The Winnipeg Jets rallied to score three goals in just four minutes and 19 seconds in the third period on Monday to secure a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Jets trailed 1-0 after 40 minutes Monday before Alex Iafallo tied the game just under five minutes into the final frame.
Captain Adam Lowry then scored two and half minutes later to give Winnipeg a 2-1 lead.
While that lead lasted less than two minutes, Cole Perfetti scored just nine seconds after Declan Carlile tied the game for Pittsburgh, which was enough to lift the Jets to a 2-0-1 start to the season.
“We’ve said it all along coming into camp, we’re optimistic that we’re a better team than we showed last year,” Lowry said after the win. “We want to play fast. We want to compete hard and we want to give ourselves a chance to win every night. So, I think we’ve done that.”
Making his first career start for the Jets after being claimed on waivers last month, Clay Stevenson turned aside 30 of 32 shots to backstop Winnipeg to the victory.
“He obviously made some big, big stops, right up to the end of the game there. He was real solid and confident and looked comfortable,” head coach Scott Arniel said.
“It was great to see a kid come in here like that, a new organization late in training camp. He came as advertised. Really like how he was poised and he played well.”
It was just Stevenson’s sixth NHL game, and he improved to 4-2 after making a total of five starts for the Washington Capitals over the previous two seasons.
The 27-year-old netminder credited the mental toughness of his new team for the win.
“No quit,” Stevenson said. “Everyone’s pulling on that rope, they’re leaning on one another. That support is huge. There was a lot of support in the room in the intermissions.”
Getting off to a strong start has come despite the Jets spending training camp with the distraction of Connor Hellebuyck failing to report. The star goaltender remains suspended without pay as he continues to wait for a trade, but so far Winnipeg has weathered the storm without him.
