Gabriel Vilardi and Kyle Connor each contributed a goal and an assist as the Winnipeg Jets beat the Montreal Canadiens 4-2 on Saturday night, moving back into first place in the Central Division.
Josh Morrissey had two assists, and Adam Lowry and Vladislav Namestnikov also scored for Winnipeg. Nino Niederreiter, Dylan DeMelo, and Alex Iafallo each added an assist. Connor Hellebuyck made 26 saves in the victory.
Lane Hutson and Josh Anderson scored for Montreal, with assists from Mike Matheson, Cole Caufield, Christian Dvorak, and Brenden Gallagher. Sam Montembeault stopped 23 shots for the Canadiens.
Hutson gave Montreal an early lead with his first NHL goal at 12:12 of the first period. After a faceoff, he received a pass, moved quickly, and fired a shot from the dot past Hellebuyck.
Vilardi tied the game on Winnipeg’s first power play at 5:26 of the first. Connor made a great pass across the crease to Vilardi, who scored while on one knee.
The Jets responded quickly as Niederreiter sent a backhand pass from behind the net to Lowry, who scored from close range to give Winnipeg a 2-1 lead just 2:06 later.
Winnipeg extended their lead to 3-1 at 6:26 of the second period on another power play. Connor fired a shot past Montembeault with just two seconds left in a 5-on-3.
Montreal had a strong chance to score on their own power play, but with 2:27 left in the second, Hellebuyck, sitting on the ice without his stick, stopped a shot from Patrik Laine by swatting the puck away with both hands.
The Canadiens fought back in the third period, cutting the lead to 3-2 with 12:00 left when Anderson scored off a long rebound after a Winnipeg turnover in their zone.
Montreal couldn’t find the tying goal, and Namestnikov sealed the win for Winnipeg with an empty-net goal from the blue line with seven seconds remaining.
