Hellebuyck turns aside 43 shots, Iafallo scores twice as Jets dump Wild 4-1

Posted on November 25, 2024 by Peggy

Connor Hellebuyck made a season-high 43 saves, Alex Iafallo scored two goals, and the Winnipeg Jets beat the host Minnesota Wild 4-1 on Monday evening in a game between two of the Western Conference’s best teams.

The Jets needed each of Hellebuyck’s stops in his league-leading 15th win. Only defenceman Jacob Middleton beat the reigning Vezina Trophy winner — on a rebound in the first period.

Iafallo tied the game less than 90 seconds later. His second goal came on a tip-in on the power play with 6:40 left in the game. It was the 100th goal of his career.

Nino Niederreiter, who spent 2013-18 with the Wild, scored on a backhand from in front of Filip Gustavsson to give the Jets a 2-1 advantage with 8:55 remaining in the second period.

Winnipeg captain Adam Lowry capped the scoring with an empty-net goal.

Minnesota has lost seven straight to the Jets, including a 2-1 overtime defeat earlier this year in Winnipeg.

Takeaways

Jets: Hellebuyck is now in a three-way tie for second in the NHL in goals-against average (2.13). That group includes Gustavsson, who stopped 28 of 31 shots on Monday.

Wild: Kirill Kaprizov returned to the lineup after a one-game absence with a lower-body injury suffered Thursday in Edmonton. The NHL’s No. 2 scorer had his franchise-record 11-game point streak snapped.