VIDEO: Ducks Can’t Ground Jets
By Michael Walters
The Anaheim Ducks started their road trip in Winnipeg against the Jets. Teemu Selanne and Teppo Numminen were inducted into the Winnipeg Jets Hall of Fame prior to the start of the game. John Gibson got the start in net against Connor Hellebuyck.
Recap
The Jets had a couple of good scoring chances early in this one, but Gibson was equal to the task.
Troy Terry would score first for Anaheim. He took a shot from the top of the face-off circle, which deflected off a Winnipeg player and into the back of the net. Hellebuyck thought there might have been goalie interference on the play, but his own player Neal Pionk push Sam Carrick into him.
Ducks had a power play early in the second period and generated a few good chances, but couldn’t convert.
Sam Carrick and Brendon Dillon decided to mix things up and dropped the gloves.
The Jets would then get a power play and score to tie the game. Kyle Connor got to a rebound and shot it between Gibson and the post. The Jets would get another power play before the period was over, but they couldn’t convert. The game moved to the third period all tied up at one.
There was no scoring early on in the the final frame. With just under six minutes to go, Connor would strike again to give the Jets a 2-1 lead. Sam Gagner got behind the net and found Connor in the slot.
The Ducks answered back within 28 seconds. Trevor Zegras and Adam Henrique broke in the Jets zone 2-on-1 and Henrique hit Zegras with a pass and he buried the puck over the shoulder of Hellebuyck to tie this one up.
It looked like the game might go to overtime, but Connor scored again, earning a hat trick, with just under one minute to go in regulation. The Ducks pulled Gibson for the extra attacker, but couldn’t tie things up and lost 3-2.
Analysis:
The Ducks played a solid game against the Jets, but just came up short. The shots on goal were almost even with the Jets putting up 32 and the Ducks 31. In terms of 5-on-5 play the Ducks CF% was 46.67% and FF% was 47.17%. The Jets did have the advantage in the face-off circle winning 59% of the draws.
This was a tight checking game without many penalties. One key in this game was Kyle Connor, who roamed free too often in front of the Anaheim net and as a result scored three times. He single handedly won the game for the Jets. The Ducks did answer back after Connor’s second goal, but his third one was too much and proven to be the game winner.
Team News/Notes:
Nathan Beaulieu(arm) was placed on the IR, retroactive to November 9th.
What’s Next?
The Ducks face the St. Louis Blues Saturday at 5 PM.
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November 18th, 2022