Aasociated Press
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Connor Hellebuyck bounced back in a big way.
Pulled in a loss to Vegas last week, Hellebuyck made 32 saves and the Winnipeg Jets defeated Arizona 4-1 on Tuesday night for their second victory over the struggling Coyotes in four days.
Hellebuyck, who began the season as the Jets’ No. 2 goalie, improved to 9-1-2. His stellar play has turned him into the starter.
“This was definitely my redemption game,” Hellebuyck said. “Any time you get pulled you have to enter strong, and I’m glad the guys played well in front of me.”
On a night when the Jets inducted Dale Hawerchuk into their Hall of Fame and lifted his No. 10 banner to the rafters, the home team easily handled the franchise that moved from Winnipeg to Arizona 21 years ago.
Joel Armia, Bryan Little and Adam Lowry scored for the Jets (10-4-3) during an 11-minute stretch in the second period to turn a one-goal game into a 4-0 cushion.
Andrew Copp opened the scoring in the first for Winnipeg, which also beat the Coyotes in Arizona last weekend to finish a three-game road trip.
“We can’t always rely on (Mark) Scheifele’s line to do the heavy work,” Little said. “There’s going to be games where they’re going to be off or not get on the score sheet. It’s up to the other lines to chip in.”
Alex Goligoski’s goal 5:21 into the third spoiled Hellebuyck’s bid for his first shutout of the season.
Antti Raanta made 10 saves on 13 shots for Arizona (2-15-3) before being chased from the game after Little’s breakaway goal 5:08 into the second. Scott Wedgewood stopped 16 of 17 shots in relief.
“Thirteen shots, they get three goals,” Arizona coach Rick Tocchet said. “Right now we have to play a perfect game to win. Hellebuyck, he made some unbelievable saves, and the next thing you know we’re just chasing the game.
“You’ve got to make plays and we didn’t score. How do you do that? You’ve got to keep working at it. There’s no method. We’re not going to go trade for Mario Lemieux.”
Lowry benefited from a turnover in the Arizona zone and immediately snapped a shot past Wedgewood with 7:21 left in the second.
The Coyotes, who have the worst record in the NHL, lost their fifth straight game and have dropped seven of eight.
“I’ve been saying it all year: You can’t complain, you can’t moan. Like, just go play, work hard,” left wing Brendan Perlini said. “There’s no other special secret or special juice. You just have to work your way out of it, everyone, shift after shift.”
Winnipeg has won three of four.
NOTES: The Jets killed off three straight penalties in the first period, when Arizona outshot Winnipeg 13-9. ... The Jets inducted Hawerchuk, the Calder Trophy winner in 1982 as NHL Rookie of the Year, into their new Hall of Fame during a 13-minute pregame ceremony that yielded boisterous chants of “Ducky, Ducky” — Hawerchuk’s nickname — from the crowd. His number hangs next to those of three other stars of the bygone Jets era: Anders Hedberg, Ulf Nilsson and Bobby Hull. Jets players wore a silver No. 10 patch on their sweaters to honor Hawerchuk. “It’s a special night. Obviously, he means a ton to this city and organization,” Lowry said. “Any time you have him in the building it’s a happy night for the fans. It’s nice to send them home happy with a good result as well.”
UP NEXT
Coyotes: Make their second stop on a four-game road trip Thursday in Montreal.
Jets: Continue a three-game homestand Thursday against Philadelphia.
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