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 Wheeler, a Twin Cities native, scored early to set the tone in the
Jets' 1-0 win over the Minnesota Wild on Friday night.
Winnipeg (21-21-3) got 24 saves from rookie goalie Connor Hellebuyck
in his second career shutout to win for the second time in as many
nights.
Goalie Devan Dubnyk notched 25 saves for the Wild (22-14-8), who
were shut out for the first time this season and have now lost three
in a row.
"You can't get too crazy when you're one shot or one bounce away,"
Dubnyk said. "They get a lucky one, the first one, on a missed shot
and that's the game. You can't be too fired up when you're one
bounce or one shot away."
Minnesota, which has been plagued by slow starts at home recently,
fell behind early once again, thanks to a turnover at the Jets' blue
line.
The giveaway sprung Wheeler on a two-on-one break along with left
winger Andrew Ladd. Wheeler carried the puck into the zone, made a
deke that had Wild defender Jonas Brodin sliding out of the way,
then launched a fluttering shot from 30 feet that fooled Dubnyk's
glove.
"That's my changeup," Wheeler joked. "I think (Dubnyk) had the exact
spot I was going to shoot covered and right when I let it go I think
it hit something in the ice or did a little knuckle. It was a lucky
bounce, but we'll take it."
It was the third goal in the past four games for Wheeler, who is
among the top 10 in the NHL in points, and was a notable omission
from the All-Star Game.
"He's been an All-Star for us, there's no doubt about that," Jets
coach Paul Maurice said. "This was a positional decision and a
Central Division issue, not whether Blake is an All-Star. He's an
All-Star for us, but he's an All-Star in this league."
The Wild got back-to-back power plays late in the first period and
built an impressive advantage in shots on goal but did not score.
The Jets caught up quickly in the shot department in the second
period after consecutive Wild penalties gave Winnipeg nearly a
minute of five-on-three power play, but they did not add to their
lead.
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"Number one is giving up the first goal in the game," said Wild
coach Mike Yeo, diagnosing what ails his team. "That has been a very
common trend. For a team like that, it allows them on the road just
to try to walk it down and play a very patient game and puts us in
kind of a press mode for the whole game. That's been a big trend."
Minnesota got a power play with 2:42 left and pulled Dubnyk for a
six-on-four advantage. The Wild controlled the play for the full two
minutes but could not get a shot through to Hellebuyck.
NOTES: Jets D Dustin Byfuglien was back in the lineup after missing
the final 12 minutes of regulation in Winnipeg's 5-4 overtime win
over the Predators on Thursday. He was tangled up with a Nashville
player and fell hard to the ice, suffering an apparent arm injury.
He has not missed a full game this season. ... Retired Wild and
Minnesota North Stars players had a friendly pickup game on an
outdoor rink in downtown St. Paul on Friday evening to promote their
upcoming alumni game against retired members of the Chicago
Blackhawks as part of the NHL Stadium Series events at TCF Bank
Stadium in Minneapolis next month. ... With the U.S. Figure Skating
Championships taking up residence inside Xcel Energy Center for the
next nine days, the Wild head out on a four-game road trip that
begins Saturday night in Nashville, then moves west for games in
Anaheim, Los Angeles and San Jose. The Jets go back to MTS Centre
for a six-game homestand that begins Monday against the Avalanche.
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