Winnipeg Jets end road trip with 3-2 shootout loss in Montreal

The good news for the Winnipeg Jets is that they got a point in Montreal Wednesday night.

But it was another game without a victory for the struggling team, who fell to the Canadiens 3-2 in a shootout, dropping their record to 1-5-1 since Connor Hellebuyck went on injured reserve.

Goaltending has been an issue (but certainly not the only issue) in Hellebuyck’s absence, but that was not the case in this one. Coming off a terrible performance in Buffalo on Monday, the Jets once again got off to a shaky start but were bailed out time and again in the first period by Eric Comrie.

He made a couple big saves after an egregious turnover by Logan Stanley deep in Winnipeg territory, one of a handful of mistakes in the Jets’ end that led to great Montreal chances that Comrie turned aside.

It all led to Winnipeg opening the scoring late in the frame, thanks once again to their top line.

Kyle Connor caught up to a 50/50 puck in the neutral zone, poking it into the Montreal end before trying to get around Noah Dobson. Mike Matheson also came back to help as Connor was pushed to the faceoff dot but he won the puck and saw that Mark Scheifele was wide open in the slot. Scheifele took a pass from Connor and wired it past Jakub Dobes for his 14th of the season at the 18:35 mark.

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The Jets maintained that lead until the midway point of the second period as Montreal cashed in on their first power play look of the night. With Tanner Pearson in the box for slashing, Cole Caufield got the puck below the goal line and fed Juraj Slafkovsky in front for a one-timer that beat Comrie high to tie the game.

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Less than two minutes later, the Jets were back in front thanks to a chaotic sequence of events. It began with one of the longest net-mouth scrambles that you’ll see, with no whistle blowing as almost every player on the ice dug around the crease of Dobes.

The puck eventually came free and Winnipeg kept possession, trying to take advantage of the fact that Slafkovsky was playing without a stick. The former number one overall pick was able to deliver a crushing hit on Josh Morrissey as he took a hit to make a play at the point, eventually leading to Gabriel Vilardi getting the puck behind the net.

He then fed Connor by the faceoff dot and he ripped a shot off the post and in for his 14th of the season.

But the Jets’ couldn’t hold the lead as Montreal got even again just over two minutes later. Ivan Demidov beat Morrissey in a battle for the puck in the corner of Winnipeg’s end before feeding a streaking Oliver Kapanen, left alone in the slot, who made no mistake to make it 2-2.

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It stayed that way into the third where Winnipeg earned their first power play look of the night but were not able to cash in.

Neither team could muster a goal in the third so the game required overtime, and what ensued was a high-octane reminder of how fun 3-on-3 hockey can be.

Each side had several decent chances to score but Montreal had the bulk of them, outshooting the Jets 5-1 in the five minute session. Comrie once again had to make some stellar saves but on the Canadiens’ best opportunity, they had a 3-on-1 but overpassing led to a low-quality shot on net.

Dobes also had to make a great save late in OT when Jonathan Toews fed Vladislav Namestnikov on an odd-man rush. Dobes made a sprawling pad save to keep the game tied, sending it to a shootout.

Cole Caufield was the first shooter for Montreal and he beat Comrie five-hole, the only player to light the lamp in the shootout. Comrie stopped the next two shooters for the Canadiens but all three of Winnipeg’s shooters failed, with Connor, Scheifele and Vilardi coming up empty, the game ending when Vilardi’s attempt rang off the bar.

Comrie did all he could to give his team a chance to win, making 29 saves while Dobes also turned aside 29 shots.

The shootout loss is Winnipeg’s first loss after regulation this season, leaving the Boston Bruins as the lone team yet to suffer an extra-time defeat.

Winnipeg will now head home after a 1-3-1 road trip, hosting the Sabres on Friday. Pregame coverage on 680 CJOB begins at 4 p.m. with the puck dropping just after 6 p.m.