Morrissey, Scheifele lead Jets’ rally in 4-2 win over Blues

WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Josh Morrissey and Mark Scheifele each scored twice in the third period as the Winnipeg Jets rallied for a 4-2 win against the St. Louis Blues on Monday night.

Saku Maenalanen and Kyle Connor each had two assists for the Jets, who snapped a three-game skid. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 24 shots.

“Josh played fantastic tonight,” Scheifele said. “He always does, and he got rewarded. A few big goals by him, and he led us tonight, sure.”

Jake Neighbours had a goal and assist and Nikita Alexandrov also scored for the Blues, who have lost five straight. Jordan Binnington had 34 saves and picked up an assist on Neighbours’ goal.

After the Blues came up empty on the game’s first power play, the Jets were handed a four-minute man advantage when Alexandrov was dinged with a double minor for high-sticking Jets forward Kyle Connor in the face. The lengthy power play was a bust, with the Jets only getting one shot on Binnington. The goalie then foiled shots by Pierre-Luc Dubois and Maenalanen.

“He was obviously a big part of why we were in that game the whole game,” Blues defenseman Colton Parayko said of Binnington. “He made some big saves early on, big saves throughout the game.”

The Jets had two more power plays in the first half of the second period, but a total of six shots couldn’t get by Binnington.

The Blues got on the board with 5:24 left in the second on its next power play. Binnington sent the puck to Nick Leddy, who made a stretch pass to Neighbours that he used for a backhand shot to beat Hellebuyck for his fourth goal.

“Our kill was really good and we got a power-play goal there. It was a nice play,” Blues coach Craig Berube said. “Kind of hanging in there with a pretty depleted lineup, you know. You’ve got to manage things and we just didn’t manage it good enough.”

Alexandrov made it 2-0 at 2:02 of the third period before the Jets began their comeback.

Morrissey scored 40 seconds later to get Winnipeg on the scoreboard with an exuberant celebration.

“It just felt like we were playing a really good game tonight and not getting rewarded, so I tried to get a little emotion,” Morrissey said. “It was kind of like, alright one went in. We were just waiting for that to happen.”

Jets coach Rick Bowness agreed Morrissey kind of took over the game.

“To score 40 seconds after they got that second goal just turned the whole game around in our favor,” Bowness said. “That was a hell of a shot and a great rush. … He’d been playing that way the whole game. Sometimes you step up and be the difference-maker, and he was tonight.”

Scheifele tied it 2-2 at 9:32 as the Jets took advantage of a Blues giveaway and Morrissey put Winnipeg ahead with his 10th just 21 seconds later when his shot went off St. Louis’ Brayden Schenn.

Scheifele scored his 31st of the season into an empty net with 24 seconds remaining.

REMEMBERING A STAR

Before puck drop, the Jets showed a video tribute and held a moment of silence for former star Bobby Hull, who died Monday at the age of 84.

The Hockey Hall of Famer played for the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks before signing a then-record $1-million deal to join the Winnipeg Jets of the upstart World Hockey Association in 1972. The scoring legend spent eight seasons with the Jets, the last when the club merged with the NHL.

UP NEXT

Blues: Host Arizona on Feb. 11 to open a four-game homestand.

Jets: Host Chicago on Feb. 11 in the third game of a stretch of five straight at home.

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