WINNIPEG – Gabriel Vilardi scored his first career hat trick leading the Winnipeg Jets to a 5-2 win over the Calgary Flames and with the victory, clinched a playoff berth. Nikolaj Ehlers (1G, 1A) and Josh Morrissey (2A) had multi-point nights for the Jets (46-24-6) and Connor Hellebuyck finished with 31 saves. The Jets will play their next four games on the road beginning with the Minnesota Wild on Saturday afternoon.
OFF TO THE DANCE
The Jets are making their sixth postseason appearance since 2017-18 thanks to the win tonight. Unlike last year when the team had to wait until the second to last game of the season, Winnipeg has six games left on their schedule to get prepared for the playoffs.
“It’s nice. We didn’t wait till the second last game of the season like last year. There was never any doubt in my mind that we’d make the playoffs this year,” said Rick Bowness.
“We’ve got a good team here. And we’ve got a good bunch of guys. So, there was never any doubt. It’s nice to put that behind us. And now we push forward.”
HAT TRICK VILARDI
Gabriel Vilardi has had a tough year with battling injuries but when he has been in the lineup he has made a difference. The 24-year-old recorded his first career hat trick and has really helped the power play since his return to the lineup. The Jets scored twice on the man advantage in four opportunities and have gone 3-for-10 in the last three games since Vilardi came back from an enlarged spleen.
“We had what, two power play goals? That’s good. Obviously, we got the five-minute there. I don’t think we scored on that one there, but whenever you get all these power play opportunities, you’ve got to bury,” said Vilardi.
“You have to have that killer instinct and make sure the other team pays for taking all the penalties, right? I think the power play looked good; we had some chances.”
