Winnipeg Jets forward Nik Ehlers could muster only one word to describe the feeling of their 4-3 double-overtime Game 7 victory that eliminated the St. Louis Blues on Sunday night.
“Joy.”
Here’s another word: historic.
Captain Adam Lowry’s goal at 16:10 of the second overtime closed out the series and advanced the Jets to face the Dallas Stars beginning Wednesday in Winnipeg. But overtime doesn’t happen without forward Cole Perfetti’s goal with three seconds remaining in regulation, which established an NHL record.
Perfetti’s goal at 59:57 was the latest game-tying goal in a Game 7, topping the record set by Vancouver Canucks winger Matt Cooke (59:54) in the 2004 conference quarterfinals against the Calgary Flames. The Flames won the series in overtime. Perfetti also tied Washington’s Dale Hunter (1993) and Carolina’s Eric Staal (2006) for the second-latest game-tying goal in NHL playoff history. Cooke’s goal with two seconds left in a conference semifinal for Minnesota in 2003 is still the fastest.
Perfetti redirected a desperation Kyle Connor one-timer past St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington off a cross-ice pass from Ehlers.
“I fanned on the first [shot], so I thought I’m not going to let that happen again. If we could get the goalie moving just a little bit, we might be able to create something,” Ehlers said of his pass.
“Sometimes, for whatever reason, if you look at the home teams in this series, the puck luck was incredible,” Blues coach Jim Montgomery said.
Winnipeg didn’t have much luck to start the game. Jordan Kyrou gave the Blues a 1-0 lead just 1:10 into the game, as lackluster defense from Connor led to a 2-on-1 down low and defenseman Colton Parayko found Kyrou for his third goal of the postseason. The Blues scored in the first period of every game of the series.
Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck allowed a questionable goal 6:16 later, as Mathieu Joseph wristed one past him from the top of the circle for a 2-0 lead. Hellebuyck finished the series with an .830 save percentage and a 3.85 goals-against average.
Winnipeg was 2-25 all time in the playoffs when trailing by multiple goals at any point in the game.
To make matters worse, defenseman Josh Morrissey left the game just four shifts into the first period because of an apparent shoulder injury. That meant Winnipeg played the majority of Game 7 without its top defenseman and second-leading scorer, as center Mark Scheifele missed Games 6 and 7 because of an upper-body injury suffered in Game 5.
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This is the same scenario the Stars faced in winning Game 7 of their series against the Colorado Avalanche, playing without defenseman Miro Heiskanen and winger Jason Robertson. Winnipeg coach Scott Arniel said he cited Dallas’s late-game comeback against Colorado on Saturday night to give the Jets hope for a rally.
The Jets chipped away at the lead in the second period on Perfetti’s power-play goal, but St. Louis’ fourth line — one of its best in this series — got it back with Radek Faksa’s goal with 35 seconds left in the period.
“We obviously didn’t get the start that we wanted today,” Ehlers said. “They got another one at the end of the second period. But there was belief in this group. Nobody was hanging their heads. We looked at each other and said we’re not done playing hockey yet. It was special.”
Entering Sunday night, teams with a multigoal lead in the third period of a Game 7 were 119-4. Things were looking good for the Blues — until they weren’t.
Winnipeg pulled Hellebuyck with 3:14 left, leading to Vlad Namestnikov scoring with 1:56 left in regulation. Perfetti then scored with three seconds left.
The teams were scoreless in the first overtime, with Binnington (11 saves) busier than Hellebuyck (4 saves) in the opening extra session. Then, Lowry ended the series with his deflection of Neal Pionk’s shot at 16:10 of the second overtime.
Lowry was born in St. Louis. His father, Dave, played five seasons with the Blues during his 19-year NHL career.
The Jets mobbed Lowry in celebration. For Hellebuyck, there was also a palpable sense of relief.
He is considered the best goaltender in the world, expected to collect his third Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top netminder this season, giving him back-to-back Vezina wins. But Hellebuyck had been a playoff disappointment in the Jets’ first-round losses in 2023 and 2024, both in five games. He was disastrous against the Blues, especially on the road. Hellebuyck was pulled in three straight road games with a .758 save percentage and a 7.24 GAA.
The last time he was across the ice from Binnington in overtime was the championship game of the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, when Binnington was brilliant in leading Canada to victory over Hellebuyck and the U.S.
This time, Hellebuyck was saving the day until his team could win the game in double overtime. He made 13 saves in the final three periods.
“Amazing. Absolutely amazing,” said Arniel, who won his first playoff series as an NHL coach. “I’ve seen a lot of hockey games. I’ve been around a lot of hockey games. Man, it was thrilling.”
