Jets Hand Tampa Its Lumps Behind Perfetti's Busy Night
Winnipeg got the better looks all night and earned this 4-3 win over Tampa Bay, even if the scoreboard made it feel closer than it was. The Jets' chances were worth nearly four goals by expected goals -- a measure of how dangerous each shot was -- at 3.82, against just 1.79 for the Lightning.
The twist: Tampa Bay actually threw more pucks toward the net overall, but too many of them hit Winnipeg bodies. The Jets blocked 17 shots to Tampa's 3, and outshot the Lightning 25-20 on goal.
The special teams told the story. Winnipeg scored three power-play goals on five chances, while Tampa Bay went 0 for 4.
Cole Perfetti was the most dangerous skater on the ice: a goal, an assist and six shots in 15:42, on a line with Dawson Mercer and Brayden Yager, who also scored. Mark Scheifele added a goal and an assist.
In goal, Stuart Skinner made 17 saves on 20 shots, letting in more than Tampa's chances deserved. Pontus Holmberg beat him twice. At the other end, Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 21 of 25.
The iron played no favourites: Brandon Hagel and Kyle Connor each rang one off the frame. For a Jets team sitting in the last wild-card spot, a second straight win over the East's fourth-place club is welcome -- and this one wasn't a fluke.
