Minnesota 3, Winnipeg 2
When: 8:00 PM ET, Monday, December 29, 2014
Where: MTS Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Referees:
Tom Kowal, Ghislain Hebert
Linesmen:
Mike Cvik, Brad Lazarowich
Attendance:
15016
By SportsDirect Inc.
Wild 3, Jets 2: Justin Fontaine and defenseman Marco Scandella scored 3:17 apart late in the second period to erase a deficit and visiting Minnesota held on to snap its five-game slide.
Ryan Carter also tallied for the Wild, who scored three unanswered goals to avoid being swept in the home-and-home series. Kyle Brodziak and Brett Sutter notched two assists apiece and Darcy Kuemper turned aside 28 shots.
Michael Frolik and Mathieu Perreault netted power-play goals for the Jets, who had their point streak halted at five games (4-0-1). Michael Hutchinson made 28 saves in falling to 9-2-1 in his last 12 starts.
Winnipeg grabbed the lead with four minutes remaining in the first period as Frolik came out from behind the net and beat Kuemper from the right faceoff circle. The Jets cashed in on another man advantage 20 seconds into the middle session, when Perreault converted a cross-crease pass from the left side by Blake Wheeler.
Carter beat Hutchinson from alone in front at 4:12 to halve the deficit and Fontaine tied the contest with 3 1/2 minutes left in the session. Scandella put Minnesota ahead with 12 seconds remaining in the period as his one-timer from the left point deflected off Winnipeg defenseman Jay Harrison's skate and past Hutchinson.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Jets failed to earn a point for just the second time this month (7-2-3). ... Wild C Tyler Graovac made his NHL debut, registering one shot while going 2-8 on faceoffs in 9:02 of ice time. ... Winnipeg was without LW Evander Kane, who will be sidelined until early February with a lower-body injury, while Minnesota was missing C Mikael Granlund, who is expected to be out four weeks with a fractured left wrist.
Top Game Performances
Minnesota |
|
Winnipeg |
Kyle Brodziak 2 |
Points |
Michael Frolik 1 |
Ryan Carter 1 |
Goals |
Michael Frolik 1 |
Kyle Brodziak 2 |
Assists |
Bryan Little 1 |
N/A |
Power Play Goals |
Michael Frolik 1 |
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
Darcy Kuemper .933 |
Save Percentage |
Michael Hutchinson .903 |
Darcy Kuemper 28 |
Saves |
Michael Hutchinson 28 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
Minnesota
|
31 |
3 |
0-4 |
1-3 |
6 |
29 |
Winnipeg
|
30 |
2 |
2-3 |
4-4 |
8 |
37 |
Upcoming Games
-
Winnipeg will play their next game at home against NY Islanders. The Jets have a W/L % of .400 after a win and .647 after a loss.
-
Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Columbus. The Wild have a W/L % of .471 after a win and .529 after a loss.