Eurolanche

Avs fall to Jets in Winnipeg

The Winnipeg Jets needed a win to end a six-game losing streak that has made the Western Conference standings uncomfortably tight for them.

The Colorado Avalanche could have used a win simply to keep pace in the Western Conference. Instead, the Jets broke open a one-goal game with four goals in the second period in a 5-3 win against the Avalanche at MTS Centre on Sunday.

Mathieu Perreault, Dustin Byfuglien, Ben Chiarot and Bryan Little had second-period goals for Winnipeg (27-18-10). Jacob Trouba scored late in the third period. Byfuglien, who moved to forward to replace the injured Evander Kane, and Perreault each had two assists.

The Jets ended their 0-4-2 skid for the first time since Jan. 21 and continue to hold the first wild-card spot for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the Western Conference. The win extended their lead on the idle Calgary Flames, the second wild-card team, to three points.

Colorado (22-21-11) has lost three consecutive games, two of them shutouts, and extended its scoring drought on the power play to 0-for-27 in the past nine games. The Avalanche remain six points behind Calgary. The Dallas Stars slipped one point ahead of the Avalanche with a 3-2 overtime win at the New York Rangers.

Tyson Barrie returned to the Colorado lineup after missing two games because of a hip injury and broke the Avalanche’s goalless streak of 136:16 with a goal in the first period. Matt Duchene ended his six-game goalless streak with 12:53 left in regulation, and Jarome Iginla had two assists. Alex Tanguay scored his first goal in 11 games.

Colorado goaltender Semyon Varlamov made 24 saves in his 10th consecutive start. Ondrej Pavelec made 25 saves for Winnipeg.

Colorado took a 1-0 lead in the first period when Barrie stepped into the high slot and beat Pavelec with a low shot at 10:57. Barrie leads Avalanche defensemen with 31 points.

Perreault tied his career-high with his 18th goal 2:04 into the second period when he finished Mark Scheifele’s rebound low past Varlamov at the right post. Perreault had 18 goals in 69 games last season with the Anaheim Ducks before signing with the Jets as a free agent this past July.

The Winnipeg power play made it 2-1 at 5:42 of the second when Little one-timed a cross-ice pass at the left circle that Byfuglien tipped before Varlamov could scramble into position. Byfuglien has split the season as a forward and a defenseman and six of Byfuglien’s 13 goals have come at the forward position.

Chiarot gave the Jets a 3-1 lead when he jammed his second goal under Varlamov off a rush led by Jim Slater and Chris Thorburn at 13:24 of the second.

Little finished the second-period scoring on a 5-on-3 power play with his team-leading 21st goal with a slap shot under the crossbar at 15:48.

Colorado moved to within two goals in the third period when Duchene redirected Iginla’s right-side shot past Pavelec for his 14th goal at 7:07.

Trouba’s sixth goal restored Winnipeg’s three-goal lead with 8:57 left.

Tanguay’s 14th goal pushed the Avalanche back to within two goals and Varlamov was pulled for an extra attacker with 2:21 left in the game.

-- by NHL.com --

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