In a match-up of the top two teams in the league points wise last night in St. Paul, the Winnipeg Jets defeated the Minnesota Wild by a score of 4-1 in large part due to Connor Hellebuyck's performance in net for the Jets.

First Period:

The game began with the Wild firing on all cylinders. Hellebuyck and the Jets were under siege for the entire period. When Jake Middleton scored off of a rebound to give the Wild a 1-0 lead it looked like the Jets would be run out of town. But, fortunately, Hellebuyck was up to the task and it was his several highlight reel saves in the period that kept the Jets in the game. Alex Iafallo then corralled a loose puck in the Wild zone and scored on a wicked backhand to tie the game at 1. The period would end with the game tied at 1. The Wild outshot the Jets 22-7 in the period.

Second Period:

The middle frame started in the same manner as the first one ended with the ice tilted in the Wilds' favor. However as the period went on, the tide began to turn in the Jets favor. At about the 12 minute mark in the period, Iafallo kept two Wild players occupied by himself in the Jets zone which allowed the Jets to go on a odd man rush which resulted in Nino Niederreiter scoring a backhand top shelf goal to give the Jets an unthinkable 2-1 lead. That's how the period would end with the Jets leading 2-1.

Third Period:

The Jets took over the game in the final period. Their tight structure held the Wild to only 5 shots in the period. Iafallo scored his 2nd goal of the game when he tipped in Neal Pionk's point shot on the PP. Adam Lowry would then add an empty net goal to give the Jets a 4-1 win.

Some takeaways from the game:

Connor Hellebuyck showed in this game why he is the best goalie on the planet right now. If not for his performance in the 1st period, this game would have been over by the 1st intermission. Having said that, the Jets third period showed why they are the best team in the league right now as they held a really good Wild team to only five shots in the period.

The Jets special teams were also a big reason why they won this game. They went 1-3 on the PP and 2-2 on the PK.

The win maintains the Jets best record in the league which is now 18-4. Their season-long road trip continues tomorrow night in Los Angeles.

Thanks for reading. Go Jets Go!

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