Jets not surprised Hellebuyck rebounded in Game 4

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Connor Hellebuyck passed a big Stanley Cup Playoff test with a 2-0 shutout win for the Winnipeg Jets against the Minnesota Wild in Game 4 of the Western Conference First Round series at Xcel Energy Center on Tuesday.

After allowing six goals on 22 shots and getting pulled for the third period of a 6-2 loss in Game 3 on Sunday, the 24-year-old bounced back with 30 saves for his first NHL playoff shutout, resuming the excellent play he has given the Jets all season.
That play (44-11-9, 2.36 goals-against average, .924 save percentage) was acknowledged earlier Tuesday when Hellebuyck was named
one of three finalists for the Vezina Trophy
. Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators and Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning are the others.
RELATED: [Jets shut out Wild in Game 4, one win from advancing | Complete series coverage]
"That's the dream," Jets defenseman Joe Morrow said of Hellebuyck's rebound. "What you train yourself to do. To be able to have that attitude where … tomorrow is a new day. You wake up, you're a whole new person, and you're ready to play again.
"If a goalie takes onus on every single shot, every single goal ... that's a guy you'll do that little extra for. [Hellebuyck] is one of those guys, even if you screen him and you say, 'Hey sorry, buddy,' he'll say, 'Just take a step to the left. We're good.' There's nothing to it."
Jets coach Paul Maurice said there was no surprise whatsoever that Hellebuyck was sharp for Game 4.
"We didn't learn anything about it, but it certainly is a theme for him for this year," Maurice said. "He's mentally very, very strong, confident in his game, and you knew five, 10 minutes into that game he was right and feeling good.
"Good for him. And really good for our hockey team to see that from him, that it's an off night and it was an off night for everybody wearing that Jets sweater (in Game 3), he can come back and rebound."
The Jets lead the best-of-7 series 3-1. Game 5 is at Winnipeg on Friday (7:30 p.m. ET; USA, SN, TVAS2, FS-N).
Hellebuyck said his day off Monday, between Games 3 and 4, was no different than any other preparation day.
"It was the same routine," he said. "Anytime you get scored on, you get better from it. We went back and prepared the same way. There's no differences in my game, no matter if I give up 10 or pitch a shutout."
That kind of resilience was repeated often during the regular season by Hellebuyck, who was 7-1-1 the game after a loss when he allowed four or more goals.

He's normally reserved and very matter-of-fact when answering questions about his game, but he did let leak a smile after Game 4 when asked about being a Vezina finalist.
"I'm trying to underplay it right now," he said. "You've got to let me. We're definitely going to enjoy it, but we've got a goal here and we're going to focus on the playoffs."
He conceded that the announcement "added a little more hop to my step."
"I don't know if it changed my game too much because I prepare the same way and I do the same things every day," he said. "I guess it's just a nice milestone that me and my family will enjoy.
"It's exciting, and I'm looking forward to [the NHL Awards on June 20]. But I have to dial it back in. We're here to do a job and we're here to win a Stanley Cup, and I have to worry about that first."
Hellebuyck's most impactful moment in Game 4 was a hard-pushing right-to-left save on Minnesota's Matt Dumba 40 seconds into the second period.
"I'm just there doing my job," he said. "If I get a piece of it, it builds a bit of confidence during the game."
The Jets were better in Game 4 from the outset with their skating and passing. Overall, it was a more organized and quicker game that kept a lot of pressure on the Wild.
"That's our game," captain Blake Wheeler said. "We need to play with a lot of team speed. We need to have our forwards allow our defensemen to have tight gaps. I know it's getting old, hearing the same answer, but that's our game.
"We had a couple of breakdowns, and when we did, our goalie made some big saves."
Jets center Mark Scheifele, who scored at 19:32 of the first period and then into an empty net at 19:49 of the third, said Hellebuyck's performance in Game 4 was expected.
"He's been like that all year," he said. "He deserves that (Vezina finalist) accolade, for sure. He's been one of the best goalies in the League, he's been awesome for us. He's the reason why we made the playoffs and why we're here. He's been the backbone of this team all year."