Winnipeg Free Press https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/huge-second-period-gives-jets-5-3-victory-over- stars-475066243.html

Visiting Jets have Dallas seeing stars Winnipeg squad flying high on road trip

By: Mike Sawatzky

DALLAS — The took their grinding road show to Texas on Saturday night, and like Missouri a day before, they were not going to be denied.

Winnipeg fell behind 1-0 on a by Dallas’ Tyler Pitlick 10 seconds into the game, but rallied with five second-period goals en route to a 5-3 triumph over the Stars before a sellout crowd of 18,532 at American Airlines Center.

The win pulled the 37-16-9 Jets into a tie with the idle atop the NHL’s Central Division. The Preds, who visit Winnipeg on Tuesday night, have two games in hand.

Fourth-place Dallas, meanwhile, dropped to 35-23-4.

Nikolaj Ehlers tied the game 1-1 with the teams playing 4-on-4 just 39 ticks into the second period.

"We played last night, we knew it wasn’t going to be easy," Ehlers said. "But we bounced back after those 10 seconds, and after that we played the way we should’ve. It was a good first period and after that, it just kept rolling."

Toby Enstrom put the visitors up 2-1 at 6:32, beating Kari Lehtonen five-hole after a nifty setup by Jack Roslovic, who had juked his way past a Dallas defender at the blue line.

It was the Swede’s first of the season and his first in 87 games — his last goal coming way back on Nov. 3, 2016.

"It was awesome," Jets Blake Wheeler said. "Toby doesn’t care about that kind of stuff, though. When I was in Atlanta, he was an all-star, running-the-first-unit-power-play kind of guy. He’s embraced a different role for the good of the team and helped us out a ton this summer (by waiving his no-move clause for the expansion draft).

"The consummate teammate, so any time a guy has success, you get fired up for him. You probably see the expression on his face — it didn’t matter one way or another. But he was fired up to get one for the boys, so that was fun."

Mark Scheifele added to the lead88 seconds later from the slot, pounding Wheeler’s heads-up feed past Lehtonen.

Patrik Laine, who was stymied on a shot earlier in the period, continued Winnipeg’s offensive onslaught four minutes later, starting the breakout in his own end before passing to Ehlers, who returned the puck with the 19-year-old Finn ripping his 30th of the season.

Lehtonen, who surrendered four goals on 21 shots, headed to the bench to be replaced by Ben Bishop. Laine promptly added his 31st and now has 12 goals and 16 points in eight career games against the Stars.

Winnipeg scored five times on nine shots in 20 minutes.

"Most times, Patty doesn’t score you still think he could’ve had three or four against any team," Jets head coach Paul Maurice said. "Any shot is dangerous that he has. He finds the holes here really well. (He) didn’t miss on the penalty shot by much."

Tyler Seguin finally ended the bleeding for the Stars, scoring his 31st, with 33 seconds left in the middle period. Alexander Radulov added a goal for the hosts in the final minute, but the game was long over.

"Well, we were in a position to take a big step; we didn’t take it," Stars head coach Ken Hitchcock said. "We could’ve really taken a step today the way we played in the first period. They made us pay for every mistake, and they have skill and speed and it shows itself off the rush. Our scoring chances are mostly off the grind, and they were able to make us pay off the rush. We gave up a breakaway that ended up being a penalty shot, and we ended up giving up two 3-on-2s that ended up in the back of our net."

Michael Hutchinson made a surprise start in net for the Jets when Maurice opted to give workhorse Connor Hellebuyck the night off. Hellebuyck had made 10 consecutive starts, and Hutchinson performed ably, despite the rust associated with making his first appearance since Jan. 30. He finished with 33 saves.

"We definitely score goals, and that’s one of the luxuries of playing here," Hutchinson said.

"We allow the goal in the first 10 seconds — you know it’s tough especially in the second game of a back-to-back — it’s just not the start you’re looking for. As a goalie, you know if you can keep them to one goal for the rest of the period and into the second period, there’s a good chance we’re going to score at least one."

The steady brilliance of veteran blue-liner Dustin Byfuglien was on display again. Maurice called him Winnipeg’s best player, and the evidence was compelling — three assists, a plus-2 rating and a game-high 26:03 of ice time. All the while, Byfuglien was low-risk in the defensive zone with plenty of physical presence.

"What we were good at tonight was we were on pucks, and we knocked a lot of pucks down and countered back quickly," Maurice said.

"It’s difficult to defend well on change of possession. But the forwards, especially, skated well and knocked a lot of pucks down and created some quick strikes."

DEADLINE TIME: Will Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff add some veteran help prior to the league’s Monday trade deadline?

The possibilities aren’t keeping Maurice awake at night, even though the Jets were apparently close to acquiring centre Derick Brassard from the .

Sportsnet’s John Shannon reported Friday the became involved in a three-way trade with the Senators and Pittsburgh, in which Brassard ended up with the defending-champion Penguins. Vegas took on 40 per cent of Brassard’s salary, in part, to block a trade to the Jets, a Western Conference rival.

"I’ve been through this enough to know you can have a plan, and things you want to do — and every team does — and it either happens for you or it doesn’t," Maurice said.

"It’s not a matter of want. If you want to improve your team — can you get it down with something that makes sense? Kevin’s been working really, really hard at it, as are all the GMs. I don’t spend any time thinking about it. Sometimes of the best trades you ever made, never happen."

There were suggestions Saturday the Jets were making a play for Montreal centre Tomás Plekanec, who was a healthy scratch for the Habs on Saturday. Could Plekanec centre a line with Laine and Ehlers? Stay tuned.

NOTEWORTHY: The Stars were 0 for 4 on the power play. Winnipeg was 1 for 2... Current Jets player development assistant and former Dallas Star Mike Keane dropped the puck for the ceremonial opening faceoff for Veterans Appreciation Night at American Airlines Center... Pitlick’s first-period goal established a Stars franchise record for the fastest goal from the start of a home game. The previous mark was set Oct. 20, 1977 by Roland Eriksson of the North Stars.

Winnipeg Sun http://winnipegsun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets/byfuglien-at-his-best-in-jets-win-over- stars

Byfuglien at his best in Jets win over Stars

By Ken Wiebe

DALLAS — When Jacob Trouba went down, Dustin Byfuglien had to know it was time to step up.

Byfuglien is no fan of the media spotlight and made it seem as though it was simply business as usual when Trouba left the Winnipeg Jets lineup 12 games ago with an ankle injury.

Since that time, Byfuglien returned to his previous role on the top pairing with Toby Enstrom and has been fantastic.

Enjoying the increase in ice time and responsibility, Byfuglien’s latest contribution included three assists in a 5-3 win over the on Saturday night at American Airlines Center.

“(Byfuglien) was outstanding. There were times when he was the best player on the ice,” said Jets captain Blake Wheeler, who recorded his 54th assist of the season. “He can dictate so much with his size and his presence. When he throws his weight around a bit, he seems to find a little bit more ice. He has a great understanding of the game, he reads the game incredibly well.

“When he’s quick and he’s on his toes, he creates a lot of odd-man rushes for us by stepping up on the play and breaking up plays.”

With the win, the Jets swept this two-game road trip against Central Division teams that are chasing them in the standings.

By improving to 37-16-9, the Jets moved nine points up on the Stars with just 20 games remaining in the regular season.

The Jets play host to the Nashville Predators on Tuesday at Bell MTS Place.

While it’s true Byfuglien has done a much better job with the risk/reward element of his game this season, he has paid even more attention to that area of late.

Byfuglien led all skaters on Saturday by taking 30 shifts for 26:20 of ice time and was a force.

Byfuglien’s drop pass to Nikolaj Ehlers during the opening minute of the second period opened the floodgates to a stretch that saw the Jets score five times on nine shots on goal.

“He’s been really good for a long time and (was) not putting any numbers up, but now he’s doing both,” said Jets head coach Paul Maurice. “He’s done a really, really good job of picking his spots now. It’s the best hockey I’ve ever seen him play.”

As for Enstrom, his second-period marker was his first goal since Nov. 3 of 2016 — a span of 87 games.

Enstrom declined an interview request following the game, but his teammates were more than happy to talk about him.

“That was awesome,” said Wheeler. “Toby doesn’t care about that kind of stuff though. When I was in Atlanta, he was an all-star, running the first power play. He’s embraced a different role for the good of the team and helped us out a ton this summer (by waiving his no-trade clause for the expansion draft), being a consummate teammate.

“So when a guy like that has success, you get fired up for him.”

It was a tough start for Jets goalie Michael Hutchinson, who was beaten on a high shot from Tyler Pitlick that hit a stick on the way to the net just 10 seconds into the contest.

But Hutchinson, playing for the first time since Jan. 30 and after battling back from a concussion, settled in and finished with 33 saves.

“An early first goal is not the end of the world. It’s one of those things that being older and having experience, you know you can put that behind you and still have a good game,” Hutchinson said. “It’s one of the luxuries of playing here. You allow a goal in the first 10 seconds and you know it’s tough, especially in the second game of a back-to-back. It’s not the start you were really looking for.

“But as a goalie, if you can keep them to one goal for the rest of the period, there’s a good chance we’re going to score at least one and be right back in it. We responded great.”

It has been a challenging season for Hutchinson since he was sent down to the Manitoba Moose of the during training camp and he’s waiting to see what Monday’s NHL trade deadline brings.

“It’s the same as the whole season has been. You’re kind of on edge, not knowing really where you stand or what’s going to happen,” said Hutchinson, who managed to chip in an assist. “It’s been the same story all season for me personally, so the next little bit is going to be the exact same.”

Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen was on a personal six-game winning streak going into this one and coming off an 18-save shutout against the , but he was replaced by Ben Bishop after Mark Scheifele converted a slick feed on the power play from Wheeler at 8:01 of the second period.

You can be sure Jets forward wouldn’t mind a first-round date with the Stars.

Laine continued his mastery against the Stars on Saturday, chipping in a pair of goals to give him 12 goals and 16 points in just eight games.

Both of Laine’s goals came at even strength and he’s up to 31 goals and 51 points in 62 games this season.

Were it not for a right-pad save by Lehtonen on a penalty shot attempt at 2:46 of the second period, Laine would have recorded another hat trick.

“Most times (Laine) doesn’t score, you still think he could have had three or four,” Maurice said. “Against any team, any shot (Laine takes) is dangerous.” http://winnipegsun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets/jets-still-searching-for-centre-help- hellebuyck-gets-a-breathersuit-yourself

Jets still searching for centre help?...Hellebuyck gets a breather…Suit yourself

By Ken Wiebe

DALLAS – After nearly landing Derick Brassard in what would have been a blockbuster deal, the Winnipeg Jets might be turning their attention to another man in the middle.

With Monday’s NHL trade deadline approaching quickly, two centres that could be on the radar are Tomas Plekanec of the or Artem Anisimov of the .

Plekanec, 35, is on the rental market but his expiring contract carries an average annual value of $6 million, so the Jets would need to be creative in order to fit him in under the salary cap.

Although it’s been a down year offensively for Plekanec, he’s been used primarily in a checking role and is known as a strong penalty killer.

Plekanec, who sat out Saturday’s game as a precaution with a trade expected before Monday, has six goals and 24 points in 60 games this season.

In 89 playoff games, Plekanec has 16 goals and 49 points, so he would bring the type of experience the Jets appear to be looking for to augment the roster.

Anisimov is an interesting study.

He’s under contract for three more years after this one at a reasonable cap hit of $4.55 million, but he’s dealt with injuries this season and his offensive numbers are down as well.

After recording 22 goals and 45 points in 64 games last season (often on a line with and Artemi Panarin), Anisimov has 17 goals and 24 points in 52 games.

Anisimov has a no-movement clause that becomes a modified no-trade clause on July 1, so he would have to approve any potential trade.

The Jets had two scouts at the Blackhawks game on Friday night, but they may have been in attendance to watch Jan Rutta or forward .

Rutta, 27, is a pending unrestricted free agent and has six goals and 19 points in 42 games during his first NHL season.

Hartman, 23, was chosen 30th overall in the 2013 NHL Draft and has eight goals and 24 points in 56 games during what is in the final year of his entry-level contract.

The Jets are believed to be in the market for a top-nine forward and a depth blue-liner before Monday’s 2 p.m. CT deadline.

New mark for Hellebuyck With his 34-save shutout on Friday against the St. Louis Blues, Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck set a franchise record with his sixth goose egg of the season.

Hellebuyck, who has made 51 appearances and 49 starts, was throwing all kinds of praise to his teammates when asked about his latest shutout.

“Hats off to the guys in front of me – they’ve been blocking shots and giving me sight lanes. Their details are so good,” said Hellebuyck. “I hope we never have to talk about it the other way around, let’s keep it playing this well and I can keep telling my players they’re playing phenomenal in front of me.”

As for becoming the third goalie to eclipse 3,000 minutes, Hellebuyck is encouraged by the results and is doing what he can to stay fresh despite carrying a heavy workload.

“This is a little bit of uncharted territory for me,” said Hellebuyck, who is 32-9-8 with a .924 save % and 2.32 goals-against average. “We have a lot of experience around me, so many tools around us. I really feel like we’re doing the right things.”

After starting the previous 10 games, Hellebuyck got the night off on Saturday, as Michael Hutchinson made his second start of the season with the Jets – and first since Jan. 30.

Jets head coach Paul Maurice explained the reasoning behind giving Hellebuyck a rare breather.

For the record, it wasn’t because Maurice was seeing any signs of fatigue from his starter.

“We’re not in that part of the season anyway – and it would be mental (fatigue) more than anything. During that month we just had, there were five or six off days for him. He’s been sharp, he feels good. I kind of like when you have the opportunity to take your out after a win. You don’t do it very often and you don’t do it a lot after shutouts. He feels good about himself and gets a rest day and another one (on Sunday) to load up for March,” said Maurice. “It’s the part of the process that all of these guys, to become that No. 1 (guy) have to go through that heavy workload. He got to that number (3,000 minutes) unusually, in that we ran 10 straight (games) at home this time of year and we had some injuries, but with that, you’re going to run your A-guy at home.

“When we get back on the road in March here, we’ll start to get some relief for (Hellebuyck). He’s played exceptionally well. He’s been consistent. He’s been darn good.”

Dressed for success? As part of this two-game road trip, Jets players were sporting an interesting collection of retro suits.

There was a wide variation of styles worn,

“It’s funny. If you talk to some of the older guys, guys who have been in the league and experienced a little bit of the changing of suits – they are a little tighter now,” said Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey. “Some guys like (Dustin Byfuglien) had good ones in the closet from when they started (playing in the NHL). Me, on the other hand, my collection doesn’t go back that far, so I had to go out and get one. It’s pretty colourful.”

You could tell most players put a lot of effort into their ensembles.

“It’s a great idea. Just something we can have a little fun with,” said Morrissey. “It just builds a little team bonding and you have a couple of laughs about it. It’s a good thing.”

Maurice approved of the idea and the results.

“There are some awesome suits too,” said Maurice. “For me, Marko Dano’s is the best. He looked like every one of my teachers. Corduroy, with elbow pads. Outstanding.”

Associated Press https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/laine-scores-twice-jets-beat-stars-move-tie-central-lead/

Laine scores twice, Jets beat Stars to move into tie for Central lead

By Associated Press

DALLAS — Michael Hutchinson wasn’t concerned when Dallas’ Tyler Pitlick scored in the first 10 seconds of the Winnipeg goalie’s first game in 25 days.

"The first goal’s not that important," Hutchinson said. "We have 59 minutes and 50 seconds to come back and get another one. We were able to battle back."

The Jets didn’t need that much time on Saturday night. They scored five goals in the second period and went on to beat the Stars 5-3.

Patrik Laine scored two goals and Dustin Byfuglien had three assists in the period.

"I thought Dustin Byfuglien was the best player on the ice tonight," Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice said. "He knocked some pucks down, broke up so many plays and then the offensive part of his game is the best hockey I’ve ever seen him play."

Winnipeg moved into a tie with Nashville atop the Central Division. The Jets have outscored opponents 29-12 in winning five of their last six.

Hutchinson, who has won both of his NHL starts this season, finished with 33 saves.

"He made some really good saves," Maurice said. "He gave us a chance to win the game tonight with his play. That’s what you ask from those guys."

Byfuglien assisted on the first three goals, by Nikolaj Ehlers, Toby Enstrom and Mark Scheifele. On the fourth, assists went to Ehlers and the goalkeeper. It was the first assist of Hutchinson’s 101-game career.

Ehlers started Winnipeg’s scoring and finished it with assists on Laine’s goals. In eight career games against Dallas, Laine has 16 points (12 goals, 4 assists).

"His shot is pretty unique," Ehlers said. "He can put it in pretty much from anywhere, so he’s playing well against these guys."

The second-year player had a chance for another goal early in the second, but his penalty shot went wide.

"Most times Patty doesn’t score, you still think he could have had three or four," Maurice said. "Didn’t miss on the penalty shot by much."

Dallas’ Kari Lehtonen made 17 saves on 21 shots. Ben Bishop replaced Lehtonen after the fourth goal with 8:01 left in the second and stopped five of six shots.

Tyler Seguin scored for the Stars late in the second. Alexander Radulov added a goal with 47 seconds to play. They each assisted on the other’s goal.

The Stars’ lead for the first wild card in the Western Conference dropped to one point over Calgary.

"We were in a position to take a big step," Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. "We didn’t take it. They made us pay for every mistake."

Dallas took a quick lead after Radek Faksa won a faceoff, and the puck went back to Pitlick in the left faceoff circle. He unloaded a snap shot past Hutchinson into the upper right corner of the net.

Laine reached 30 goals for the second straight season with a snap shot from the right circle and added number 31 from the slot at with 1:13 left in the period.

NOTES: Six of Scheifele’s 19 goals this season have come in three games against Dallas. … Winnipeg has won the first three games of the season series by a combined score of 14-6. … Pitlick’s goal was his career-high 12th of the season. It was the earliest goal off a faceoff in Stars history. … Hutchinson has spent most of this season with Manitoba of the AHL. … Enstrom has 54 career goals but had not scored in 87 games since his 53rd on Nov. 3, 2016. … Dallas is 1 for 18 on the power play in its last eight games. … Winnipeg D Tyler Myers skated gingerly off the ice late in the third period after blocking a shot. Maurice said he believed Myers was OK.

UP NEXT Jets: Return home to face Nashville on Tuesday. Stars: Play the second in a five-game homestand on Tuesday vs. Calgary.

Sportsnet.ca http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/headlines-senators-karlsson-want-trade-happen/ (VIDEO LINK)

HEADLINES: SENATORS & KARLSSON WANT TRADE TO HAPPEN

The Hockey Night in Canada panel discuss all the news and rumours as the NHL gets closer to the trade deadline.

The Athletic Dallas https://theathletic.com/252520/2018/02/24/stars-20-20-stars-fail-key-test-against-the-jets/

Stars 20/20: Stars fail key test against the Jets

By Sean Shapiro

The Winnipeg Jets scored five times in the second period and dismantled the Dallas Stars in a 5-3 victory at American Airlines Center on Saturday.

Dallas actually had its best start of the season – heck, one of the best starts in franchise history, on the opening shift, and led 1-0 before some people had even taken their seats.

The Stars took that lead into the second period, but a sequence of events in the middle stanza canceled out all those positive feelings and Dallas lost to Winnipeg for the third time this season.

1. The Stars followed the lead of their captain, and like , they had a rough night.

Benn's hooking penalty nine seconds into the second period in the offensive zone negated a Stars power play and created a 4-on-4 situation where Nikolaj Ehlers scored to tie the game at 1-1.

On the Jets' go-ahead goal Benn turned into a parking cone that Jack Roslovic easily stepped around at the blue line and the play ended with Toby Enstrom scoring his first goal of the season.

“We got work to do,” Benn said.

2. Midway through the second period, there was a play that perfectly captured Benn's evening.

Benn carried the puck into the offensive zone, looked like he might create a chance against Tyler Myers in a one-on-one, but completely whiffed on the puck. Benn was then checked by Myers, lost the puck, and slid into the boards as the Jets proceeded with a breakout.

3. Benn has ranged from pedestrian to bad throughout the month of February. In 11 games this month Benn has seven points, has struggled in the defensive zone, and with the exception of a win against the on Feb. 9, Benn hasn't been a positive impact player.

The Stars need more from their captain making $9.5 million per season.

“It’s like night and day from what it was at the start of the year and it’s just got to change,” Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. “When you’re putting top players out there you got to get you at least got to scare the living hell out of the opposition and we’re doing nothing but giving them confidence right now.”

4. It's a pretty disappointing showing from the Stars in a game they knew would be a big test. After the morning skate on Saturday, said that the Stars were looking forward to this test, and they were ready to prove to Winnipeg that they were a much better team than past meetings.

After the game Marc Methot was asked about how the Stars handled that test, and if they were closer to being a real threat to the Jets.

“Nope. I guess not,” Methot said. “I mean they beat us three times now, we’ve got work to do and I think we know it and if anything, maybe another learning experience for us as a group. They’re one of the best teams in the NHL, you want to measure up to that team and know you belong.”

5. The Jets are a very good team and they've dominated the Stars this year. If the Stars make the playoffs a matchup with the Jets would likely end very poorly for them.

“They’re a fucking good team,” Alexander Radulov said. “There is no doubt they’re a good team and they showed it today.”

6. The Stars have now lost three of their last four and four of their last six after a five-game win streak. With that stretch, they've fallen dangerously close to dropping out of playoff position. Their next game is a big one against the , who currently hold the second wild- card spot.

7. The Stars actually had a good start in the first period on Saturday and Tyler Pitlick scored 10 seconds into the game after a faceoff win by Radek Faksa.

It was just the second first period goal the Stars have scored in the last 13 games, and it was the first time Dallas has scored first in the first period since Jan. 23 against the .

8. It's the second straight game that the Stars have benefitted from a goal scored on a designed faceoff play.

Tyler Seguin scored the game-winning goal in 2-0 victory against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday on a designed play with Greg Pateryn. On Saturday, the Faksa line had a chance to use one of its designed plays as Faksa won the puck back to Pitlick for a quick shot.

After the morning skate on Saturday Faksa told me that his line has “three or four plays,” that they can go to in the offensive zone.

9. I liked the decision to stick with the Faksa line and not make a line change after Michael Hutchinson gloved down Dan Hamhuis' shot from the neutral zone just seven seconds into the game.

With an early offensive zone draw Dallas could have given that faceoff to the Tyler Seguin or Benn lines, and in past games the Stars have made that type of line change after the Faksa line earned or generated an offensive zone draw.

You couldn't have blamed the coaching staff for making such a change if they had, but it was nice to see them stick with the Faksa line, especially after Faksa had cleanly beaten Mark Scheifele on the opening faceoff.

10. Pitlick's goal set a new franchise record for the quickest goal in a home game. The previous record had been set on Oct. 20, 1977 when Minnesota North Stars forward Roland Eriksson scored 12 seconds into the game against the Cleveland Barons.

The all-time franchise record for fastest goal came on Nov. 13, 1998 when Joe Nieuwendyk scored seven seconds into a game against the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena.

11. Kari Lehtonen allowed four goals on 21 shots and was pulled in the second period. He wasn't bad, but he wasn't good and the second goal, which started with Benn's blunder, probably should have been stopped.

12. Patrick Laine owns the Stars. With his two-goal performance on Saturday he now has 16 points (12 goals, four assists) in eight career games.

13. Radulov never quits in a game. When the Stars were down 5-2 he was still one of the hardest working players. He also scored to cut the lead to 5-3 with 46.8 seconds remaining.

After the game while waiting for his turn to address the media Radulov was going over the game with Devin Shore in the locker room. He was breaking down the game with Shore, going over particular elements of the game, and ended that conversation by telling Shore, “You're a good player, we'll be better.”

14. Hitchcock summed everything up pretty well with this statement about the Stars performance on special teams, which featured an 0-for-4 power play and a 1-for-2 penalty kill.

“We’re too slow. We’re too slow,” Hitchcock said. “Everything we do is too slow.”

15. If you were paying close attention in warmups the past two games you may have have noticed Ben Bishop is wearing new CCM pads that are mostly white with green accent marks. Those pads made their game debut when he entered the game in the second period.

Bishop said that it typically takes him two weeks of practice to break pads in before using them in a game.

16. Since it's trade deadline season: there were scouts from the Carolina Hurricanes, Los Angeles Kings, Chicago Blackhawks, and with seats reserved in the press box.

As a general rule of thumb you shouldn't look too deeply into scouting assignments, they are often planned months in advance. And you should fret even less over any reports of Carolina scouting in Dallas, former Stars general manager Joe Nieuwendyk has a permanent seat in the press box here and may or may not actually be at each game.

17. The Stars had most of their pro scouts in attendance on Saturday with the trade deadline coming Monday. The Stars have meetings with their scouts at this time, and like to have as much information as possible readily available before the deadline on particular players.

Dallas does this every year at the trade deadline, so it's not an indication the Stars will be making a deal.

18. Still not much of an update on Martin Hanzal. Hitchcock said on Saturday morning that Hanzal was “seven to 10 days away,” but that prognostication dates back to four days ago, and we should have a further update later this week.

Hitchcock did say there isn't any plan to shut Hanzal down for an extended period of time to allow him to get better and added that Hanzal is “such an important player for us. Any games he can give us does nothing but help us.”

19. The three stars were: 1. Patrick Laine, 2. Nikolaj Ehlers, and 3. Dustin Byfuglien. I think that's pretty spot on.

20. My gut says the Stars won't do anything before the trade deadline. But with this type of performance and having lost three of their last four, you wonder if Dallas starts actively shopping a bit more before the deadline.

The Athletic Winnipeg https://theathletic.com/252380/2018/02/24/derick-brassard-was-a-perfect-fit-for-winnipeg-what- do-the-jets-do-now-that-hes-been-traded-elsewhere/

Derick Brassard was a perfect fit for Winnipeg. What do the Jets do now that he's been traded elsewhere?

By Murat Ates

This has already been a wild trade deadline for the Winnipeg Jets and they haven’t even completed a transaction yet.

On Friday evening, minutes after Ottawa traded Derick Brassard to Pittsburgh via Las Vegas, Sportsnet’s John Shannon hit Jets fans with this:

Thus, according to Shannon, Winnipeg was in on Brassard until they were suddenly – and skillfully – one-upped by Jim Rutherford and George McPhee. Shannon goes on to say that he was told it would be “better to face (Brassard) in round 4 than round 2.”

It's rare enough for a three-way trade to be completed. That Vegas became a part of the deal in the 11th hour and agreed to pay 40 per cent of a player’s salary for a mid-round draft pick? That’s simply unprecedented.

For now, we are left simply to speculate – was this just Vegas’ comical, absurd, and downright Disney villain-esque way of trying to sink a Western Conference rival? Or do they sincerely believe that Ryan Reaves and a fourth-round draft pick are worth paying two-fifths of Derick Brassard’s salary for two seasons?

Those questions are not to be answered here. Instead, I want to take a look at what Winnipeg should do, now that its No. 1 target is off the board.

If you’ve read my Jets trade deadline primer, you know I think Brassard was an ideal fit for Winnipeg. He drives play at 5-on-5, has a manageable contract, and could have helped the Jets in this year’s playoffs and next. Stylistically, a huge portion of Ottawa’s shot attempts come from the center slot when Brassard is on the ice and the Senators have been better with Brassard than without him.

So what should the Jets do now that Brassard is off the table?

Option one: a low-risk pivot

Tomas Plekanec (35 y/o, $6.0 million AAV, UFA 2018)

Proposed lines with Plekanec:

Kyle Connor – Mark Scheifele – Blake Wheeler Mathieu Perreault – Bryan Little – Jack Roslovic Nikolaj Ehlers – Plekanec – Patrik Laine Andrew Copp – Adam Lowry – Joel Armia

On the penalty kill, Plekanec has allowed fewer shot attempts, high danger scoring chances, and expected goals against per 60 minutes than either Brandon Tanev or Matt Hendricks. He’s not Michael Grabner at 4-vs-5, nor is he even the underrated Mark Letestu, but he is still useful:

At 5-on-5, he has maintained a 52 per cent shot share despite starting more shifts in the defensive zone than any other Montreal Canadien – 350 defensive zone draws vs. just 249 in the offensive zone. And, with 24 points in 60 games, Plekanec has put up slightly more offense than Ehlers’ and Laine’s current centre, Andrew Copp.

Here is Plekanec’s with-or-without-you from Hockey Viz:

The most common scenario appears to be that Plekanec’s teammates create more shots and give up more shots with him than without him. Given his heaping helping of defensive zone draws, the fact that Plekanec’s on-ice shot attempt percentage is 52 per cent is quite impressive to me.

Some of the credit should go to Brendan Gallagher – a volume shooter and Plekanec’s most common linemate – but the point is not that that Plekanec is a one man wrecking ball. It’s simply that he can still play (and it’s worth noting that Patrik Laine is also a volume shooter.)

The strongest arguments against Plekanec are that he carries a $6M contract while I’m projecting Winnipeg to be able to add $4.5M at the deadline without going into bonus overages. A simply Matthias for Plekanec swap evens out those dollars but doesn’t give Montreal fair value and would severely limit any other moves Winnipeg tried to make.

As an added bonus: Plekanec won’t play Saturday night against Tampa Bay. He’s being shopped.

Estimated cost (with some salary retained): Shawn Matthias, a second-round draft pick, and a minor-league prospect

Another option would be to look to the Oilers rather than the Canadiens for that low-risk centre.

Mark Letestu (33 y/o, $1.8 million AAV, UFA 2018)

Proposed lines with Letestu:

Laine – Scheifele – Wheeler Perreault – Little – Ehlers Connor – Lowry – Roslovic Copp – Letestu – Armia

In Edmonton, Letestu is a specialist. He plays on the top power play and penalty kill units, but he hardly plays at even strength. When he does play at 5-on-5, he is above 50 percent by shot attempts but provides almost no offense whatsoever.

As you saw in the chart above, Letestu scores very well on the PK by shot attempts, high danger scoring chances, and expected goals against. Given his usage and reputation, this evidence that he can provide what’s advertised is at least somewhat reassuring.

There are some concerns. First, it’s dubious to assume any players’ numbers would translate straight across when moving to a new team’s system. Second, I’ve read my Jonathan Willis and I know that Edmonton cedes cross-seam passes quite readily – something that does not happen in Winnipeg.

Even with some shine taken off, I’m encouraged by Letestu’s track record. He could also help Winnipeg’s power play – in theory, at least.

Letestu is a right handed shooter with a history of power play production from the center slot. Winnipeg’s power play likes to generate offense exactly where Letestu has had past success.

In practice? Both of Winnipeg’s units are performing wonderfully while talented offensive players (like Nic Petan, if he’s still a Jet past Monday) don’t get a sniff of ice time. Whatever the appeal of Letestu’s track record, it’s hard to make the case he should get power play minutes over anyone already on Winnipeg’s roster.

It’s a low-risk move because Letestu’s acquisition cost and his salary are quite low. It’s also a low-risk move because you can bury him on the fourth line at 5-on-5. But when the reward is an improvement to just one of hockey’s three game states, I’d much prefer Winnipeg performed the salary cap acrobatics necessary to acquire Tomas Plekanec.

Estimated cost: A third-round draft pick

Option two: a costlier forward

Let me be clear to start this off. By “costlier”, I don’t mean and his $7.8M salary or the supposedly high asking price. Trading picks and prospects for Derick Brassard made sense because he helps drive play and could do so for two playoff runs. When it comes to Nash, the Jets should keep their powder dry.

Mats Zuccarello (30 y/o, $4.5 million AAV, UFA 2019)

Zuccarello has outscored Brassard over the past three seasons and, at $4.5 million for this season and next, has a slightly more appealing contract. Superficially, there’s a lot to like about the idea of Winnipeg inquiring about New York’s Norwegian winger.

Proposed lines with Zuccarello:

Laine – Scheifele – Zuccarello Perreault – Little – Ehlers Connor – Lowry – Wheeler Roslovic – Copp – Armia

I consider this the high-risk option because of asset cost and because nearly every forward line gets scrambled. In this scenario, Lowry loses Copp for tough minutes but gains Wheeler on a third line that would certainly see a lot of ice. Scheifele gets Laine, with whom he has a history of 5-on-5 success, and a talented playmaker in Mats Zuccarello.

What would Winnipeg gain?

In the chart above, most of Zuccarello’s on-ice results err on the bad side of “fun” – he creates a lot at 5-on-5 but allows even more. In other words, he’s a good scorer but he’s been consistently outshot and the result is a 5-on-5 goal share that is almost exactly 50 per cent.

To dig into this, I reached out to Greg Kaplan of Blueshirts Breakaway, a New York Rangers website and podcast. While he certainly agreed that Zuccarello is an excellent power play passer, we talked more about Zuccarello’s role at even strength.

Zuccarello’s most common linemate this season has been J.T. Miller.

“Miller and Zuccarello as a combo never made a ton of sense,” Kaplan shared. “They both play a similar game, but Miller is miles worse defensively.”

The data appears to support this claim. When together, Miller and Zuccarello have enjoyed just 45 per cent of on-ice shot attempts. Apart, both players’ shot attempt percentages increase – Zuccarello’s to 48.5 per cent and Miller’s to 46.8 per cent. High danger chances surge too, especially for Zuccarello – he sees 49.7 per cent of the HDSC with Miller but a sterling 55.9 per cent without him.

Other linemates have included Grabner, Nash, Kevin Hayes, and Jimmy Vesey. The with-or- without-you results are a mixed bag. Zuccarello appears to improve Nash, Grabner and Hayes at 5-on-5 while getting thoroughly beaten when sharing a line with Jimmy Vesey.

Kaplan called Zuccarello “the ultimate playmaker.”

“If you have guys that are trigger-happy and need someone to feed them, that's (his) best usage.”

With an average of nearly 3 shots per game, Patrik Laine is trigger-happy.

On paper, it’s an intriguing fit. Zuccarello is a left-handed shooter who predominantly plays on the right wing. In the scenario where Zuccarello joins Winnipeg, I like Laine on left wing because his right handed one timer would be open to two terrific playmakers.

I also asked Kaplan about Zuccarello’s high shot rates against.

“Defensively, I’d say he's perfectly adequate,” Kaplan told me. “He's a great backcheck and can hold his own under the blue line. A lot of his on-paper struggles, I would think, are tied to the style of defense the Rangers play.”

This is a scenario that makes a ton of speculative sense. Winnipeg is a strong 5-on-5 team. Mark Scheifele is a strong two-way player where J.T. Miller is an offensively talented player with defensive liabilities. On paper, plucking Zuccarello from his New York perch and airdropping him into Winnipeg is an appealing thought.

It’s a high-risk move, though, because the asset cost and line shuffling would both be significant. Chemistry is tough to predict and, even though Zuccarello is a very good player, there’s no guarantee he finds immediate success.

Estimated cost: First round draft pick, Nic Petan, mid-tier prospect

My preferred option: a left-shooting defenseman

Ryan McDonagh (28 y/o, $4.7 million AAV, UFA 2019, 10-team NMC)

As much as I like the idea of Zuccarello or see the safety in Plekanec, I sincerely think Brassard was a perfect fit for Winnipeg’s forward group. Without him, I think Winnipeg’s biggest area of need is left-defense.

When I made the case for McDonagh in this piece, I hinged my argument on the fact that he has never seen a partner as good as Dustin Byfuglien or minutes that were anything but top-pair. With Josh Morrissey and Jacob Trouba offering coverage, the talented McDonagh would be freed from the possession boat anchors that are Daniel Girardi and Nick Holden and given ice time he could actually exploit.

I still believe that.

Proposed pairings with McDonagh:

Morrissey – Trouba McDonagh – Byfuglien Toby Enstrom – Tyler Myers Dmitri Kulikov, Ben Chiarot, Tucker Poolman

Estimated Cost: Nic Petan, first-round draft pick, second-round draft pick

Niklas Hjalmarsson (30 y/o, $4.1 million AAV, UFA 2019, 10-team NMC)

For argument’s sake, let me add another defenseman to the conversation – one who, like McDonagh, would benefit from a slightly reduced role.

In Arizona, Niklas Hjalmarsson has most recently been tasked with mentoring young Jakob Chychrun.

Let’s have a look at how that’s going:

The Coyotes give up so much less with Hjalmarsson on the ice, it’s astounding. He’s never put up the offense that McDonagh has but he has been an effective protector of important real estate on a team that is awful at it.

Looking at his with-or-without-you:

As a general rule, Hjalmarsson makes players’ on-ice results a) better and b) duller.

There is a clear left-right divide in this chart – the majority of Coyotes give up far less with Hjalmarsson on the ice than without him.

Stylistically, he may even be a better fit for Byfuglien than McDonagh is.

If Hjalmarsson can have this kind of effect on a lottery team like Arizona, he strikes me as a good bet for the role of Byfuglien’s defensive conscience.

Proposed pairings with Hjalmarsson:

Morrissey – Trouba Hjalmarsson – Byfuglien Enstrom – Myers Kulikov, Chiarot, Poolman

Winnipeg has already had injury troubles on defense this season. Byfuglien, Enstrom, and now Trouba have all missed significant stretches of play.

Given that the NHL playoffs are so often a war of attrition as defenders get banged up, one more capable defenseman – and one that upgrades its healthy top four, at that – would give me a lot more peace of mind.

Estimated cost: First-round draft pick, second-round draft pick, mid-tier prospect

While acknowledging that each player has a 10-team no movement clause on his contract, let’s add one more layer to the comparison of Hjalmarsson vs. McDonagh – Bill Comeau’s SKATR comparison tool.

Note the stylistic and team quality differences, but focus on Hjalmarsson’s strong xGF% and incredible relative xGF% – he is McDonagh’s opposite in style but may be an even better fit for Winnipeg:

In the end, whether it’s McDonagh’s all-around game or Hjalmarsson’s excellence as a defensive conscience, I see left-defense as Winnipeg’s biggest remaining need.

Looking ahead to Monday General manager Kevin Cheveldayoff has already been burned by a stunning collaboration between Vegas and Ottawa re: Brassard. No other forward represented such an ideal fit for the Jets' needs.

As a result, I believe Winnipeg’s play now is to pivot – either to a low-risk bottom-end player like Plekanec or to an upgrade on its left defense in the form of Hjalmarsson or McDonagh.

The most important thing is that Cheveldayoff regroups from Friday’s shock and avoids mortgaging too much of Winnipeg’s promising future.

Dallas Morning News https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/dallas-stars/stars/2018/02/24/stars-missed-opportunity-take- big-step-jets

How the Stars missed an opportunity to take a big step against the Jets

By Mike Heika

The Stars made history Saturday night.

And then they got a lesson in it from the Winnipeg Jets.

Tyler Pitlick scored the fastest goal in franchise history when he tallied 10 seconds into the first period and gave the Stars the kind of quick start they’ve been seeking for the past month.

But then, Dallas reverted to old ways against the Jets, allowing five second-period goals en route to a 5-3 defeat, their seventh straight loss to Winnipeg.

“We were in a position to take a big step,” Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. “We didn’t take it.”

The disappointment was palpable in the post-game locker room, as the Stars were coming off a hard-earned 2-0 win in Los Angeles Thursday and were eager to test themselves against the Jets. Winnipeg beat Dallas twice in November, but the Stars have improved greatly since then.

“It's been a long time since we played Winnipeg. I don't think either team is the same," Stars center Tyler Seguin said before the game. “We’re a different team than we were back then. Let's prove it."

While Hitchcock added: "We've been playing catch-up all year, and this will be a good test to see if we're any closer."

They aren’t. The Jets beat St. Louis Friday and still walked in and won behind back-up goalie Michael Hutchinson on Saturday. Patrick Laine scored twice and now has 12 goals in eight career games against the Stars. Nikolaj Ehlers had a goal and two assists. Dustin Byfuglien had three assists.

Winnipeg moves to 37-16-9 (83 points) and sits nine points ahead of Dallas (35-23-4, 74 points) in the Central Division standings. The Stars have to start worrying about the success of the Pacific Division teams, who have pushed St. Louis out of the playoff picture for now, and could do the same to Dallas if it doesn’t right its ship.

The Stars are starting a five-game homestand, that is crucial as the team will finish with 10 of 14 games on the road. And with the specter of another season out of the playoffs (they have missed in seven of the past nine seasons) creeping up, the pressure could get intense.

“You really don’t get much breathing room,” defenseman Marc Methot said. “I think it’s going to be like that until the end of the year. Teams nowadays, there aren’t a lot of big differences. Every team is a good hockey team with a lot of good hockey players, and it comes down to team chemistry and following your coach’s system, and make sure that your play for each other. And tonight, maybe we didn’t follow those steps.”

So can the Jets be a motivator? Can they push the Stars to get back on track? Can they be a dragon the Stars can slay when they meet again March 18?

“There is no doubt they’re a good team, and they showed it today,” said winger Alexander Radulov, who had a goal and an assist. “We’re in a tough spot right now, and we know that, and it’s a good test for us. It’s a good thing that we’ve got to battle through and not win one, but two or three in a row against good teams.”

The Stars will need their best players to do that. While Radulov and Tyler Seguin each had two points, Seguin took a penalty that led to a power play goal, and captain Jamie Benn had several mistakes that cost the Stars. The top players continues to squander power play opportunities, and that also is costing the team.

“It’s a fine line between slow and casual; so we’ve got to solve this,” Hitchcock said of the power play which was 0-for-4 and has one goal in the past eight games. “It’s like night and day from what it was at the start of the year and it’s just got to change. When you’re putting top players out there, you’ve at least got to scare the living hell out of the opposition, and we’re doing nothing but giving them confidence right now.” https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/dallas-stars/stars/2018/02/24/cold-facts-thestars-loss-jets- causes-concern-playoff-hopes?f=r

Cold facts: How the Stars' loss to the Jets could jeopardize their playoff hopes

By Mike Heika

Jets 5, Stars 3

Three Stars Patrick Laine, Jets - Two goals, and now has 12 in eight games against Stars.

Dustin Byfuglien, Jets - Big defenseman tallies three assists.

Nikolaj Ehlers, Jets - Goal and two primary assists.

Big play With Dallas leading 1-0 and on the power play to start the second period, Jamie Benn took a hooking penalty in the offensive zone. Winnipeg scored on the ensuing four-on-four, and Dallas started to unravel after that.

Discuss Why can’t the Stars defend against the Jets? This is seven straight losses by a combined 35-13 score. It seems very bad that Dallas could potentially play Winnipeg in the first round of the playoffs.

What does it mean? The loss in the standings is bad, because Dallas now drops nine points behind the Jets and remains one point behind the Wild. It’s even more concerning because the Pacific Division teams are winning and could push the Stars out of a wildcard playoff spot.

GOALS Stars: After Dallas earned an offensive zone faceoff right off the bat, Radek Faksa won the puck back, and Tyler Pitlick scored his 12th goal of the season10 seconds into the game. It was the fastest home goal in franchise history. Stars 1, Jets 0.

Jets: Nikolaj Ehlers took a pass from Dustin Byfuglien, weaved into the slot and scored on Kari Lehtonen at 49 seconds of the second period. It was his 24th goal of the season. Stars 1, Jets 1.

Jets: Toby Enstrom took a pass while driving down the slot and slipped a shot under the pads of Lehtonen for his first goal of the season at 6:33 of the second period. Jets 2, Stars 1.

Jets: With Winnipeg on a power play, Mark Scheifele scored his 19th goal on a one-timer from the slot at 8:01 of the second period. Jets 3, Stars 1.

Jets: Patrick Laine snapped a shot through Lehtonen at 11:59 of the second period. Laines’ 30th goal chased Lehtonen from the game. Jets 4, Stars 1.

Jets: Laine greeted reliever Ben Bishop by beating him for Laine’s 31st goal of the season at 18:47 of the second period. Jets 5, Stars 1.

Stars: Tyler Seguin scored his 31st goal of the season on a one-timer off an assist from Alexander Radulov at 19:27 of the second period. Jets 5, Stars 2.

Stars: Radulov got a rush opportunity and scored his 23rd goals with 46.8 seconds left in the third period. Jets 5, Stars 3.

NHL.com https://www.nhl.com/news/winnipeg-jets-dallas-stars-game-recap/c-296324504

Laine scores twice to lift Jets past Stars Byfuglien has three assists; Winnipeg ties for Central lead

By NHL.com @NHL

The Winnipeg Jets scored five goals in the second period to defeat the Dallas Stars 5-3 at American Airlines Arena on Saturday.

Patrik Laine scored twice, and Dustin Byfuglien had three assists for the Jets, who have won five of six games. Nikolaj Ehlers, Toby Enstrom and Mark Scheifele scored, and Michael Hutchinson made 33 saves for his second win of the season, first since Jan. 30.

Tyler Pitlick scored 10 seconds into the game, the fastest goal at home in Stars/Minnesota North Stars history, to make it 1-0.

"I thought everything was great," Jets captain Blake Wheeler said. "Sometimes the other team makes good plays, and that was the case of a guy putting one in a pretty good spot. You line up after that one and just try and get back to your game. It was early enough that we were able to put it behind us. Thought the rest of the period was really good, and obviously came out in the second with a lot of energy."

Winnipeg (37-16-9), which won 4-0 at the St. Louis Blues on Friday, is tied with the Nashville Predators for first place in the Central Division, three points behind the Vegas Golden Knights for the Western Conference lead.

"Back-to-back games are never easy, but again, we played the way we needed to get the four points, and bounced back today," Ehlers said. "After that first goal, we showed some character. We're happy with the two games."

Tyler Seguin and Alexander Radulov scored for the Stars, who are 2-4-0 in their past six games. Kari Lehtonen was pulled in the second period after allowing four goals on 21 shots. Ben Bishop made five saves in relief.

"I think the first period was pretty even and then in the second period, I don't know, we just weren't ourselves," Radulov said. "We didn't play the way we should play and the way we have to play in front of our fans, and you see what happens."

Dallas (35-23-4), which holds the first wild card into the from the Western Conference, is one point behind the for third place in the Central.

Pitlick beat Hutchinson with a wrist shot from the left face-off circle after Radek Faksa won a draw.

Ehlers tied it 1-1 with a slap shot from above the circles on the rush 49 seconds into the second period.

"At the start of the second with the power play, take a penalty and they get a 4-on-4 goal," Stars captain Jamie Benn said. "They kept coming from there. They're a good team. We got to get on their level. We've got work to do."

Laine shot wide on a penalty shot at 2:46.

Enstrom made it 2-1 at 6:33, scoring on a wrist shot for his first goal in 88 games dating to Nov. 3, 2016.

Scheifele scored with a one-timer on the power play at 8:01 to make it 3-1.

Laine scored his 30th goal at 11:59 to give the Jets a 4-1 lead, and then made it 5-1 at 18:47.

"It just simply wasn't good enough," Stars defenseman Marc Methot said. "We weren't supporting each other properly in that second period, giving them a little too much time and space, and a good team like that will capitalize."

Seguin scored to cut the Winnipeg lead to 5-2 with 33 seconds left in the period. Radulov made it 5-3 with 47 seconds left in the third period.

Goal of the game Scheifele's goal at 8:01 of the second period.

Saves of the game Hutchinson stopping Devin Shore at 2:02 of the third period and Mattias Janmark at 2:03.

Highlight of the game Laine's goal at 11:59 of the second period.

They said it "We were in a position to take a big step, we didn't take it. We could have really taken a step today, the way we played in the first period. They made us pay for every mistake." -- Stars coach Ken Hitchcock

"What we were good at tonight was that we were on pucks and we knocked a lot of pucks down and countered back quickly. It's difficult to defend well on change of possession. Our forwards, especially, skated well and knocked a lot of pucks down and created some quick strikes." -- Jets coach Paul Maurice

Need to know Laine has a five-game goal streak (six goals, three assists). He has 16 points (12 goals, four assists) in eight games against the Stars. ... Wheeler, who set up Scheifele's goal, has 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) during an eight-game point streak. ... North Stars forward Roland Eriksson scored 12 seconds into a game against the Cleveland Barons on Oct. 20, 1977. ... Benn has five assists in the past seven games but has not scored in the past nine.

What's next Jets: Host the Nashville Predators on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, FS-TN, NHL.TV) Stars: Host the Calgary Flames on Tuesday (8:30 p.m. ET; FS-SW, SNW, NHL.TV)

TSN.ca https://www.tsn.ca/tradecentre/video/has-interest-in-habs-plekanec-increased~1334137 (VIDEO LINK)

Has interest in Habs Plekanec increased?

Now that Derick Brassard has been dealt, has the interest increased for Tomas Plekanec? TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie explains why the Canadiens should strike a deal if they come across something they like. https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/video/do-the-streaking-jets-need-to-add-at-the-deadline~1334082 (VIDEO LINK)

Do the streaking Jets need to add at the deadline?

Led by Patrik Laine, the Jets used a five-goal barrage in the second period to down the Stars and continue their solid play. Sitting among the top teams in the NHL, do the Jets need to be buyers at the deadline? TSN Hockey analyst Dave Poulin discusses. www.winnipegjets.com https://www.nhl.com/jets/news/laines-two-goals-lift-jets-over-stars/c-296319500

Laine's two goals lift Jets over Stars Ehlers, Enstrom & Scheifele score others and Byfuglien has three assists; Hutchinson makes 33 saves in 5-3 win by Jamie Thomas @JamieThomasTV / WinnipegJets.com

DALLAS, Texas - The Winnipeg Jets made sure their first road trip in almost a month was one to remember.

The Jets won for the second straight night, even after giving up the game's first goal just 10 seconds into the contest. After that, the road team scored five unanswered goals and silenced another sold out arena, this time at American Airlines Center in Dallas, with a 5-3 triumph.

Patrik Laine scored twice, while Nikolaj Ehlers, Toby Enstrom and Mark Scheifele potted the others in the win, which improves Winnipeg's record to 37-16-9 on the year.

Michael Hutchinson made 33 saves to stay unbeaten in two starts in the NHL this season. Hutchinson was making his first appearance since Jan. 30, which was a victory over league- leading .

"A quick one 10 seconds in, but I thought we were pretty good (after that)," said Head Coach Paul Maurice. "We played a pretty smart rest of the first and didn't try and get it right back."

The victory pulls the Jets into a tie with the Nashville for first in the Central Division, though the Predators do hold two games in hand. After beating the Blues and Stars on back-to-back nights, the Jets will finish up a trio of divisional affairs on Tuesday when they host those very same Predators back at Bell MTS Place.

"Two important games against teams who are trying to claw back into the race," said Blake Wheeler. "Our division is so tight that you just can't take any of these games for granted. We've been at home for a long time and it was important for us try and build that (road) game, build some confidence, and I thought we did a pretty good job of that."

Dustin Byfuglien had another strong outing with three assists and earned some strong praise as well.

"I would think Dustin Byfuglien was the best player on the ice tonight," said Maurice. "He has been for a couple of weeks. He was really good for a long period of time, (but) not putting any numbers up. Now he's doing both (playing well offensively and defensively). It's the best hockey I've ever seen him play."

Just 10 seconds into the game, Mark Scheifele lost a faceoff to Radek Faksa, which allowed Tyler Pitlick to whip a quick wrist shot glove side on Hutchinson, who had no chance. Pitlick's marker was the only goal in the opening period.

"The first period was a little chaotic trying to get used to the traffic and speed of the game," said Hutchinson, who was playing his first game after suffering a concussion during a Feb. 6 practice. "It's tough not getting a real practice in, so I think my heart rate was 150 and it took a while to get my lungs back in the first period.

"After that I settled in and was feeling good and making good reads."

The Jets took over the game in the second period.

They evened things up just 49 seconds into the middle frame when Byfuglien carried the puck up the ice dropped it to Ehlers, who walked into the slot and blasted a slap shot past Kari Lehtonen for his 24th of the season.

The Jets had a chance to take a 2-1 lead at 2:46 when Laine was given a penalty shot - the first attempt of the year for any Winnipeg player. Laine skated in and shot low blocker side, but Lehtonen got a piece of with his right pad to keep it tied.

At 6:33, Jack Roslovic evaded a Dallas defender and skated across the Stars blue line, dropping it for Enstrom who scored his first of the season to make it 2-1. It was Enstrom's first goal since Nov. 3, 2016, and he had a huge smile on his face heading to the Jets bench to celebrate.

"It was awesome. Toby doesn't care about that kind of stuff, though," explained Wheeler, who has been a longtime teammate of Enstrom's going back to their days in Atlanta. "When I was in Atlanta he was an all-star running the first unit power play type of guy. He's embraced a different role for the good of the team. You probably saw his face; didn't matter to him one way or the other, but he was fired up to put one in for the boys."

The Jets extended their lead on the power play at 8:01, as Wheeler pushed his point streak to eight games, feeding Scheifele in the slot with a nifty three-foot pass. No. 55 made no mistake, firing it home for his 19th of the year to make it 3-1.

Less than five minutes later, the Jets chased Lehtonen from the game. Ehlers dropped a beautiful pass onto Laine's stick and his quick release got past the Stars goaltender for his 30th goal and a 4-1 lead.

Ben Bishop replaced Lehtonen after the starter gave up four goals on 21 shots.

Bishop then allowed a goal on the first shot he faced at 18:47. Laine scored his second of the night again on a feed from Ehlers to make it a four-goal advantage for the Jets.

Laine now has 31 goals on the year.

Forty seconds after the Laine tally, Tyler Seguin closed the gap back to three when he one timed an Alex Radulov pass under the crossbar for his 31st of the year, and a goal-filled second period came to a close with Winnipeg leading 5-2.

Radulov scored a goal with under a minute left in the game but it was too little too late for Dallas, who now trails Winnipeg by nine points in the Central.

- Jamie Thomas, WinnipegJets.com https://www.nhl.com/jets/video/postgame--michael-hutchinson/t-277437442/c-58165703

POSTGAME | Michael Hutchinson

Hutchinson on tonight's 5-3 win over Dallas https://www.nhl.com/jets/video/postgame--blake-wheeler/t-277437442/c-58164403

POSTGAME | Blake Wheeler

Blake Wheeler on his team's performance, Hutchinson's play and much more https://www.nhl.com/jets/video/postgame--nikolaj-ehlers/t-277437442/c-58165403

POSTGAME | Nikolaj Ehlers

Nikolajh Ehlers on tongiht's 5-3 victory in Dallas https://www.nhl.com/jets/video/postgame--paul-maurice/t-277437442/c-58165803

POSTGAME | Paul Maurice

Maurice on the team's play, Toby Enstrom and much more following a 5-3 victory in Texas