The Jets picked up their 2nd straight win on Sunday afternoon, winning 4-3 against the New Jersey Devils. The Jets once again got some depth scoring, and Tanner Pearson scored the only goal (and game winner) in the 3rd period. Tonight, the Jets played their fifth of five straight home games. Canada Life Centre was the host for tonight’s game, as the Jets looked to take a win streak out of the end of this home stand. The now 17-22-5 Jets took on the 25-15-5 Islanders, with both teams looking for another two points.

There were a no changes to the Jets lineup tonight, as they stuck with what worked on Sunday. Gabriel Vilardi stayed on line 2, Alex Iafallo remained on line 1, and Vladislav Namestnikov stayed on line 3. Neal Pionk remained on his usual spot on the 2nd defense pairing. The Jets 3rd pairing tonight was Logan Stanley and Luke Schenn.

Connor Hellebuyck got the start in goal after the start on Sunday, when Hellebuyck finally recorded his 10th win of the season. The Jets lineup continues to be almost healthy and injury free except for Haydn Fleury. Morgan Barron and Colin Miller continue to be listed as “day-to-day”. Hellebuyck entered tonight’s game with a 10-12-4 record, a 2.70 GAA and a decent .901 SV%. Tonight’s game featured a wild 2nd period that saw 7 goals scored, and at the final buzzer it was the Jets that came out with their 3rd straight victory.

Tonight’s game started with the Islanders getting the first two shots on goal. A few minutes later, the Jets opened the scoring on their 2nd shot of the game. Dylan DeMelo found Mark Scheifele down low, and he circled back with the puck near the top of the point. Scheifele fired a low shot on goal, and a rebound was there for Kyle Connor, who slid the puck past Ilya Sorokin to give the Jets a 1-0 lead.

Connor’s 22nd goal of the season got the crowd going early tonight, as the Jets looked solid in the opening 20 minutes. Josh Morrissey took the only penalty of the 1st period, a hooking call against Simon Holmstrom. The Islanders didn’t have much to show from their first man advantage, and the game remained 1-0 at the end of the period. Shots on goal after the 1st were 9-7 for the Jets.

The 2nd period saw the Islanders again get the first few chances, but the Jets did well to deny any dangerous shots on goal. A few minutes later, Josh Morrissey doubled the Jets lead. Adam Lowry and Cole Perfetti got the puck on net, and after a rebound Morrissey went back with the puck towards the point and fired a wrist shot passed the crowd in front to make it 2-0 Jets.

Just 7 seconds after this goal, the Islanders took their 1st penalty of the game. A little over 30 seconds into the powerplay, the Jets would take a 3-0 lead. A nice passing play between Kyle Connor and Jonathan Toews was sent across the Gabriel Vilardi, who fired a shot on goal. Toews was near the crease during the shot, and re-directed the rebound past Sorokin for his 3rd goal in the last few games.

The vibes were vibing in Canada Life Centre, and it looked like the Jets were well on their way to their 3rd straight win. However, the Islanders said not so fast, and if you missed the next few minutes of the game, you were shocked to see the score (just as I was) just four minutes later. The Islanders scored 3 goals in 2:41. The 1st was a wrister which squeaked by Hellebuyck, the 2nd was on a penalty shot, and the 3rd was from a partially screened wrister on goal.

Suddenly this game was 3-3, but just two minutes later, Dylan DeMelo scored his 3rd goal of the season. Nino Niederreiter and Mark Scheifele (who picked up his 500th career assist) set up Dylan DeMelo at the point, and a wicked wrister into the back of the net once again gave the Jets the lead.

The Islanders challenged for goalie interference on this goal, but were unsuccessful, resulting in a delay of game penalty. Unfortunately the Jets couldn’t score on this powerplay opportunity, but they got one more man advantage with just over 2 minutes left in the 2nd. One second after this penalty expired, the Jets made it 5-3. Dylan Samberg set up Neal Pionk at the point, who fired a shot on goal. Adam Lowry was in front, and deflected the puck past Sorokin for his 4th goal of the season.

A wild 2nd period finally came to an end with a total of 7 goals and 4 penalties, one of which was from a penalty shot. The Jets outshot the Islanders 11-8 in the 2nd, and through 40 minutes the Jets led in shots on goal 20-15. Both teams needed a breather after this 2nd period, and the 5-3 score already surpassed the 5-2 final from the Jets win against the Islanders on October 13th.

The 3rd was quite different from the 2nd, as both teams seemed to focus on their defensive play after a crazy 2nd period full of goals. Both teams continued to get some chances, but they were quite limited, and the Islanders were outshooting the Jets 6-1 in the 3rd with 10 minutes to go.

Both teams stayed out of the penalty box, and with a little over 2 minutes left the Islanders pulled the goalie. Hellebuyck stayed sharp in goal, and the Jets didn’t mind clearing the puck out and down the ice whenever possible. After a few chances to wrap up this game with an empty netter, the Islanders got within one with 45 seconds left.

A Matthew Schaefer wrister went past a crowd in front, and suddenly things got interesting in the final minute. The Islanders tried to generate a final push for a tying goal, but the Jets stayed strong defensively and held on for a 5-4 win. Shots on goal were 12-2 for the Islanders in the 3rd and 27-22 Islanders in the game, but Hellebuyck stayed sharp in this game when needed, especially in the 3rd period. The Jets were once again on the right side of a one goal game, and now conclude their five game home stand with 3 straight wins.

The Jets will now get ready to hit the road for a short flight tomorrow. The team will be playing one away game before returning to Canada Life Centre on Saturday for Hockey Day in Canada. Their regular season schedule continues with a game against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night. Puck drop for this game will be again just after 7:00 pm CT. Stay tuned here at Jets Nation for all of the latest Jets news, plus previews and recaps on each Jets game this season.