• HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • Site Index
  • NHL Salary Caps
  • Hockey 101: A Beginner’s Guide
  • Join Our Team
  • Free Newsletter
  • Store
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
Home
Minnesota Wild

Wild Survive Jets – Zucker Gets Two

By The Canadian Press January 11th, 2019

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Jason Zucker scored twice, giving Minnesota’s lagging power play a lift with his first goal and getting one later just after leaving the penalty box, and the Wild hung on to beat the Winnipeg Jets 3-2 on Thursday night.

Jordan Greenway also scored and Devan Dubnyk made 26 saves for the Wild, who have won all three games against the Jets so far this season by a combined 10-5 score after losing to their Central Division rival in five games in the first round of the playoffs last spring.

Winnipeg Jets Connor Hellebuyck

Jordan Greenway and Connor Hellebuyck (AP Photo/Stacy Bengs)

Brandon Tanev gave the Jets some life with his goal in the final minute of the second period to cut the lead to 3-1. Then, with Connor Hellebuyck having already vacated the net, Mark Scheifele scored with 2:38 remaining in the game to bring the Jets within one. The Wild went without a shot on goal in the third, the first time in franchise history that happened to them at home in any period.

The Jets managed just one shot on goal over the first 15-plus minutes of the game, and the Wild actually had a lead to match the effort. Defenceman Jared Spurgeon hustled to keep a loose puck in possession in the offensive zone and sent it along the wall to Staal, who fed Greenway from behind the net . This was only the 15th time in 43 games the Wild have scored first. They’re 9-5-1 in those instances.

The Wild had only one power-play goal in their previous 23 opportunities, all without defenceman Matt Dumba, who’s still second among NHL blue-liners this season with 12 goals and ruptured the pectoralis muscle near his right shoulder on Dec. 15.

Midway through the second period, with a man advantage for the Wild, a turnover led to a short-handed breakaway for the Jets and a snap shot by Adam Lowry that caromed off the left post. The Wild quickly regrouped after the fortunate bounce and went back the other way for Zucker’s score in the waning seconds of Kyle Connor’s tripping penalty.

A few minutes later, as he hustled back and forth at the point of the penalty kill and fearlessly blocked shots with his body, Zach Parise snagged the puck at the end of a Jets power play and flipped a lob pass up the ice for a wide-open Zucker who managed to stay onside after he returned to the ice from his hooking penalty. Zucker beat Hellebuyck in the upper-left corner at the end of the breakaway for a 3-0 lead.

The Jets had scored 12 goals in their last two games, including four in seven power-play chances.

Zucker, who was second on the Wild last season with a career-high 33 goals, scored only once over his previous 14 games. Zucker is tied with Mikael Granlund for third on the team with 12 goals, squarely among the players they need to pick up their production over the second half of the schedule to make a return to the playoffs.

NOTES

The Wild won at home for the first time in five tries since Dec. 13. … The Jets were scoreless in four power plays. The Wild have killed 15 of their last 16 penalties at home. … Scheifele tied Patrik Laine for the team lead with his 24th goal. … Wild centre Eric Fehr missed his second straight game with an undisclosed injury. … Spurgeon had two assists, his third multi-point performance in five games this month. … Jets defenceman Dustin Byfuglien, one of two Minnesota natives on the team, missed his fifth straight game with a lower-body injury that will likely keep him out until after the All-Star break.

UP NEXT

Jets: Return home to face the Detroit Red Wings on Friday night.

Wild: Host the Red Wings on Saturday night.

___

More AP NHL coverage: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Dave Campbell, The Associated Press

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Get theScore App Now!
Recent Posts
Jan 22nd 6:25 PM
Column

Winnipeg Jets News & Rumors: Hellebuyck, Scheifele, Ehlers & Connor

Jan 22nd 5:35 PM
Advanced Stats

Kings’ Anze Kopitar Still Has Trade Value, But Big Cap Hit Hurts

Jan 22nd 5:25 PM
Columbus Blue Jackets

Blue Jackets Held Back By John Tortorella’s Stubbornness

Jan 22nd 5:15 PM
Edmonton Oilers

Edmonton Oilers Newcomers Finding Their Roles

Jan 22nd 5:05 PM
Nashville Predators

Predators’ New Third Pairing Paying Early Dividends

Jan 22nd 4:55 PM
Winnipeg Jets

Jets Could Use Heinola’s Offensive Skill & Hockey IQ for Seasons to Come

Jan 22nd 4:45 PM
Carolina Hurricanes

Hurricanes Must Improve After COVID-19 Pause

Jan 22nd 4:30 PM
Nashville Predators

Predators’ Power Play Lacks A Lot

Jan 22nd 4:20 PM
Women's Hockey

Meet the NWHL’s EBUG: Mariah Fujimagari

Jan 22nd 4:10 PM
Calgary Flames

Flames Rewarded Early by New Top Line of Tkachuk, Lindholm & Dube

Editor’s Picks
2021 NHL Draft Rankings: Baracchini's Top 75 Rankings

2021 NHL Draft Rankings: Baracchini's Top 75 Rankings

NHL TV Blackouts & Why They Happen?

NHL TV Blackouts & Why They Happen?

Masthead

Newsletters

RSS Feeds

Privacy Statement

Contact Us

About THW…

Founded in 2009, The Hockey Writers is a premier destination for news and information on everything hockey. Updated daily with news and features from over 130 writers worldwide. Over 2 million monthly readers now come to THW for their hockey fix.

© The Hockey Writers 2020. All rights reserved.
logo
  • HOME
  • Hockey Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • North Division
    • Calgary Flames
    • Edmonton Oilers
    • Montreal Canadiens
    • Ottawa Senators
    • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Vancouver Canucks
    • Winnipeg Jets
  • East Division
    • Boston Bruins
    • Buffalo Sabres
    • New Jersey Devils
    • New York Islanders
    • New York Rangers
    • Philadelphia Flyers
    • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Washington Capitals
  • Central Division
    • Carolina Hurricanes
    • Chicago Blackhawks
    • Columbus Blue Jackets
    • Dallas Stars
    • Detroit Red Wings
    • Florida Panthers
    • Nashville Predators
    • Tampa Bay Lightning
  • West Division
    • Anaheim Ducks
    • Arizona Coyotes
    • Colorado Avalanche
    • Los Angeles Kings
    • Minnesota Wild
    • San Jose Sharks
    • Seattle Kraken
    • St Louis Blues
    • Vegas Golden Knights
  • World Juniors
  • CHL
    • Ontario Hockey League
    • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
    • Western Hockey League
  • THW Podcast Network
  • Store
  • FREE Newsletter
  • Search THW
  • More…
    • Join Our Team
    • The THW Archives
    • Prospects
    • The Goalie Page
    • NHL Salary Cap Information