Jets Beat Canucks 6-2 as Dawson Mercer Scores His First Goal for Winnipeg

The Winnipeg Jets beat the Vancouver Canucks 6-2 at Canada Life Centre on Thursday night, with six different players scoring for the home team. Dawson Mercer scored his first goal as a Jet, Mark Scheifele had a goal and an assist, and Stuart Skinner made 24 saves. It was the first game of a three game homestand for Winnipeg, and the Jets scored a season high six goals in the win.

Winnipeg started fast. The Jets scored their first two goals 14 seconds apart early in the first period. Alex Iafallo opened the scoring on a power play, deflecting a Haydn Fleury shot. Neal Pionk scored soon after in the same quick start, and Winnipeg took control of the game from that point. The early burst set the tone for a night when the Jets spread the scoring across the lineup.

Mercer scores his first for Winnipeg

Mercer scored his first goal as a Jet and his first goal of the season. He added an assist to finish with a two point night. Cole Koepke also scored for Winnipeg. The six Jets goals came from Iafallo, Pionk, Mercer, Koepke, Scheifele and Mario Ferraro. No single line carried the result. The scoring came from across the roster, and that balance gave Vancouver problems all night.

Scheifele finished with a goal and an assist. He moved to within five goals of passing Dale Hawerchuk for the franchise record. Kyle Connor and Dylan DeMelo each had two assists for Winnipeg. The Jets won for the first time this season without a goal from Connor or Cole Perfetti. That detail mattered on a night when Winnipeg needed other players to finish chances, and six of them did.

Skinner made 24 saves for Winnipeg. He held his ground as Vancouver tried to stay in the game, and the Jets kept a clear lead into the third period. Ferraro made it 6-1 at 11:32 of the third period. Brock Boeser scored at 15:09 of the third period for Vancouver, closing the scoring at 6-2.

Canucks losing run reaches four

Liam Ohgren and Boeser scored for Vancouver. Leevi Merilainen stopped 23 of 29 shots for the Canucks. Vancouver has lost four straight games. The Canucks are 1-13-1 in their last 15 games, and their record stands at 3-14-1. The problems continued on the penalty kill. Vancouver has given up an NHL high 22 power play goals this season, and Iafallo added to that total with the opening goal.

Winnipeg improved to 6-8-3 with the result. The Jets have won two straight games, and they opened the homestand with their best scoring night of the season. For a team that had relied heavily on Connor and Perfetti for goals, a six goal game with six different scorers was a clear step in the right direction. The homestand continues at Canada Life Centre, while Vancouver moves on quickly. The Canucks play at Edmonton on Saturday, still looking for a way to stop the slide after four straight losses and a difficult run over the last 15 games.