National Hockey League
Winnipeg 4, Calgary 1
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 4, 2021
Where: Bell MTS Place, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Referees: Mitch Dunning, Eric Furlatt
Linesmen: Scott Cherrey, Bevan Mills
Attendance: N/A

Mason Appleton scored twice and Mathieu Perreault collected three assists to pace the host Winnipeg Jets to a 4-1 victory over the Calgary Flames on Thursday night.

Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck made 23 saves for the Jets, who scored four unanswered goals to win their second straight game -- both over the Flames. The victory was the 153rd of Hellebuyck's career, which is the most in franchise history. The old mark was held by Ondrej Pavelec.

Winnipeg isn't scheduled to play again until Tuesday at Calgary.

Trailing 1-0 after the first period, the Jets dominated the second period to take a 3-1 lead. First, Appleton put the hosts on the board when he pounced on a loose puck at the 3:31 mark.

Then, Kyle Connor netted his team-high seventh goal of the season to put the Jets ahead. Following a turnover by Calgary's Mikael Backlund, who was skating in his 700th career game, Connor sped away and snapped home a shot from the slot at 13:59.

Mark Scheifele capped a dominating period for the Jets with his fifth goal of the season. Neal Pionk's point shot hit Scheifele in the slot, but he found the loose puck and slipped it into the net with 50.7 seconds remaining in the frame.

After both Rasmus Andersson and Nikita Nesterov rang shots off the post in the third period while the Flames pushed to draw back even, Appleton rounded out the scoring with an empty-net goal, his third tally of the season.

The Flames had surrendered the first goal in six of the last seven games, but they took the lead when Andrew Mangiapane opened the scoring with 55.7 seconds remaining in the first period. Mangiapane was parked in the low slot and redirected the pass from Juuso Valimaki.

The loss was costly for the Flames, as veteran forward Derek Ryan left in the first period after being hit in the hand while blocking a shot. A likely replacement will be Sam Bennett, the 2014 first-round draft choice who was scratched. Bennett's agent reportedly had asked for his client to be traded.

Jacob Markstrom stopped 23 shots for the Flames, who return home to face the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday before the Jets come calling.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Calgary   Winnipeg
Andrew Mangiapane 1 Points Mathieu Perreault 3
Andrew Mangiapane 1 Goals Mason Appleton 2
Juuso Valimaki 1 Assists Mathieu Perreault 3
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Jacob Markstrom .885 Save Percentage Connor Hellebuyck .958
Jacob Markstrom 23 Saves Connor Hellebuyck 23
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Calgary 24 1 0-4 3-3 6 19
Winnipeg 27 4 0-3 4-4 8 25
Upcoming Games
  • Winnipeg will play their next game on the road against Calgary. The Jets have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .750 after a loss.
  • Calgary will play their next game at home against Edmonton. The Flames have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .400 after a loss.