Note: What a night for Jets fans who began Saturday evening as loud as you can ask them to be in game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs ahead of puck drop between Winnipeg and St. Louis. While the home team didn’t give them much to cheer about early, they nerves (both on the ice and in the stands) subsided with the Jets taking over the game for much of the latter half of it. The game tying goal was like blood in the water for sharks and spurred the home team to keep pushing for more which they got with just 1:36 left in the game off the stick of Kyle Connor. They’d take game 1 by a final score of 5-3 to take a 1-0 series lead. They are scheduled to practice today at 12 noon. Stay tuned for the Practice Report.
Note II: The Moose ended their 2024-25 season last night in Texas. While the game didn’t have any meaning with no post-season for them they still put in a valiant effort which saw Dylan Coghlan score a 5 on 3 PPG (which turned out to be the GWG) and the primary assist went to Jets prospect Fabian Wagner. We had our intern Massi write about his development this season in his first year in North America and what a tale of two seasons. First 30 games he had two assists. Last 20 games he had 8G 3A. Speaking of Winnipeg prospects goalie Domenic DiVincentiis made 26 saves, including this one, for his first ever shutout as a pro. Really good season of development for him.
Note III: There were also a number of junior prospects in playoff action last night. Over in the OHL it was Colby Barlow (2023 1st) who had an assist as he helped his Oshawa team take a 3-2 series lead. In the WHL it was Brayden Yager (2023 1st) showing off his quick release to help Lethbridge tie their series. As well Markus Loponen (2024 5th) had a primary assist but his Victoria team lost and are now down 3-2 in their series.
Jets news:
Sportsnet: Connor, Scheifele shine bright as Jets take Game 1 vs. Blues. An important game for that pair who, along with Alex Iafallo, were the difference in that hockey game.
Photo Credit: Colby Spence (Illegal Curve)
Sportsnet: Jets’ Hellebuyck says goalie fight in playoffs ‘would be dumb’. It’s funny ’cause when I saw all the shenanigans happening at the end of the game I did notice that Binnington was close to the Blues blueline.
Winnipeg Sun: ‘A bit of a bloodbath’: Jets and Blues don’t hold back in Game 1 that had everything. As I said on twitter last night “the series has now begun”.
Winnipeg Sun: Jets stalwarts Scheifele and Connor combine for comeback win over Blues. In the playoffs you need improvement from all players but your best players have to be your best.
Winnipeg Free Press: Dynamic duo lifts Jets to series opening win over Blues. (Paywall). We said that Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor needed to be the Jets X factors in the playoffs on yesterday’s IC Hockey Show (listen below) and they both turned out to be just that (and more).
Winnipeg Free Press: Hellebuyck dispels thoughts of deja vu after rough start in Game 1. (Paywall). There were some unhappy folks after the first period of play but the Jets top netminder, just like the team around him, settled in and looked way more comfortable as it went on.
The Athletic: Jets score late winner to down Blues in Game 1: Takeaways. (Paywall). Murat and Jeremy combine to give you both the Winnipeg and St. Louis writers thoughts on the game.
NHL.com: Jets rally to defeat Blues in Game 1 of Western 1st Round. Darrin gives you insight into the game from both rooms.
Jets video:
Sportsnet: How Jets survived an early storm to triumph over Blues in Game 1. Ron MacLean, Kevin Bieksa, Elliotte Friedman and Kelly Hrudey breakdown Game 1 between the St. Louis Blues and the Winnipeg Jets after Kyle Connor scored late to send the fans home happy.
TSN: Jets’ top line rises to the occasion with seven points in Game 1 win. John Lu is joined by TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger to discuss the performance of the Jets’ top line in their Game 1 victory, and how goaltenders Connor Hellebuyck and Jordan Binnington both ‘earned their status’ on Saturday despite a shaky start.
TSN: ‘You need your big dogs barking’: Scheifele the x-factor as Jets rally to beat Blues. The TSN Hockey panel weighs in on an impressive three-point outing by Mark Scheifele in Game 1 against the Blues where he showed he can dig in and lead his team to a victory, shares its thoughts on a rough outing by Connor Hellebuyck, and discusses how St. Louis was able to make life difficult for Winnipeg on Saturday.
Jets audio:
Illegal Curve Hockey: Saturday Podcast. Yesterday’s show was focused on setting up the first round series between the Jets and Blues. We did
