The Winnipeg Jets extended their slight lead over both the Nashville Predators and St. Louis Blues for first place in the Central division by defeating the San Jose Sharks this afternoon 4-1 at Bell MTS Place.
Mathieu Perreault scored twice, including an empty-netter, and a power-play goal for his 11th and 12th goals of the season.
Marko Dano scored on assists from Jacob Trouba and Andrew Copp. That's two goals for Dano in four games after sitting out 30 consecutive contests as a healthy scratch. Coach Paul Maurice may want to consider using him a bit more.
Matt Hendricks opened the scoring with his 4th of the season on an assist from Joel Armia and Copp, his second point of the game.
The Jets pretty much carried the play in this one, save for a two-minute time period when the Jets couldn't clear their zone, as the Sharks maintained possession brilliantly.
Connor Hellebuyck made 31 saves for the win, improving his record to 22-4-6. The Jets improved to 25-11-7 and sit a top the NHL's Central division with 57 points. They have one of the best home records in the league, tied with the Tampa Bay Lightning at 16-3-1 and behind only the Washington Capitals with a record of 17-5-0.
