Mark Scheifele scores twice as the Jets beat the Blackhawks in overtime

Mark Scheifele tied the game with a minute left before winning it just 38 seconds into overtime as the Winnipeg Jets moved to 2-0-0 on the season with a 2-1 overtime victory over the Chicago Blackhawks advanced Friday night in downtown Winnipeg.

The Jets opened their 2024-25 home schedule with a bang, albeit one late in the game.

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When the Jets took on the visiting Blackhawks on Friday, they came off a bit sluggish, but relied on their star forward to seal the victory late in the game.

No, it wasn’t as strong a start as the team’s 6-0 win on the road against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday. But the Jets escaped without conceding a goal in the first half and extended their winning streak to four periods to open the season.

After defeating the Blackhawks 7-5 in the 20th minute, the Jets needed a stronger stretch early in the game.

However, this was not the case. Although Winnipeg remained on top with a slight lead of 18:15 after 40 minutes, it conceded its first goal of the season and fell behind for the first time.

After both teams exchanged power play opportunities, Winnipeg allowed Ryan Donato to score the game’s first goal by scoring on partially broken ice. He defeated Connor Hellebuyck with 3:08 minutes remaining and stopped the goalie’s shutout streak 96:52.

The rest of the second and most of the third periods were uneventful as neither club really did much to generate that many attacks.

The chances of scoring when there was great danger remained to a minimum, while both goalkeepers remained steadfast.

It took 58:56 for Winnipeg to score, but when they did, Canada Life Center erupted.

While Hellebuyck was on the bench for the additional attacker, Nikolaj Ehlers’ shot bounced to Scheifele, who parried it past Oskar Söderberg.

The goal was Scheifele’s second of the season and marked the decisive point of the game, sending it into extra time and the fans finally getting the chance to get up from their seats.

He needed just 38 seconds to end the contest with his 300th career NHL goal, scoring the game-winning goal on a strong play deep in the Blackhawks’ final period.

Hellebuyck stopped 25 of the 26 shots he faced to earn his second win of the season.

Next up for Winnipeg is the second of four straight home games, taking on the Minnesota Wild on Sunday at 5 p.m.