Anything can happen with the start of the NHL Playoffs. That came to fruition on Sunday night, when the St. Louis Blues were up 3-1 with less than two minutes remaining. The Winnipeg Jets shockingly executed the impossible, sending Game 7 into double overtime. Game log stats are per the NHL.
The Blues took the life out of the Jets’ fans early. Goals from forwards Jordan Kyrou and Mathieu Joseph had St. Louis up 2-0 after the first period. Winnipeg goaltender Connor Hellebuyck was pulled in all three road games and was down two goals early. He somehow kept his composure heading into the second frame.
The Jets started the comeback when forward Cole Perfetti scored a power-play goal at 11:41. After getting three shots in the first, Winnipeg played stronger from there, dominating the shots on goal at the end of the game. The Blues got another one past Hellebuyck with only 35 seconds left. The city of St. Louis was buzzing heading into the second intermission.
Tensions built as the period went without a goal until 18:04, when Jets’ forward Vladislav Namestnikov scored with their goalie pulled, cutting the deficit to one. The anxiety in the Winnipeg crowd had suddenly turned optimistic. At 19:57, that home crowd exploded when Perfetti got his team another with their goalie pulled. There’s nothing like game seven overtime.
The Jets took over the game, outshooting the Blues 28-20 in regulation. Overtime felt the same as the second and third periods, St. Louis being outshot 11-4 in the first overtime. Winnipeg goaltender Jordan Binnington kept the team alive for another frame.
Winnipeg’s pressure was too much for the Blues’ tenacity. On their 47th shot, they finally put St. Louis away. Coming back to win despite being down two with two minutes left, they completed the impossible. While underdogs before the game and series, fans can’t help but feel massive disappointment despite a valiant effort.
From making it to the playoffs on the last game of the season, to being up two goals near the finish line, the Blues put in maximum effort against the Jets, but don’t have the lineup to match up, even with key injuries for Winnipeg.
Fresh Takes Sports Podcast Tuesdays 8 PM ET Live Here | Stadium Rant Articles by Howe Fresh | The Real Fresh Channel On X Here
If you love sports, download Stadium Rant from the Apple App Store and join one of the fastest-growing social sports communities. Be sure to follow us on socials too — you can find all our profiles on our Linktree.
