The Winnipeg Jets and St. Louis Blues just played one of the most dramatic Game 7s in recent memory on Sunday at Canada Life Centre. The Blues seemed destined for the second round, but the Jets scored two in the final 1:55 with the extra attacker and found the game-winner in double overtime to win 4-3 and complete a comeback that shocked the hockey world.
Here, we’ll dive into five crazy stats from the game.
2.2 Seconds — Time Left on Perfetti’s Game-Tying Goal
Every second counts.
The Jets were just 2.2 ticks away from their Presidents’ Trophy-winning season going down the drain and making a third-straight first-round exit when Cole Perfetti, in the slot, deflected in Kyle Connor’s desperation shot.
It initially appeared that 1.6 seconds remained, but the time was amended to 2.2 seconds remaining and the goal went down in the scoresheet as coming at 19:57.
Regardless, Perfetti’s goal that sent Canada Life Centre into a frenzy the likes of which it perhaps has never seen was the latest game-tying Game 7 goal in NHL history, coming three seconds later than the Vancouver Canucks’ Matt Cooke’s goal at 19:54 of the third in the 2004 Conference Quarterfinals versus the Calgary Flames.
“It’s pretty cool. It’s kind of what you dream of,” Perfetti said postgame. “Playing in a Game 7. First time ever doing that, it was awesome playing in front of this crowd. It was incredible tonight.”
96:10 — Length of the Game
After Perfetti’s goal, the teams played a scoreless first overtime. It appeared the second extra frame, which had become a war of attrition, may go by without a goal as well but then Adam Lowry tipped home a Neal Pionk point shot to lift his team to glory at 16:10 (and 96:10 of total game time.)
While it was a long way from the longest game in NHL history (that’s 176 minutes or 152:01 if we’re talking post-expansion era) it was the third-longest Game 7 in NHL history and longest in nearly 40 years. It was shorter than only a 1939 NHL Semi-Finals matchup between the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers that clocked in at 108 minutes on the dot and a 1987 Patrick Division Semi-Finals contest between the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals that clocked in at 128:47.
46:15 — Neal Pionk’s Ice Time
With Josh Morrissey playing only 2:09 due to leaving the game with injury early in the first after taking a big hit from Oskar Sundqvist and then hitting Mathieu Joseph, the Jets had to play with five defensemen for the next 90-odd minutes.
Every remaining Jets’ blue liner played at least 27:49, but Neal Pionk stepped up to shoulder the biggest load, skating a whopping 46:15 (or just 13:45 shy of an entire regulation-length game.) It was only fitting he was rewarded with the primary assist on Lowry’s game winner, his third apple of the contest.
“What a yeomen’s effort by our defense,” head coach Scott Arniel said postgame. “All five of those guys, they had a different partner every shift because of the rotation and just having to not only defend but they had to be a part of our offense.”
122 — Hits Between the Teams
Get these men some ice bags.
The series was ferociously physical from puck drop of Game 1 until the very end of Game 7, with both teams dishing out huge hits on the regular. The clubs combined for 122 hits in Game 7, and were still throwing their weight around even in the second overtime when they were obviously exhausted.
It was the first game of the series that eclipsed 100 hits and brought the series total between the two clubs to 623.
5 — Teams in NHL History to Rally from Multi-Goal 3rd-Period Game 7 Deficit to Win
When Lowry completed the comeback, the Jets became just the fifth team in NHL history to rally from a multi-goal third-period Game 7 deficit to win.
The next-most recent team to do it was the Dallas Stars, who accomplished the feat — checks notes – just one day earlier by coming back from down 2-0 to the Colorado Avalanche in the third period of their Game 7 to win 4-2. The other three teams to do it were the 2019 San Jose Sharks (over the Vegas Golden Knights), 2013 Bruins (over the Toronto Maple Leafs in the infamous 4-1 first-round comeback), and the 1979 Montreal Canadiens (over the Bruins.)
“Amazing. Absolutely amazing,” is how Arniel summed up the contest. “I’ve seen a lot of hockey games, I’ve been around a lot of hockey games. That was, to be a part of that, was one of the most exciting games I’ve ever been a part of. Man, it was thrilling.”
Related: Jets’ Arniel Named Jack Adams Award Finalist
The Jets will face the Central Division rival Stars in Round 2 with Game 1 going on Wednesday, May 7 at Canada Life Centre. Keep following The Hockey Writers for extensive coverage of every 2025 Stanley Cup Playoff series.