Flames top Jets, Rittich wins sixth straight start

CALGARY -- David Rittich made 37 saves to win his sixth straight start for the Calgary Flames, 6-3 against the Winnipeg Jets at Scotiabank Saddledome on Wednesday.

Matthew Tkachuk, Johnny Gaudreau, Sam Bennett and Mark Jankowski each had a goal and an assist, and Dillon Dube and Derek Ryan scored for the Flames (13-8-1), who have won three straight games and eight of the past 11.
"We've got three wins] in a row right now and I think everyone in our locker room feels great," Rittich said. "We have to keep it the same, still push them back and play in their zone, doesn't matter who we're playing against."
***[WATCH: [All Jets vs. Flames highlights]*
Patrik Laine had two goals and Brandon Tanev one for the Jets (12-6-2), who lost in regulation for the first time in six games (4-1-1). Connor Hellebuyck allowed three goals on nine shots before being pulled 11:35 into the first period. Laurent Brossoit allowed two goals on 16 shots in relief.
"I think it was just embarrassing," Laine said. "That's not the Winnipeg Jets. That's not the way we want to play this game. It was bad. It was real bad. We can't let that happen again."
The Flames scored five straight times in the first period to become the fourth team in NHL history to score five or more goals in the first period of consecutive games. Calgary also scored five in the first in a 7-2 win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday.

"Everyone in the room, you can tell, is really positive, really happy right now," Bennett said. "David's been playing unbelievable and it's nice to see all the lines contributing. Things are good right now."
Tanev gave Winnipeg a 1-0 lead 15 seconds into the first period, but Dube tied it 1-1 at 2:07 with his first NHL goal in his 17th game.
Bennett shot over Hellebuyck's shoulder at 8:20 to make it 2-1, and Tkachuk extended the lead to 3-1 at 11:35. Tkachuk has eight points (five goals, three assists) in his past four games.
"That's been an issue for us this year, we've had some bad starts, but we were able to rebound quickly so that's good to see," Bennett said.
Jankowski's pass deflected off Jets defenseman Tyler Myers to push the lead to 4-1 at 14:22, and Gaudreau shot short side over Brossoit's shoulder to make it 5-1 at 19:13.
"They got on the puck a little bit, caused some chaos in front of our net," Jets forward Blake Wheeler said. "You have to give them credit for creating some havoc. They got a couple of bounces. Obviously giving up five in the first doesn't really give you much of a chance."
Laine scored on a one-timer to cut the lead to 5-2 at 19:46 of the second period, and he made it 5-3 on the power play at 6:17 of the third period. Laine has five goals in two games.

Jets forward Bryan Little scored at 6:47, but the goal was disallowed because Jacob Trouba interfered with Rittich. Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice unsuccessfully challenged to overturn the call on the ice.
"That would've been huge for us, obviously, but I think we were able to create some chances after that too," Laine said. "It was still a two-goal game and we just couldn't get any more goals. That would've been probably a game-changer for our team and the whole game."
Ryan scored into an empty net at 18:12 to give Calgary a 6-3 lead.

They said it

"Their goalie has played well this year and that's why we needed to get pucks on him early, and we did and we got bodies there and it paid off for us. We were able to come in here with the lead, like we did after the first period." -- Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk
"There was quite a bit that didn't go our way tonight. Some of that was self-inflicted and some of it, the puck just wasn't bouncing our way. Definitely things we can learn from in that first. We fought. Too bad that fourth goal didn't count. Ten minutes left. Who knows what could happen." -- Jets forward Blake Wheeler

Need to know

The Flames last scored five first-period goals at home on March 11, 1993, against the Detroit Red Wings. ... The other three NHL teams to score five or more goals in the first period in consecutive games were the St. Louis Blues, Nov. 21-23, 1989; the Detroit Red Wings, Dec. 2-4, 1987; and the Edmonton Oilers, Jan 3-4, 1984. … Rittich has a 1.83 goals-against average and .928 save percentage in his past six starts. … Gaudreau has six points (two goals, four assists) in his past two games. … Wheeler has 21 points (two goals, 19 assists) in the past 14 games. … Flames forward Michael Frolik did not play because of a lower-body injury.

What's next

Jets: At the Minnesota Wild on Friday (4 p.m. ET; FS-N, FS-WI, TSN3, NHL.TV)
Flames: At the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday (6 p.m. ET; SN1, SNW [joined in progress], ATTSN-RM, NHL.TV)