Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness wasn’t lying when he spoke of his Game 7 impression against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday. The teams gave little space and goalkeeper Jacob Markstrom made the difference in Alberta’s 3-1 win at Canada Life Centre.
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The Jets had home field advantage for the game, but the Flames shrugged. Walker Duehr and Nikita Zadorov made the difference with two goals in the third period.
Kyle Connor opened the scoring for the home favorites in the first period, then Andrew Mangiapane equalized in the next period. Markstrom closed the door with 34 saves from 35 throws.
Calgary and Winnipeg now both have 89 points overall, but only one team will make second place among Western Conference draft picks. The Jets, on the other hand, have a game in hand and the Predators (86 points in 77 games) are still in the running.
The hundred for the Rangers
In New York, Rangers hit 100 points for the second year in a row with a 6-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Like the Flames-Jets game, this duel had a playoff feel to it. The two teams already seeded for the tournament made life difficult for the officials. Corey Perry and Ben Harpur each took part in the fight twice, with Pat Maroon, Ross Colton, Braden Schneider and Vincent Trocheck also accepting invitations to dance.
It was just as lively on the archway. Chris Kreider scored his 34th and 35th of the season for Rangers. Tyler Motte also had a brace while Mika Zibanejad had three assists.
At the Lightning, Brandon Hagel scored and collected an assist for defenseman Darren Raddysh’s first career goal. Alex Killorn also added two points to his record, breaking the 60-point plateau for the first time.
In goal, Igor Shesterkin blocked 28 pucks for his 36th win of the season, the same number as in 2021-2022.