Workhorse Hellebuyck stands tall for shutout in Jets' biggest game of year

WINNIPEG -- This was a goaltender’s duel that definitely lived up to the billing.

Connor Hellebuyck wasn’t overworked and didn’t need to go toe-to-toe with the masked man at the other end of the rink, but he did his part to lead the Winnipeg Jets to a 2-0 victory over the Nashville Predators.

With goalie whisperer Adam Francilia in town for a late-season check-in, Hellebuyck was fundamentally sound and didn’t waver in the head-to-head matchup with fellow Vezina Trophy candidate Juuse Saros, making 28 saves to record his fourth shutout of the season and 32nd of his career.

“He’s a guy that works extremely hard. He’s a pretty damn good goalie and we’re extremely lucky to have him,” said Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers, who recorded an assist and was a driving force offensively throughout the contest. “The way that he’s played for us all year and the last couple of years, but especially this year, is pretty impressive. Without him, we probably would have lost some games down the stretch that we (won). He’s kept us in this fight. We like him a lot.” 

The post-game comment from Ehlers was delivered with him grinning from ear to ear.

With a league-high 62 starts this season, Hellebuyck has once again been the foundation for a Jets club that is scratching and clawing to get back into the post-season.

“Helly’s been awesome. He’s been a rock for us all year,” said Jets centre Mark Scheifele, whose 40th goal of the campaign proved to be the game-winner. “He’s the only reason why we are where we are. He’s been fantastic. I think tonight was an easier one for him, but when we needed him, he made the big saves. Hopefully, we can give him a few more easy ones.”

Perhaps the most impressive thing was how Hellebuyck managed to stay sharp during the second period, when the Jets held a wide edge in the territorial play and outshot the Predators 20-5.

“Yeah, that's tough for a goaltender, not getting any shots. We were in their zone the whole second period,” said Jets head coach Rick Bowness. “They had one chance off the rush in the second period. Give him a lot of credit for his mental skills to stay focused and dialed in. Because you knew they were going to make that push in the third after we got the goal and he made some timely saves.

“That is tough for a goalie. You're not getting any work. We're in their zone (for) six minutes of the second period so, anyways, give him a lot of credit for that.”

Given the barrage of shots and shot attempts sent in the direction of Saros -- especially during the second period -- you have to commend the Predators netminder for doing everything in his power to keep the game as close as it ended up being.

You can see why the Predators have been able to buck conventional wisdom and remain in the thick of the Western Conference playoff chase, despite being without a number of key cogs, including top defenceman Roman Josi and forwards Filip Forsberg and Matt Duchene.

“I don’t think we made a mistake that whole period. We were on it right from the first puck drop. And kept the pressure on, kept the pressure on, kept the pressure on. When you have that much sustained O-zone time, it’s pretty hard for Saros to not get exhausted,” said Scheifele. “Yeah, we needed that one, for sure. Saros kept them in it all game. It easily could have been a blowout. He played amazing, so kudos to him. He’s a fantastic goaltender. But at the end of the day, it was a big win for this team. You’ve just got to keep pushing.”

It was the 11th consecutive start for Hellebuyck and much of the talk going into the matchup was about his play during the stretch run.

“He just wants to be in there. His confidence is unwavering,” said Jets forward Blake Wheeler. “He gives us a huge shot of confidence knowing that we have him back there. Just how his demeanour is in the room and how he moves around and talks to guys. That’s one area we never worry about.”

And for good reason.

Hellebuyck understood the magnitude of the situation and delivered the goods.

Speaking of delivering in a big moment, Scheifele produced what might go down as his most important goal of the season.

Not only did Scheifele reach the 40-goal plateau for the first time in his career, the marker broke the ice on what had been a tension-filled contest to that point.

Scheifele is having an impressive offensive season, but his play during the final quarter of the season has been under scrutiny, especially after Bowness chose to bench him along with Kyle Connor and Nino Niederreiter for nearly 12 minutes in the second period of a game against the Carolina Hurricanes on March 14.

He recently went through a nine-game goal-scoring drought, but this was an inspired performance at both ends of the ice.

“Good for him. Forty goals, that's a hell of a season and he's got three more games to add on to that -- and he could have had the empty netter,” said Bowness. “I think that's a good example of our perseverance tonight. We stayed with it. We were getting all of those chances. He hit the post a couple of times. He had some great looks. But we stayed in the fight and Mark's goal was a perfect example of that. Just stay in it. Stay in the moment. Stay shift-to-shift. And he gets a very timely goal for us.”

Ehlers got a cut on his chin from the stick of Predators forward Colton Sissons during an early power play that went uncalled, but that only enhanced his determination on a night when he used his speed to his advantage.

There was no better example than his sequence of plays on the Jets' insurance goal from Neal Pionk.

Ehlers started the play showcasing his soccer skills, using a kick pass in the defensive zone to get the puck to Wheeler, who got it back to him in the neutral zone.

As Ehlers accelerated, he chipped the puck past a Predators defenceman, retrieved the puck for a successful zone entry and showed great vision in finding Pionk as the trailer.

“I knew he was coming. So it was just a matter of letting those three guys go deep enough for him to be open for me,” said Ehlers. “He comes in at a perfect spot and he rips that one home.”

Ehlers finished with four shots on goal and 11 shot attempts to earn praise from Bowness.

“That was one of his best games by far,” said Bowness. “He was skating great and against a team like that that plays 1-1-3 in the neutral zone and they’re standing there, you’ve got to get the D turning and you’ve got to get them into foot races. So, when you get them into foot races, you want to make sure you have the speed to get there and (Ehlers) gives us that speed.”

With the victory, the Jets built a three-point cushion over the Predators in the race for the second wild card in the Western Conference.

The Calgary Flames are one point behind the Jets after a shootout loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night, but have only two games left.

As the Jets get set to host the San Jose Sharks on Monday in the fifth and final game of this homestand, the Predators are heading to Calgary to face the Flames in another game with massive playoff ramifications.

“We know what we need to do here the last three games,” said Ehlers. “We will be ready for those.”