Connor caps hat trick with late winner to lift Jets past Ducks 3-2

Winnipeg Jets fans celebrate Kyle Connor’s (81) hat-trick and game winning goal against the Anaheim Ducks during third period NHL action in Winnipeg, Thursday, Nov. 17, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods

Kyle Connor completed his hat trick netting the game winner with 53.5 seconds remaining to give the Winnipeg Jets a 3-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday night.

Connor converted a perfect pass from forward Mark Scheifele, snapping a shot past Ducks goaltender John Gibson.

Connor Hellebuyck stopped 29-of-31 shots for the Jets (10-4-1).

Trevor Zegras and Troy Terry scored for Anaheim (5-11-1). Gibson made 29 saves in the loss.

Zegras tied the score at 2-2 just 28 seconds after Connor had given Winnipeg a 2-1 edge. Adam Henrique set up Zegras, who lifted the puck up over Hellebuyck.

Connor scored after taking a pass from behind the net from Sam Gagner at the 14:15 mark in the third period.

The Jets knotted the score on the power play at 12:32 of the second period. With Ducks defenceman Dmitry Kulikov in the box for tripping, Connor pounced on a Pierre-Luc Dubois rebound at the side of the net and sent the puck over Gibson's shoulder and into the net.

Anaheim opened the scoring midway through the first period. During a delayed penalty on Pionk, Terry fired a shot from inside the blue line that eventually bounced past a screened Hellebuyck.

HONOURING LEGENDS

The Jets inducted Teemu Selanne and Teppo Numminen into their Hall of Fame in a jersey-unveiling ceremony before the game. Selanne, a.k.a. the "Finnish Flash," scored 306 points (147 goals) in 231 games with the Jets in four seasons before being traded to Anaheim in late 1996.

Numminen played eight seasons in Winnipeg before moving to Phoenix with the franchise and played another seven years there. The defenceman, who also played for Dallas and Buffalo, finished with 637 points) 117 goals) in 1,372 NHL career games. The fans gave a raucous standing ovation to both, who appeared emotional. But neither one addressed the crowd.

NOTES

Veteran defenceman Kyle Capobianco replaced Dylan DeMelo, who was out with an unidentified injury. The Jets called up defenceman Ville Heinola from the Manitoba Moose but he did not dress for the game. Heading into Saturday's game, the Ducks had yet to win a game in regulation this season. Their five victories all came in overtime, including a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 17, 2022.