The Winnipeg Jets downed the Edmonton Oilers by a score of 4-2 in a tight game with some interesting bounces. Both teams had the lead at various points in the game as they went back and forth in the second period. A few of the goals came from fortuitous bounces as both Hellebuyck and Smith gave the puck away near their crease. Kyle Connor led the way with two goals as he scored both the game winner and the insurance marker into the empty net. Hellebuyck was excellent once again as he stymied the Oilers in the third period to fend off the comeback. The Jets pick up a huge two points and move back into the first wildcard spot, for 24 hours at least…. Actually, it might be longer as the news of the night saw the NBA postponing their season due to the coronovirus. We will need to wait and see if the NHL does likewise. If so, this could have been the last hockey to watch in a while.

Let’s worry about that later, for now, check out the game!

There wasn’t much going on during the first period, but that probably was a good thing for Winnipeg as they’ve had some really rough first periods in the last while. They escaped the whole period without allowing a goal and had a few dangerous chances of their own. The best opportunity came from a speedy Ehlers rush where he came in on a two on one. He raced to the net and let a shot go, but Smith was able to deflect it up and out of play.

On the other end Hellebuyck was solid and made a few key saves. The Jets also killed a penalty as Connor was sent to the box for hooking. Both teams had some chances but nobody could score as they game remained tied at zero after the first period.

Things started extremely quickly in the second period as the Oilers scored just nine seconds in. Hellebuyck lost the puck behind the net and Ennis potted the easy one to open the scoring. Definitely not a great way to start the second period.

The weird goals kept coming a little while later as the Jets tied the game. Wheeler scored the goal as he tried to pass the puck across the crease to Eakin. It took a funny bounce off Neal’s stick and went right past Smith.

The game really started to open up after that with high-paced end to end action that had the arena on their feet. The Oilers thought they had another go-ahead goal, but the puck was swatted out of the air by Pionk. It was a sure goal taken off the board with the nice hand-eye coordination.

The wacky bounces continued in the second period as the Jets earned their second goal of the game. It was Smith who mishandled the puck in the corner as he gave it away to Eakin. Smith couldn’t recover as Eakin threw the puck to Laine in front of the net. Laine tapped in his 27th goal of the year.

With the second period coming to a close, the Oilers tied the game. Connor McDavid got loose as the Oilers broke over the line and he made an excellent move around Hellebuyck and out-waited him for the goal. It’s could be argued that Kulikov got lost on the play, but with McDavid at full speed, good luck catching him.

Heading into the third period, the game was still tied at two. This time around it was Winnipeg’s turn to score the early goal as Kyle Connor continued his hot-streak with a goal. Wheeler fed him a pass at the blueline to give him a breakaway and he made no mistake as he slipped it five-hole.

The biggest storyline of the night had nothing to do with hockey. During the first period of the game, it was announced that the NBA was suspending their season due to the coronavirus. This sent massive shockwaves throughout the entire sporting world as the immediate question was about the NHL’s season. Would the NHL follow suit and suspend the season indefinitely? The official report from the NHL is that the season isn’t suspended at the moment and that they will make a clearer decision tomorrow. We will have to wait and see what happens, although it certainly is trending towards the NHL taking a break of their own.

One of the storylines early in the game was the really strong work on the forecheck in the first period tonight. The Jets broke up multiple zone exits for the Oilers and generated a few strong scoring chances off the turnovers. It was the first time in a while that Winnipeg had generated so many turnovers with their positioning and stick-lifts.

The last big storyline of this game was the weird and wacky bounces. The Oilers scored their first goal off a bounce that Hellebuyck couldn’t handle and the Jets came right back and scored off Neal’s stick. The Jets added another goal where Smith mishandled it as nobody could really get a grasp on the puck tonight. There were also a ton of scrambles in and around the crease of Hellebuyck as the Oilers had a number of chances from in tight. On a night like tonight, you just need to get lucky, and the Jets had that luck tonight.