Fast start powers Knights past Jets in second home game
Chandler Stephenson had to check T-Mobile Arena’s video board to see what happened.
Even he had to be surprised with what he saw. The Winnipeg Jets let him glide through the neutral zone halfway through the first period Thursday. Stephenson reached the goal line before looking to slide the puck to captain Mark Stone across the offensive zone.
It never got there. The puck instead bounced off defenseman Brenden Dillon’s skate, past goaltender David Rittich and into the net for the Knights’ third goal in 10:07. It was a perfect summation of their 5-2 victory.
The Jets left space for their opponents and committed sloppy turnovers all first period a day after their 4-3 overtime win in Colorado. The Knights were more than happy to take advantage, leading to the third 4-1 start in team history.
“We were rested and ready to rock,” center Jack Eichel said. “I think we took out some of our built-up frustration on them from blowing our (2-0) lead in Calgary (on Saturday).”
The Knights got up early.
They caught Winnipeg in transition less than five minutes into the game when defenseman Dylan DeMelo pinched into the offensive zone and no one covered for him at that point. That led to a three-on-one when the puck turned over featuring the entire first line of Eichel, left wing Reilly Smith and right wing Phil Kessel.
Eichel roofed a pass from Rittich 4:23 in for a 1-0 lead.
Center William Karlsson increased the Knights’ lead three shifts later by redirecting a feed from right wing Michael Amadio into the net. Stephenson’s fortuitous bounce came 3:56 later, before Eichel got a break of his own.
The Jets were backing into their own zone, and defenseman Neal Pionk passed the puck to Rittich. Rather than finding a teammate, the goaltender found Eichel. The center ripped a shot from the right circle for his second goal and a 4-0 lead.
It was the Knights’ first four-goal period of the season and tied a home record for the most goals in a single frame. Their overall record is five goals in a period, set March 9, 2019, against Vancouver.
The Jets got goals from center Pierre-Luc Dubois and Pionk, but left wing Jonathan Marchessault sealed the victory with an empty-net goal with 21.9 seconds to go.
“We had our legs (and) I thought we were playing the right way,” coach Bruce Cassidy said. “(Stephenson) throws one to the net and you get a break. So some things went our way in that regard. But all in all, I did like our energy.”
Here are three takeaways from the victory:
1. Hill solid again
So far, so good for goaltender Adin Hill’s Knights tenure.
The August trade acquisition improved to 2-0 by stopping 26 of the 28 shots he faced against Winnipeg. He was calm and controlled in net. His two most notable plays weren’t even saves.
Hill took the Knights’ only penalty of the game after being called for interfering with Jets right wing Saku Maenalanen. Then he nearly provided a highlight for the ages by attempting to shoot the puck all the way across the ice into the Jets’ empty net with 1:20 remaining.
Hill’s shot was deflected and didn’t leave the zone. He’ll have to wait longer to become the 10th goaltender in NHL history to score a goal. But, other than that, he has little to complain about so far.
“I feel like the guys are doing a really good job in front of me in the games that I’ve played,” Hill said. “It’s nice to have two wins under the belt and keep rolling.”
2. Amadio returns
Amadio took advantage of his opportunity Thursday after being put back in the lineup.
The 26-year-old played in the Knights’ opener in Los Angeles but was a healthy scratch in the previous three games. Cassidy gave him another chance in Winnipeg. Rookie left wing Paul Cotter was a healthy scratch instead after Cassidy said he felt Cotter’s play dropped off in his last two games.
Amadio made an immediate impact by setting up Karlsson’s goal. He won a puck battle with former Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt below the goal line, saw his center in front of the crease and made a great pass.
“I lifted my head up a little bit to see my options,” Amadio said. “I saw (Karlsson) going so I just threw it out there and he got it in there.”
Amadio became the 17th Knights player to record a point this season.
3. Rittich struggles
The Knights just know how to make certain goaltenders squirm.
They continued to light up former San Jose Sharks nemesis Martin Jones when he started Saturday in Seattle. Rittich, who has had his own struggles with the Knights, didn’t fare much better.
The 30-year-old, making his first start for Winnipeg, only saved 27 of the 31 shots he faced. The loss dropped him to 2-6 all-time against the Knights with an .872 save percentage in eight career appearances.
Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.
