Matthews scores twice in Maple Leafs loss to Jets

TORONTO -- Auston Matthews scored twice and ended his five-game goal drought for the Toronto Maple Leafs, but the Winnipeg Jets rallied with three consecutive goals and won 4-3 at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday.

"We didn't go searching (after a 7-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday)," Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck said. "We all believed in our game and we stuck to it tonight. We had a good practice on Monday, and you could tell guys were hungry for tonight. We didn't let it weigh in a negative way on our brains. I used that loss for energy. I didn't let it weigh on me. Sometimes the puck just doesn't bounce your way, and after that game I was just straight focused on this one to show I'm better than that."
Hellebuyck made 36 saves, and Andrew Copp had a goal and an assist for the Jets (16-8-1).
On Saturday, Hellebuyck was pulled after allowing four goals on 19 shots.
"I've spent a lot of years in the League with good men, decent goaltenders, but Connor is in that elite level," Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice said. "Connor has driven himself to become an elite goalie. He comes to this rink not just fired up today but there's also an underlying confidence there that he's going to be good."
Zach Hyman scored, and Frederik Andersen made 19 saves for the Maple Leafs (18-7-2), who have lost three in a row for the first time this season.
"I think we're in a good spot," Hyman said. "All teams go through adversity. We want to bounce back and we're not happy about it obviously. We have to be better, but all teams face adversity during a year and it's a good thing to go through a little."
This was the first of three consecutive games between the Maple Leafs and Jets. They play here Thursday and Saturday.

Kyle Connor put the Jets ahead 3-2 at 17:42 of the second period when he one-timed a pass in the slot from Nikolaj Ehlers, who was behind the net.
Hellebuyck stopped a one-timer from Alex Kerfoot in the slot at 7:12 of the third period before Mason Appleton scored at 7:53 to make it 4-2.
"Connor was awesome," Appleton said. "You know the game before if he gets pulled what kind of Connor Hellebuyck you're going to get the next night. He made a ton of big saves, especially late in the game. He's so calm and composed, he's our rock. He was incredible tonight."

Matthews cut it to 4-3 at 18:06 when he put in a pass from Zach Hyman at the top of the goal crease. Matthews' first goal put Toronto ahead 2-1 at 17:44 of the first period on the power play when he deflected Morgan Rielly's point shot.
Matthews, who leads the NHL with 20 goals this season, had not scored a point in three games since missing two games because of a wrist injury he aggravated Feb. 24 against the Calgary Flames. He has dealt with the injury most of the season, and coach Sheldon Keefe said Monday it has been affecting the center's shot.
"Once you get out there, it just goes away," Matthews said when asked how much discomfort he is in.

Josh Morrissey scored his first goal of the season to tie it 2-2 at 12:45 of the second period when his shot from the blue line went off Matthews' skate in the slot. It was his first goal since Feb. 22, 2020, ending a drought of 28 regular-season games.
"I've had some good chances, but they just haven't gone in," Morrissey said. "It was nice to get one and it was a nice lift. … I shaved the other day in between games, so maybe that helped. Who knows? That's what the guys were saying to me, so I'll probably keep this look for a while now."
The Maple Leafs took a 1-0 lead at 8:16 of the first period when Hyman outraced Connor to the slot and scored on a backhand. Copp tied it 1-1 at 12:20 when he deflected Neal Pionk's point shot in the slot on the power play.
"You either have winning habits, or you have losing habits," Keefe said. "And when you have losing habits, you end up giving up free goals, and then when you don't score enough on the other side of it, you lose games."
NOTE: Winnipeg defenseman Nathan Beaulieu left 1:57 into the second period after blocking a shot from John Tavares with his hand. Maurice said he expects to have an update on him Wednesday.