets franchise single game record. I have so much else I could say about this game, but all I have to say now is what a game.

The Jets will have a day or two off before the beginning of their round 2 series against the Dallas Stars. Both teams are coming off comeback wins in game 7’s, so this series will be interesting to watch early on to see if fatigue is a factor. The Jets will be hoping for good news regarding Josh Morrissey and Mark Scheifele, who if both can be healthy for next series could be much needed. Stay tuned here at Jets Nation for a preview of this round 2 series and much more, as the Jets season continues.

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