Hellebuyck's 39 saves power Jets to win over Sabres

Connor Hellebuyck always loves the challenge of bouncing back.
Evidently, so do the Winnipeg Jets (27-14-1).
Hellebuyck made 39 saves to help the Jets earn their sixth win in seven games, and get back in the win column after a tough night in Detroit on Tuesday.
He was, in a word, sensational.
But the 29-year-old wasn't taking all the credit.
"We had everyone in there battling and wanting that win," said Hellebuyck. "When you have everyone, and those fine details, that's the result you get."

Well, hopefully Hellebuyck can take a compliment, because head coach Rick Bowness certainly had one for him.
"He was outstanding tonight," Bowness said. "He was the difference maker."
Dylan Samberg, Josh Morrissey, Kyle Connor, and Karson Kuhlman provided the offence for the Jets. It was the team's 11th road win of the season and certainly didn't come easy. Buffalo erased 1-0 and 2-1 deficits in the game, but the Jets never stopped.
They even kept the National Hockey League's second-ranked power play off the board, going a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill.
"That team has a ton of skill over there, wow," said Bowness. "They've got a ton of skill, speed. They spread the ice out well offensively. There were too many breakdowns where Connor was the difference."

An offensive zone face-off win led to the game's opening goal from Samberg in the first. Mark Scheifele won that draw, which came to the left of Sabres goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, and Nate Schmidt was able to feed his partner at the left point. Samberg's shot threaded its way through a Blake Wheeler screen and into the top corner with 6:35 gone in the first.
"Everybody back there's helping out," said Connor. "It's good to see those guys have a ton of confidence back there, making plays, and it makes our job way easier, too. When you've got that fourth d-man jumping up in the rush it's so much more dynamic than just 3-on-2."
Victor Olofsson snapped home his 16th of the season to tie the game 12:02 into the second, beating Hellebuyck on the glove side from the high slot.
Just 2:09 later, though, the Jets snatched the lead back. Once again it was a defenceman, as Morrissey pounded a shot from the blue line past Luukkonen - who had the big body of Pierre-Luc Dubois parked in front of him. Morrissey's eighth of the season, from Nikolaj Ehlers and Dylan DeMelo, put the Jets up 2-1.
Morrissey's goal was also the 25th goal by a Jets defenceman this season, besting the total of 24 goals from defencemen from last season.
"Your top end guys aren't going to score every night," said Bowness. "you need the contributions from the bottom six and your defence, and we're getting them."
The visitors weren't able to get an insurance marker on a power play to start the third, and the Sabres made them pay. Olofsson sent a spinning backhand pass to Tyson Jost in the slot, and his quick wrist shot beat Hellebuyck on the stick side, tying the game at two less than three minutes into the third.

Just two nights after the Jets had dominated Detroit and generated an incredible amount of high-danger chances, it was Winnipeg's opponent that seemed to get to the slot with more frequency on Thursday. Natural Stat Trick gave the edge at five-on-five to Buffalo in that department, 11-10 (and 10-5 over the final 40 minutes).
"We played a whole lot better in Detroit and lost, than we did tonight. So it evened out," said Bowness. "Tonight, they outplayed us. That's the most chances we've given up in a long time."
It was the last puck to get by Hellebuyck on the night, even though there were chances for more, including a 2-on-0 opportunity for the Sabres in tight.
"He held it a little too long so I knew he was going to try and pass, because there was a lefty there," said Hellebuyck. "Samberg stayed with the play and locked the guy up. That's teamwork right there."
Immediately after, the Jets wrestled the lead back. Connor's stick broke up a Sabres pass in the Winnipeg zone, and the speedy forward took off and Ehlers hit him with a breakaway pass. Two quick moves in tight froze Luukkonen, and Connor slid home his 21st of the season.
The goal extended Connor's point streak to eight games. It was also his eight game-winner of the season.
"The game's on the line, you get a little extra jump in your step. You want to be the difference maker," said Connor. "I just gave him kind of a little fake shot and he froze pretty good. Backhand, forehand, lost an edge, but I had him so it worked out."

Hellebuyck had time for more some heroics, including a game-saver in the final minute, closing his legs on a puck bobbling around in the crease while he was lying face down with bodies all over the crease.
"I caught it in my peripherals when I looked back," he said of the puck that had popped in the air after Morrissey stopped a wrap around attempt with his stick at the left post. "I saw the trajectory and knew I'd have to close my legs. Sometimes it's nice to have a little luck on your side."
Yet again, the 2020 Vezina winner thanked his teammates on the play.
"I felt three or four guys right there battling with me. I had the utmost confidence," he said. "I looked back and I caught a piece of it, knew where it was going, and knew exactly what to do. Good thing it stayed out."
Kuhlman agrees, because he sealed the win with his first as a Jet, an empty-netter with 42.7 seconds remaining in the game.
Next, the Jets close out the road trip on Friday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
ICE CHIPS
Saku Maenalanen played his first game since December 8, playing 12:43. He was activated off injured reserve due to the fact Morgan Barron had to miss the game due to illness.