Kyle Connor scored two goals and added an assist to lead the Winnipeg Jets to a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Sunday afternoon.
Special teams set the tone early in the opening period. Cole Perfetti broke the ice at 13:04, deflecting a shot past goaltender John Gibson on the man advantage for his first goal of the season. Just 92 seconds later, Connor extended the lead with a backhand goal on another power play, assisted by Gabriel Vilardi and Perfetti, sending the Jets into the intermission with a two-goal cushion.
Winnipeg stretched the lead to 3-0 at 5:41 of the second period when Connor snapped home his second power-play goal of the game off passes from Josh Morrissey and Perfetti. Detroit responded late in the period on a power play of its own, as Viktor Arvidsson scored his first goal of the season on a deflection at 16:52. Emmitt Finnie brought the Red Wings within one at 4:56 of the third period with an even-strength wrist shot, but Winnipeg kept Detroit off the board the rest of the way.
Goaltender Stuart Skinner anchored the Jets by stopping 34 of 36 shots to earn the victory. Gibson turned away 24 of 27 shots in the loss for the Red Wings. Winnipeg converted on 3 of 4 power-play opportunities, while Detroit managed just 1 goal on 5 opportunities with the man advantage.
With the win, Winnipeg improved its regular-season record to 1-0-1. Detroit dropped to 0-2-0 and remains winless in two consecutive contests to start the campaign.
Both clubs return to action on Tuesday, October 20. The Jets visit the St. Louis Blues at 8:00 PM ET, while the Red Wings visit the Seattle Kraken at 9:40 PM ET.
