Mark Scheifele scored twice and added an assist to tie Dale Hawerchuk’s franchise record of 929 points as the Winnipeg Jets stormed back from two goals down to rout the Dallas Stars 8-3 at American Airlines Center on Thursday night. The win was Winnipeg’s fifth in a row — a remarkable turnaround for a team that had just lost nine straight — and it was sealed by a five-goal second period that turned a 3-2 deficit into a 7-3 lead.
Scheifele tied the game 2-2 at 7:03 of the second period, then put Winnipeg ahead 4-3 on the power play at 18:12, and his assist on Kyle Connor’s goal a minute into the third period was the 929th point of his career, drawing him level with Hawerchuk at the top of the Jets’ all-time list. According to the Associated Press, Scheifele now has four goals and four assists in his last four games, and his 377th career goal leaves him two behind Hawerchuk’s franchise goals mark of 379.
Mercer stars again as Jets erupt
Dawson Mercer scored twice for the second consecutive game, while Connor and Gabriel Vilardi each had a goal and two assists, Dylan Samberg scored, and Cole Koepke capped the scoring at 15:26 of the third. Stuart Skinner made 30 saves for Winnipeg. Dallas had led through Arttu Hyry, Roope Hintz and David Perron — Perron’s first goal since signing as a free agent on October 15 — but the Stars allowed eight goals for the first time in a decade, and Jake Oettinger, who entered with the NHL’s fourth-best goals-against average at 1.99, allowed a season-high six goals on 27 shots and was pulled a minute into the third period.
A turnaround nobody saw coming
The Jets’ five-game winning streak is all the more remarkable for what came before it: a nine-game losing run in which Winnipeg went 0-7-2 and looked lost. The turnaround has been built on depth scoring and timely goaltending from Skinner, who arrived as part of the fallout from the Connor Hellebuyck trade — the same deal that brought Mercer to Winnipeg from New Jersey on October 25. Five straight wins later, the Jets are back in the playoff picture and Scheifele is one point from history.
The Jets, now 9-8-3, have won five straight despite being out-chanced in four of them, and they sit tied with the Mammoth for the final playoff spot in the West. There was one concern: defenceman Dylan DeMelo left in the first period with a lower-body injury and is considered week-to-week, according to head coach Scott Arniel. Winnipeg visits the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday, when Scheifele will have the chance to stand alone at the top of the franchise points list. Landeskog scored twice as the Avalanche beat the Maple Leafs 6-3 in other NHL action, while Kaprizov won it in overtime as the Wild edged the Canadiens 2-1 in Montreal.
