**had issues logging on to the section to write articles last night, so apologize for the late recap posting.**
Finding themselves in a sprint for the Central Division title with the Dallas Stars, who continue to pile up the wins, our Winnipeg Jets needed to extend their current 2 game winning streak when they faced off against the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday afternoon. Lets find out if the True Northers were able to keep the pressure on their division rivals by coming out victorious….
GAME RECAP
Winnipeg started the match off well, quickly helping the home squad to a quick scoring chance from Nino Niederreiter and putting Vancouver on their back heels. Things got worse for the Canucks when they took back-to-back penalties, but the Jets showed little urgency on the man-advantage and while they did create a couple looks the game remained scoreless. A couple turnovers in the defensive end allowed the visitors a couple opportunities to test Connor Hellebuyck and then a Logan Stanley high-sticking penalty gave the Nucks’ their first PP of the game. A very good kill by the Jets kept the scoring chances to a minimum and the one good chance (bumper 1 timer) was broken up by a good defensive stick. Just as it looked like we were going into the intermission with no goals on the scoreboard, Winnipeg lost coverage during an ill-advised line change, allowing Tyler Myers to thread a pass and send Pius Suter in all alone on Bucky. A fake to the backhand, then a quick shot was enough to deke out Hellebuyck and open the scoring. VAN 1-0. Winnipeg challenged the play for off-sides…..and while it appeared very close to being so, the officials determined there was not enough evidence to overturn the on-ice call. Fortunately, the Jets did a good job of killing the first minute off of the resulting penalty before the horn sounded.
The home club was able to kill off the rest of the man-advantage to start the 2nd and the two franchises returned to searching for a way to create offense. Space was limited all game as all the skaters involved were playing with intensity and possibly some desperation on the Vancouver side. The Canucks knew they needed a win to give them the best shot at securing a wildcard spot, but their hopes took a hit when Kyle Connor rushed up the middle of the ice before unleashing an incredible shot from the mid-slot. Unable to react in time, Thatcher Demko couldn’t squeeze his pads quickly enough to stop the puck from sliding through the five hole. TIE 1-1. The Nucks did their best to respond and created some anxiety for the fans at the Canada Life Centre when they came close to scoring during a scramble in front of Hellebuyck. Winnipeg replied with some offensive zone time of their own, but Vancouver held the push off and took back momentum when Luke Schenn was nabbed for interference. Another textbook kill by the Jets, including Dylan Samberg laying a big bodycheck on Conor Garland. The second frame ended with the game deadlocked, despite Winnipeg out-chancing Vancouver 4 to 1 on high danger scoring opportunities.
The 3rd period began with the True Northers tilting the ice as they created a few scoring chances, including a deflection from Mark Scheifele that resulted in a quick NHL review (no goal, but it certainly came within inches of the goalline). The Canucks looked like they had a breakaway shortly after, but a nice effort by Colin Miller broke the play up before Bucky had to face a shot on net. Winnipeg replied with chances from Nikolaj Ehlers & Samberg before they finally were able to break the tie. The speedy Dane cycled the zone with the puck and skated behind the Canucks’ net before he stepped out front to fire a shot at Demko. With Adam Lowry battling in front of the goalie, the tender couldn’t control the rebound and Mason Appleton was able to slam his 10th goal of the season into the open net. WPG 2-1. With their playoff hopes dwindling, Vancouver immediately went on the attack and if not for the stellar play of Hellebuyck, the match would have once again been knotted up. The Jets were able to take back momentum when the Canucks were nabbed for a high-sticking penalty, but the man-advantage units couldn’t give Winnipeg the breathing room they desired. Post powerplay, Hellebuyck was called on once again to make a big blocker save on a slot shot from Teddy Blueger. The Jets’ tender did a great job punching the rebound out to Josh Morrissey and that allowed the home club to quickly break out of their zone. Vladislav Namestnikov was able to send a stretch pass to Cole Perfetti near the offensive blueline, giving him a 1 on 1 chance with Vancouver’s Derek Forbort. An incredible deke by Fetti saw him slip the puck through the defenders’ feet as he danced around Forbort to find himself going in all alone on Demko. Still off-balance from the deke, Perfetti was sort of falling to the ice as he roofed a shot high blocker side. WPG 3-1. Other than Hellebuyck being called on to make one more big save during a scramble in front of his net (resulting in MVP chants from the CLC crowd), not much really occurred in the final 8 minutes. There was a period of Canucks’ pressure when they pulled the goalie very early, but a too many men penalty ended that, allowing the Jets to breeze through the final minutes.
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FINAL SCORE: WINNIPEG JETS 3 VANCOUVER CANUCKS 1
FINAL STATS
Shots: 27-24 WPG / Hits: 50-24 VAN / Face-Offs: 51.7% WPG / x Goals: 4.02 WPG – 2.04 VAN /
MoneyPuck’s Deserve to Win: 82.8% WPG / High-Medium Danger Scoring Chances: 15 to 8 WPG
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SCORING SUMMARY from ESPN
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SHOT CHART from MoneyPuck
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ADVANCED SKATER STATS from MoneyPuck
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GOALIE STATS from ESPN & MoneyPuck
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If you would like to dive deeper into the game’s stats, follow the links below to the game pages:
MoneyPuck: Vancouver Canucks vs. Winnipeg Jets – Sunday March 30 2025 – MoneyPuck.com
NaturalStatTrick: Vancouver Canucks @ Winnipeg Jets, 2025-03-30
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BOJA’s Observations:
- With the win yesterday, the Winnipeg Jets now have a 3 point lead on the Washington Capitals for the top spot in the NHL and a 6 point lead on the Dallas Stars for the Central Division title. The True Northers magic number to lock up the division is 6.5.
- One of two pretty Jets’ goals scored against the Canucks, Kyle Connor’s 38th marker of the season was an absolute rocket that cleanly beat the goaltender through the five hole. Man did he bend his stick’s shaft on that release!! With 2 points in the game, Winnipeg’s best sniper has now reached the 90 point plateau for the 2024-25 campaign.
- Outdoing KFC’s goal, Cole Perfetti scored a highlight reel marker when he undressed a Canuck’s defenseman before walking in and sniping a terrific shot high to the blocker side. A huge relief to the fans at the CLC, as it gave the Jets a comfortable 2 goal lead in the 3rd period.
- Another good performance by Connor Hellebuyck, with a .958 save percentage and a +1.04 Goals Saved Above Expected in his 56th start of the year. The tender now is only 1 win away from tying his career-best of 44 and 5 victories from tying the NHL record of 48.
- After a couple rough statistical outings, the defensive duo of Dylan Samberg & Luke Schenn dominated the expected goals battle against Vancouver (97.4%). The two defenders also played a role on the penalty kill, which had a successful game by going 3 for 3 and not allowing the Canucks a shot on net with the man-advantage.
Eight more games to go in Winnipeg’s regular season and the Jets have a couple real tests coming up in the LA Kings & Vegas Golden Knights. Think the team will need to win at least one of those contests if they want to hold off the charging Dallas Stars.
UP NEXT: Winnipeg Jets @ Los Angeles Kings – Tuesday, April 1st @ 9:30 pm CST
