Hellebuyck, Jets still searching for road win in Stanley Cup Playoffs

DALLAS -- The chants echoed throughout American Airlines Center on Tuesday.

“OTT-ER’S BET-TER! OTT-ER’S BET-TER!”

Connor Hellebuyck lost the goaltending battle to Jake Oettinger, his backup for the United States in the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, and the Winnipeg Jets lost to the Dallas Stars 3-1 in Game 4 of the Western Conference Second Round.

The Presidents’ Trophy winners trail the best-of-7 series 3-1 and face elimination in Game 5 at Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg on Thursday (9:30 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV, MAX).

“I’m doing my best, and you know, sometimes it’s a heartbreak,” Hellebuyck said. “But all it takes is one little change, one little bounce, and things can start going our way.”

It’s hard to believe.

The Jets led the NHL with 26 road wins in the regular season, a big reason they had the League’s best record. But they’re 0-5 on the road in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and have lost nine straight away from home in the playoffs dating to 2023.

Hellebuyck won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender for the second time last season. He was so good this season that he was not only a finalist for the Vezina, but also for the Hart Trophy, which goes to the League’s most valuable player. But he’s 0-5 with a 5.84 goals-against average and .793 save percentage on the road in the playoffs.

Winnipeg outplayed Dallas on Tuesday, but Oettinger outplayed Hellebuyck. From a U.S. perspective, you wonder what this means for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics. From a Winnipeg perspective, it’s an issue with the offense as much as, or more than, the goaltending.

The Jets had 72 shot attempts to the Stars’ 45, and they had a 32-24 advantage in shots on goal. Oettinger made 31 saves, some big ones right before Dallas goals. Hellebuyck made 21.

“I thought we played a good hockey game,” Jets coach Scott Arniel said. “We had 70 shot attempts and scored one goal. If we can’t find more than one goal, we’re not going to win hockey games, especially against this hockey team.

“I liked a lot of what we did 5-on-5. I liked a lot of the opportunities that we created. I loved our first period. We got off to a great start, had them hemmed in, had some great looks. Oettinger made some big stops.”

After Oettinger made saves on forwards Gabriel Vilardi and Cole Perfetti, forward Mikael Granlund sauntered across the blue line during a Dallas power play. He fired a shot from the high slot in front of defenseman Neal Pionk that eluded Hellebuyck, giving the Stars a 1-0 lead at 8:36.

“Obviously, [Hellebuyck] probably wants the one back, the first one, the wrister coming in,” Arniel said.

Asked if he got a clean look at the shot, Hellebuyck said: “I need to review it. I mean, his stick snapped into our guy’s shin pad, but I got a clean enough look. I mean, it was just a damn perfect shot, just above my pad, below my glove.”

Oettinger stopped forward Kyle Connor from point-blank range at 16:55 of the second, and then Granlund came down on a 2-on-1 rush, looked to his left as if to pass and whipped the puck past Hellebuyck’s glove at 17:52. Instead of taking a 2-1 lead, the Jets fell behind 2-1.

Jets defenseman Haydn Fleury took a double minor for high-sticking at 3:26 of the third. Oettinger stopped Connor on a shorthanded breakaway at 5:19, and then Granlund ripped a one-timer from a sharp angle in the right circle past Hellebuyck for a hat trick at 7:23. Instead of tying the game 2-2, the Jets fell behind 3-1.

“I actually thought we played a really good game,” Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers said. “I think at the end of the day, we’ve got to score on our chances. It’s as simple as that.”

Easier said than done. Oettinger is 3-1 with a 2.02 GAA and a .929 save percentage in this series, while Hellebuyck is 1-3 with a 2.84 GAA and an .884 save percentage.

Winnipeg is going to have to win a game in Dallas to win this series. But first, the Jets must win Game 5 at home. At least they’re 5-1 at home in the playoffs, where Hellebuyck is 5-1 with a 1.99 GAA, a .902 save percentage and one shutout.

“At the end of the day, we’ve got to get him some run support,” Arniel said. “He’ll do his job. We’ve got to get him some run support. We’ve got to get him a lead. We’ve to get out in front, make this team chase us instead of us chasing them like we have in the last couple games.”

A reporter told Hellebuyck he seemed more frustrated than usual after a game. How could he not be?

“This is pretty raw,” Hellebuyck said. “It is playoffs, and it’s been maybe five minutes since the end of the game. Every loss is frustrating. That being said, I’m just really looking forward to the next one, and leave it all out there.”