WINNIPEG — Mark Scheifele knew it was only a matter of time before his luck improved.
The Winnipeg Jets’ star centre needed a few games to record his first point of the 2026-27 NHL campaign, but he entered Tuesday still hunting for his first goal as the Jets welcomed their most heated rival, the Minnesota Wild.
After setting up the opener marker for his 300th career assist on home ice, Scheifele found himself wide-open at the side of the net later in the first period, firing home a cross-crease pass from defenceman Neal Pionk to put Winnipeg ahead 2-1.
“It was nice to see it go in,” Scheifele said after the Jets’ 5-2 victory. “It was a fantastic pass by (Pionk) there. I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time.”
Scheifele added another assist to cap a three-point night and lead the Jets to a big win over the Wild at Canada Life Centre.
“Sometimes you don’t get lucky and sometimes, it just doesn’t go in,” Scheifele added. ”I wasn’t worried at all. I play with some fantastic players and our line has been producing and our power play was doing well. Now, I’ve just got to keep going.”
The Jets opened the season with a revamped top line of Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Cole Perfetti. Scheifele and Connor spent most of last year alongside Gabriel Vilardi, who shifted to the second unit to help balance the club’s scoring.
Perfetti, who signed a five-year, US$30-million extension over the summer, has reaped the most from the line shuffle.
The 24-year-old already has eight points in six games, including five goals — a mark that took him 40 games to achieve last season.
Perfetti scored twice against the Wild, with Scheifele drawing assists on both goals. After the game, Perfetti noted that Scheifele’s elite vision is something that has to be experienced up-close to be fully appreciated.
“You’re always open. Even when you think you’re covered or when you think you’re out of the play, you’re never out of it,” Perfetti said.
“I don’t think you really understand until you play with him how you feel like you’re not even a part of it at that point. You’re like, ‘I’m not open,’ and then all of a sudden the puck’s on your stick. You’re like, ‘here we go,’ so you better be ready at all times. It’s awesome to play with him.”
Connor scored his team-leading seventh goal and added an assist, giving the trio a combined seven points on the night.
“Those are great examples to watch those guys when they go out in practice, or they go in the game,” head coach Scott Arniel said. “They do things that others can work to copy. Even though all three of them aren’t big, somebody always ends up near the front of the net.”
While Arniel is thrilled with the clip his top line is scoring at, he stressed the urgent need for secondary production.
Beyond Scheifele, Connor and Perfetti, the rest of the roster has combined for just five goals, with no other player scoring more than once. Thirteen players — including seven fowards — remain without a goal.
“For all the other guys, we just try to hammer home, show some video, and put yourself in positions to get those looks,” Arniel said. “I think that some guys are getting some really good looks now, and kind of clicking through, there are guys that are getting some good opportunities.”
The Jets travel to Chicago to take on the Blackhawks on Thursday. The Blackhawks are averaging 4.14 goals per game, the fifth-most in the NHL.
“It’s a hard thing to score goals, and we need the secondary scoring,” Arniel said. “Maybe getting the puck on net a little bit more, maybe not looking for one more pass might be sort of the remedy.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 13, 2026.
Jeff Hamilton, The Canadian Press