Winnipeg Jets lose the game and their captain in Utah – Winnipeg

Their first visit to Utah is not one the Winnipeg Jets will be telling their grandkids about someday.

Turnovers doomed the Jets as they dropped a 5-2 decision in Salt Lake City Monday night, a game in which their captain Adam Lowry had to leave with an injury after the first period.

After a scoreless opening frame, Utah scored twice in the second, added two more in the first eight minutes of the third and hung on the victory.

The Jets registered just six shots on goal in the second period and only eight in the third period as they finished with only 25 shots.

“That was embarrassing,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “That was the most embarrassing game, for me, for our players. I take full credit. I got to be the one that has to hold these guys accountable, make sure we’re better. That was embarrassing. From top to bottom we did a horses–t job.”

It’s the first time the Jets have lost back-to-back games in regulation since early December. The Jets made some costly mistakes and had giveaways lead directly to goals.

“Just execution,” said Jets defenceman Dylan DeMelo. “Maybe a couple unfortunate bounces that pucks kinda just bouncing on us. But plays that we usually make, so, move on, learn from it and get ready for Colorado.

DeMelo and Nino Niederreiter scored the goals for the Jets, while Nikolaj Ehlers had two assists in the loss.

Barrett Hayton had a goal and two assists for Utah as they won for just the fourth time in their last 14 games.

“You look yourself in the mirror,” Ehlers said. “That is not Winnipeg Jets hockey. It’s not the first time this year we’ve played this way and when you don’t play the right way in this league, doesn’t matter who you’re playing against, you’re not winning that game and you’re letting our goalies down.”

Lowry did not emerge from the dressing room after the first period. He was shaken up after sliding awkwardly into the boards in the first and while he did play some shifts after that, he did not return to the game after the first intermission.

“Don’t know anything yet,” said Arniel after the game.

The opening frame was fairly uneventful as Winnipeg managed to get only one shot on goal in the opening 11 minutes, though they would end up outshooting Utah 11-10 in the first.

The Jets’ best chance came with less than two minutes to go when David Gustafsson collected the puck in his own end and raced up the ice, splitting two defenders and getting a good chance on goal that squeezed through Connor Ingram and rolled just centimetres wide of the post. Morgan Barron attempted a wraparound right after that Ingram stopped to keep the game goalless through 20 minutes.

Gabriel Vilardi left the game early in the second after a collision with Alex Kerfoot, sending the Jets’ lines into disarray with only ten forwards, but Vilardi did return before the end of the second.

It took a while for the first goal to arrive but it finally did with exactly four minutes to go in the second. A point shot from Olli Maatta was heading wide before banking off DeMelo and into the net to open the scoring. The goal was originally credited to Utah captain Clayton Keller who was battling in front with DeMelo before it was switched to Maatta for his first of the season.

Utah doubled their lead in the final minute of the period when Dylan Samberg fumbled the puck at the Utah blue line as he sprinted to keep it in, allowing Barrett Hayton to retrieve it and get it to Logan Cooley to start a 2-on-1. Cooley kept it all the way and roofed one past Connor Hellebuyck to make it 2-0 after two.

Things did not get better for Winnipeg in the third. The Jets had the puck in the Utah end when a Neal Pionk pass from the right point eluded Josh Morrissey at the left point, bouncing off the boards before it was knocked down the ice, kicking off a race to the puck between Pionk and Josh Doan. Doan got to it first, pushing it to the slot where Hayton was waiting to rip it past Hellebuyck to make it 3-0 at the 4:53 mark.

Another blue line disaster led to Utah’s fourth goal of the night. Samberg stumbled at the point with the puck, giving it away to Hayton who sprinted up the ice on a 3-on-2. He passed it across the ice to Doan, drawing Hellebuyck over before sending it back to the slot where Matias Maccelli had a yawning cage to score into at the 8:04 mark.

Winnipeg got on the board just 28 seconds later when Neiderreiter’s shot in transition snuck through the five-hole of Ingram.

The Jets made it 4-2 at the 11:48 mark when DeMelo blasted one past Ingram to make things a little interesting, but that was as close as they would get. Keller sealed the game into an empty net with 2:05 left.

Hellebuyck turned aside 23 shots as he got saddled with his second regulation loss in his last 17 starts. Winnipeg had zero power plays on the night.

The Jets will look to rebound Wednesday in Denver against the Avalanche before getting another crack at Utah on home ice on Friday night.

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