Recap: Bernier Stands Tall as Ducks Defeat Jets

by

The Winnipeg Jets once again failed to win their third game in a row, as the Anaheim Ducks rode a strong first period to a 3-2 victory behind solid goaltending from Jonathan Bernier.

Bernier made 31 saves, including some important saves late in the game when the Jets were pushing for that tying goal. This performance came after a shutout in his last start.

https://twitter.com/AnaheimDucks/status/823740509587804160

The Jets grabbed an early lead in the game, but couldn’t sustain any pressure afterwards. The Ducks fired 13 shots at Ondrej Pavelec in the first period and the Jets weren’t able to find an answer to the heavy game the Ducks played.

First Period

The Jets got the exact start they wanted and Maurice got validation on his top-line choice. Mark Scheifele sent a pass between two Ducks players onto the stick of Andrew Copp, who placed his wrist shot high on Bernier.

The Ducks took a penalty but kept the puck in the Jets’ end, forcing a faceoff in the Jets’ end at one point. Eventually, a Cam Fowler shot led to a rebound that was buried by Logan Shaw while the Ducks were shorthanded.

It didn’t take long for the Ducks to take the lead. Ryan Getzlaf skated the puck into the zone but lost the puck. The puck ended up on the stick of Rickard Rakell. From a bad angle, Rakell got a shot past Pavelec on the short side.

As is normal when these two teams meet, there was a lot of hitting on both sides. The Ducks and Jets combined for 17 hits in the first period, which included a couple of big ones from Byfuglien.

Mathieu Perreault didn’t come back in for the second period and it was announced that he had suffered an upper body injury.

Second Period

There was no scoring in the second period, but it was definitely an exciting period. The hits continued to pile up, with the period finishing 20-11 in favor of the Ducks.

A big story in the period was the number of penalties taken. The period saw three penalties taken but no goals scored. The very end of the period saw three penalties taken after a late hit sparked a full brawl. The Ducks were slapped with the extra minor, and the period ended without any further damage.

Third Period

The Jets started the third period on the power play. They maintained control in the Ducks’ end but weren’t able to solve the sticks of the Ducks.

Joel Armia of the Jets took a holding penalty in the offensive zone, which led to a big power play opportunity for the Ducks. After some sustained pressure, the Ducks won a battle on the boards to get the puck out to Shea Theodore. He fired a low shot on the net and Getzlaf tipped it into the low corner for a 3-1 Ducks lead.

A hold and dive combo led to a four-on-four. Toby Enstrom dropped the puck off for Nikolaj Ehlers, who skated from one end to the other and finished with a nice move, pulling the Jets to within one goal.

Shortly thereafter, Bryan Little got caught with an errant high stick. The Jets went back to the power play with six minutes to play. They applied some huge pressure, some of which led to this incredible save by Bernier.

https://twitter.com/JusDucksFans/status/823738412746280960

With over two minutes left, the Jets pulled their goalie after a Ducks icing call. A lot of pressure resulted in a couple of massive saves by Bernier, keeping his team in the lead. Great stick placement by the Ducks got the puck out of the zone, but couldn’t they pot an empty net goal because of a great effort by Ehlers. Nevertheless, the game ended 3-2 for the Ducks.

[irp]

Scoring Summary

FIRST PERIOD

WPG – Andrew Copp (6) assisted by Mark Scheifele (25) and Jacob Trouba (15)

ANA – Logan Shaw (2) (SHG) assisted by Cam Fowler (16) and Joseph Cramarossa (5)

ANA – Rickard Rakell (20) assisted by Ryan Getzlaf (30) and Hampus Lindholm (5)

SECOND PERIOD

No scoring

THIRD PERIOD

ANA – Ryan Getzlaf (7) (PPG) assisted by Shea Theodore (7) and Corey Perry (26)

WPG – Nikolaj Ehlers (17) assisted by Tobias Enstrom (11) and Bryan Little (12)

THW Three Stars

http://gty.im/632437066

First: Jonathan Bernier (31 saves, .939 save percentage)

Second: Ryan Getzlaf (1 goal, 1 assist)

Third: Nikolaj Ehlers (1 goal, 6 shots)

NEXT UP

San Jose Sharks at Winnipeg Jets

MTS Centre – 7:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday, Jan. 24

Broadcast Channels: TSN3

2016-17 Season Series: First meeting of the season

Edmonton Oilers at Anaheim Ducks

Honda Center – 7:00 p.m. PT on Wednesday, Jan. 25

Broadcast Channels: PRIME

2016-17 Season Series: Nov 15 – Edmonton (1) at Anaheim (4)

Dec 3 – Anaheim (2) at Edmonton (3) (OT)