CALGARY — Shortly after failing to capitalize on a late two-man advantage, the Winnipeg Jets got a second chance and didn't waste it.
Cole Perfetti's power-play goal at 16:16 of the third was the game-winner as the Jets improved to a perfect 8-0-0 on the season with a 5-3 victory over the Calgary Flames.
Tied with less than eight minutes to go in regulation, opportunity knocked for the visitors when Calgary's Martin Pospisil was whistled for tripping and 30 seconds later, teammate Rasmus Andersson was also sent off for tripping.
Up against the NHL's No. 1 ranked power play, Calgary survived the 90-second 5-on-3 despite the Jets having the Flames hemmed in their own zone for the entirety of it and peppering Dustin Wolf with six shots.
But despite being of the league's shorter goalies, the six-foot Flames rookie stood tall through the relentless pressure with three of his stops coming off dangerous looks from Kyle Connor, who already had a goal an assist on the evening to extend his point streak to eight games.
When Andersson exited the penalty box to return the Flames to full strength, the crowd of 16,886 at the Scotiabank Saddledome erupted.
But less than a minute later, the air came out of the building when Calgary went right back on the penalty kill again with Nazem Kadri whistled for slashing when he caught the hand of Neal Pionk while pursuing him behind the Jets' net.
Kadri argued the call after it was made, slammed the penalty box door after he was sent off the ice, and had more to say as he exited the penalty box after the go-ahead goal.
Still fuming when Mason Appleton sealed the game with an empty-netter at 18:46, Kadri was assessed a 10-minute misconduct.
“It was tremendous hockey out there. It was just a tremendous battle. And someone had a little too much decision on the game,” said Kadri after the game, his displeasure obvious. “We had a great game on our hands. It’s very unfortunate that’s what it had to come down to.”
Perfetti said that flurry of chances helped setup the next opportunity for his team's other power-play unit.
“When you create those looks, sometimes they go in, sometimes they don't. They created lots and they got a lot of momentum for us,” said Perfetti. “Then the next power play, we were able to cash in."
The Jets are 10-for-23 with the extra man through their first eight games, operating at a lethal 43.5 per cent.
“That's a momentum swinger,” said Wolf. “If that penalty doesn't get called shortly after, I think we're in good hands with momentum, it's on our side. It's unfortunate that they get another power play and they end up scoring late in the game.”
Flames head coach Ryan Huska expressed a similar sentiment to Kadri when asked about the late penalty calls.
“The guys did an excellent job with the kill from Dustin on out, on that 5-on-3 situation,” said Huska. “So after that, you want to feel the energy of the crowd because the building was really going and I would have liked to see it play out because it was a really good game tonight.”
Going back to 2023-24 when the Jets finished the regular season with eight straight victories, that makes it 16 wins in a row, becoming just the fourth NHL team to accomplish that joining the 1992-93 Pittsburgh Penguins (17), 2023-24 Edmonton Oilers (16), and 2016-17 Columbus Blue Jackets (16).
“It feels pretty good,” said captain Adam Lowry. “It's nice to bank these points early, and hopefully we can continue.”
Jets coach Scott Arniel was happy to leave town with the two points and move onto the next game, which will be at home on Monday against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“It's just one of those games that the fans love,” said Arniel. “They got their 5-on-3s, we got our 5-on-3s. Nobody was happy about which way either of those calls went, but at the end of the day, you just stay in it as a group.
"And we've done a pretty good job of staying in games for 60 minutes, or maybe 65 minutes, and fighting and getting the results.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 26, 2024.
Darren Haynes, The Canadian Press