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If there’s such a thing as a perfect road game, the Winnipeg Jets just played it.
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Connor Hellebuyck made 32 stops for his first shutout of the season and Nino Niederreiter, Nikolaj Ehlers and Adam Lowry provided the run support as the Jets toppled the Florida Panthers 3-0 at Amerant Bank Arena on Friday.
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The Jets did head coach Rick Bowness proud in the latter’s return behind the bench after missing more than a month following a family emergency, winning their fifth straight game to improve to 12-5-2 on the season.
The game was Winnipeg’s finest yet, neutralizing one of the league’s most shot-happy clubs and a team that had won seven of their last 10 heading into Friday’s action.
Hellebuyck was brilliant, winning his fourth straight start and his 10th of the year. Like the team in front of him, he looked calm and composed.
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Hellebuyck’s posted save percentages of 1.000, .939, .929 and .912 over his past four starts, respectively.
Niederreiter opened the scoring at 17:43 of the first period, with the Jets finding the back of the net after a tightly contested opening frame.
The goal came off a point shot to the net, creating some chaos in front of Panthers starter Sergei Bobrovsky, allowing Neiderreiter to tuck his sixth of the season.
Ehlers made it 2-0 at 11:15 of the third on an impressive solo effort, turning a Panthers defenceman Uvis Balinskis before wristing a shot high and over Bobrovsky’s blocker for his sixth.
Vladislav Namestnikov’s assist on Ehlers’ marker pushed his point streak to six games (one goal, six assists).
Lowry’s second in as many games, and fourth of the season, meanwhile, made it 3-0 into the empty net with 3:49 left in regulation.
The Jets round out their three-game road trip with a Central Division clash in Nashville on Sunday.
sbilleck@postmedia.com
X: @scottbilleck
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