In Winnipeg, Kyle Connor scored twice for the Jets, including the tie-breaking goal in the third period in a 4-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday night.
“It’s always good for confidence. Everybody loves to score goals,” Connor said. “It helps in that sense. It’s pretty nice to hit the ground running. I think our game’s right, and we can draw from that confidence and carry this forward.”
The No. 3 seed Jets will face the Edmonton Oilers in the first round of the playoffs.
“We’re going into these with wide-open eyes, excited about what’s going to happen and kind of looking at figuring out how good we really can be,” Jets head coach Paul Maurice said. “We know the real challenge starting on the road against the team that we will face, but looking forward to it. There’s kind of a sense of excitement in that room. Win a game, you feel good. You get to play fun games now.”
Connor Hellebuyck made 34 saves in the win.
The Maple Leafs will be hosting the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
“It’s pretty cool,” the Maple Leafs’ Wayne Simmonds said. “Original Six rivalry and it’s the Leafs versus the Canadiens. I’m extremely excited to be part of this series. I just can’t wait to get it started. … It’s going to be a blast.”
After Pierre Engvall gave the Maple Leafs a 1-0 lead in the first period, Mason Appleton tied it up in the middle frame.
“You win the last game and you’re feeling better, and to get two in a row with that win tonight, it’s big for our club,” Appleton said. “You win two and you kind of forget about the losing streak. We’re a good hockey team. … We know what we’re capable of, and I think we’re going to show that here as we start the postseason.”
Ilya Mikheyev also scored for Toronto.
“I think we’ve got a good mix of guys in their prime, and experience,” Toronto’s Jason Spezza said. “I think we’ve gone through some hardships as a group. I think there’s guys in the room, I feel like we have a lot to prove come playoff time after last year. We’ve been a hungry team since losing (in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers last season) to [the] Columbus [Blue Jackets], and now it’s our time to show we’ve matured as a group, and we’ve played better hockey and we’ve focused in on things that we knew were weaknesses last year.”
Jansen Harkins added an empty-net goal to ice the win.
Jack Campbell made 20 saves in the loss.
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