With the Jets holding an edge in the shots on goal column past the midway point of the second, it would be the visitors from Chicago opening the scoring. Patrick Kane's 12th of the season came off the rush, and the nine-time NHL All-Star beat Connor Hellebuyck through the legs from the left wing circle with 9:39 remaining in the middle frame. It was a play that began in the neutral zone with Chicago defenceman Connor Murphy corralling a flipped puck and sending it back the other way.
"I always say that the neutral zone is the most important zone," said Dave Lowry. "If you're good in it, you're playing in the offensive zone and if you're not, you're playing in your own end."
It stayed that way until the third, when the Jets took advantage of a crazy bounce to tie the game. A play to the net by Nate Schmidt went off Murphy's stick and up in the air toward the Chicago goal. Fleury's attempt to snatch it came up empty, and the puck landed behind him, where Scheifele was waiting to smack it home.
Scheifele now has seven points in his last four games and his most recent goal was an example of getting to the net front area, something the Jets felt they didn't do enough of on Monday.
"We made it pretty easy on him for large stretches, especially in the second period," said Adam Lowry. "We'd have the zone time, we'd get the shots and he had a clear lane to see it. There wasn't really any secondary action whereas in the third period and some stretches of the third, you have a guy even with a threat of tipping a puck or creating a rebound puts a little more pressure on him to make the same and put the rebounds in a good spot."
The tie didn't last long though, as Alex DeBrincat put the visitors ahead just 3:25 later. He gained the Jets zone with speed and fired a wrist shot from the top of the circles that beat Hellebuyck to restore Chicago's lead at 2-1.