Jets defeat Blackhawks for their best 10-game start

WINNIPEG -- The Winnipeg Jets completed their best 10-game start since relocating with a 5-1 win against the Chicago Blackhawks at Canada Life Centre on Friday.

Kyle Connor and Nikolaj Ehlers each had a goal and an assist, Andrew Copp had three assists and Eric Comrie made 17 saves for the Jets (6-2-2), who are 6-0-2 during an eight-game point streak.
"We've added some pieces this year that feel like we round out the group pretty good, so we take a lot of ownership in how we play and how we perform," Copp said. " And you just want to be your best and be your best for the team. So yeah, I feel confident in my game, confident that I'm helping the team every night whether it's on the score sheet or not on the score sheet, and I just want to continue that."

The 14 points in their first 10 games is the franchise's best start since relocating from the Atlanta Thrashers prior to the 2011-12 season. Winnipeg earned 13 points in its first 10 games three times: 2015-16, 2018-19, and 2020-21.
"I think we're still very excited about where we can get to," Jets coach Paul Maurice said. "There's still lots to learn, there's lots of development to happen. We're playing with a lot of different things. I've liked the way we've played. There's a set of metrics that we want to be better at, but we are much better. Most of those are, in some ways, defensive ideas. Still think there's lots of room to grow in our offensive game."
MacKenzie Entwistle scored shorthanded for the Blackhawks (1-9-2), who have lost two straight since getting their first win of the season. Marc-Andre Fleury made 28 saves.
"There's no real excuse," Entwistle said. "We're coming in here against a big, solid team, and I think we've got to be ready to start the game. We get out to a 2-0 deficit early, it's tough to come back against a team like that. So, it's frustrating. We've got to start on time and there's no real excuse."
Paul Stastny scored 47 seconds into the game to give Winnipeg a 1-0 lead, and Neal Pionk made it 2-0 with a power-play goal at 2:23 of the first.

Ryan Carpenter appeared to score 39 seconds into the second period for the Blackhawks, but Maurice challenged the play for offside, and the call was reversed after a video review.
Dominic Toninato then extended the lead to 3-0 at 13:48, taking a diagonal pass from Copp before cutting across the crease and tucking the puck into an open net.
"We had a pretty good start of the second period, the first seven minutes or so we had some push," Chicago coach Jeremy Colliton said. "The offside goal was unfortunate because we got a little bit of a reward for having a push, but the third goal was a killer. It's hard to win when you do that. That seemed to really take the fight out of us."
Connor made it 4-0 at 15:17 of the second when he beat Fleury blocker side from the right circle. He has 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) in his past eight games.
"We recognize things, but we haven't been correcting them, and that's our issue right now," Blackhawks defenseman Connor Murphy said. "We need to play for each other more, play with more pride, play with more confidence, play with more energy. Just for each other I think is the biggest thing we can do."

Entwistle scored 56 seconds into the third to cut it to 4-1, getting to the puck off the end boards after Seth Jones' redirection of Kirby Dach's pass went wide of the net.
"It was bang-bang off the backboard right to the guy," Comrie said. "Kind of a weird play on our power play, so it's unfortunate. But I mean, just go back to the process of things and let this one take care of itself."
Ehlers scored five-hole on a wrist shot from the high slot at 14:03 for the 5-1 final.
"Tonight, we've got to leave this game," Colliton said. "We're nowhere close with that effort. I don't think that's us. We've performed at a much better level than tonight. We've got to take the day off and regroup and come out flying (against the Nashville Predators on Sunday). That's the message. On another day, it's a different message. That's not for tonight."