It was a matchup between perhaps the best goalie in the world and the lowest-scoring team in the NHL.
It went about exactly as you’d think it would.
Connor Hellebuyck turned aside all 22 shots he faced as the Winnipeg Jets took down the Nashville Predators 3-0 in their final home game of 2024.
Both teams failed to score in the opening period with each managing to get nine shots on goal and each failing on one power play chance.
The Jets nearly opened the scoring on their second power play look of the game midway through the second. Gabriel Vilardi got the puck down low and tucked the puck around Juuse Saros in the crease but somehow missed the net.
Winnipeg got a third chance to try and crack Nashville’s league-best penalty kill with 5:32 to go as Jeremy Lauzon picked up his second infraction of the night, but once again the Preds got the job done.
The Jets finally cracked the goose end with less than three minutes remaining in the second after a bad giveaway in the Nashville end.
Jonathan Marchessault had the puck in the corner and sent a weak clearing attempt up the boards that was easily handled at the point by Logan Stanley. He slid the puck down the wall to Morgan Barron, who waited patiently as the slot cleared for Dylan DeMelo, who drifted into the open space, received a pass from Barron and ripped it high over Saros for his first of the season at the 2:42 mark of the period.
Winnipeg carried that 1-0 lead into the third but the Predators began the third on the power play as Stanley was called for slashing as time expired in the second.
The Jets killed it off and a few minutes later nearly doubled their lead but Saros made a great cross-crease save to stymie Mark Scheifele on a partial 2-on-1.
A third penalty to Lauzon put the Jets back on the power play with 7:43 as they searched for an insurance goal and with 43 seconds left in the man advantage, the Predators were called for having too many men on the ice.
Winnipeg called a timeout to rest their top power play unit before the 5-on-3 and the move paid off. Kyle Connor fed the puck to the corner to Nikolaj Ehlers, who fanned on a cross-ice pass but it landed right on the stick of Vilardi in front and he buried it just 15 seconds into the 5-on-3 to expand the Jets’ lead.
That trio wasn’t done.
With Winnipeg still on the man advantage, Ehlers slid a one-touch pass to the right faceoff dot where Connor one-timed it. He didn’t get all of it, sending it wide of the net but right into Vilardi, who knocked the loose puck into the net for his second goal in 62 seconds.
The Jets cruised home from there to secure their 27th win of the season and regain first place alone in the NHL standings with 55 points in 38 games.
Winnipeg now heads to Denver to face the Avalanche Tuesday night. Pregame coverage on 680 CJOB begins at 5 p.m. with the puck dropping just after 7.