Blue Jackets drop fourth straight after late goal by Connor, Jets 4-3
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Kyle Connor scored with 1:14 remaining to give the Winnipeg Jets a 4-3 victory over the slumping Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night.
Winnipeg won its sixth consecutive home game and handed the Blue Jackets their four straight loss overall.
Mark Scheifele scored his team-leading 26th goal of the season for the Jets, with captain Blake Wheeler getting his 54th assist. Mason Appleton and Jack Roslovic also scored, and Jacob Trouba had two assists.
Connor Hellebuyck made 28 saves in the opener of a three-game homestand.
Artemi Panarin got his 20th goal and added an assist for Columbus. Josh Anderson had a power-play goal and Oliver Bjorkstrand also scored. Seth Jones contributed a pair of assists.
Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 22 shots for the Blue Jackets.
Columbus leading scorer Cam Atkinson was hit in the face by a puck during warmups and replaced by Mark Letestu.
The Blue Jackets led 2-1 after the first period and 3-2 after two, but Roslovic tied it at 8:47 of the third when his hit shot went into the corner with 17 seconds left on a Winnipeg power play.
Winnipeg killed off a penalty with six minutes left and then Bobrovsky made a big save on Mathieu Perreault.
Wheeler helped open the scoring after a Columbus turnover when he set up Scheifele for a one-timer that beat Bobrovsky at 4:34 of the first.
Ryan Murray sent the puck between the skates of a Winnipeg defender right to Panarin's stick and he fired it over Hellebuyck's glove to tie it at 8:52. Panarin has a three-game point streak with a pair of goals and three assists.
Anderson got the go-ahead goal on a power play when Panarin found him in the slot at 13:30.
Appleton made it 2-all when his backhand hit Bobrovsky and trickled under the netminder at 13:21, but 57 seconds later Bjorkstrand regained the lead for the Blue Jackets.
UP NEXT
Blue Jackets: Home against St. Louis on Saturday.
Jets: Host the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday.
