{{pageModel.leagueAbbr}} {{pageModel.subtitle}} | Las Vegas Review-Journal
National Hockey League
Winnipeg 5, Toronto 4
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Where: MTS Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Referees: Tom Chmielewski, Dan O'Rourke
Linesmen: Brandon Gawryletz, Kiel Murchison
Attendance: 15294

WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- The first chapter of the Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine story was an instant classic, the kind of tale that would have Hollywood screenwriters salivating.

Laine, the No. 2 overall pick in this past summer's draft, stole the show on Wednesday night by scoring a hat trick -- including the game-tying goal in the final minute of play and the overtime winner.

To make it even more compelling, Laine's winning snipe came seconds after Matthews -- the No. 1 overall pick who dazzled the hockey world by scoring four goals in his debut last week -- was denied on a clear-cut breakaway by Jets goalie Michael Hutchinson.

The end result was a wild 5-4 victory by the Jets, one that saw them erase an early 4-0 deficit.

"I think it was just a normal, regular season game," Laine said with a chuckle as he was swarmed by media in his locker room stall.

The personable 18-year-old was raving about the atmosphere inside the MTS Centre, which included several chants of "Laine's Better" raining down from the rafters throughout the final period.

"Yeah I heard something and that sounds pretty good. That's their opinion and I'm not going to say anything about that," said Laine. "It's always nice to score, obviously. Everybody knows that. It's the best league in the world and I scored three goals. It was just amazing to help my team to win with those goals."

Jets coach Paul Maurice said it was a pleasure to watch such a display, not only from his own young star but Matthews as well.

"Two great young players that are going to give their fans reasons to have nights like this over the course of the year, over the course of their careers, starting now. We've just seen brilliance from both of them in the first four games of the season. Lucky for Winnipeg fans and lucky for Toronto fans we get to watch two great young players," he said.

Maurice said Laine continues to impress him on a daily basis.

"I've never seen anybody score goals like Patrik Laine does in practice. Ever, in 20 years. There are guys that are good shooters in practice and they can't seem to find a way to translate that into a game. But he has a gift, there's no question about it. It's a different shot."

Leafs coach Mike Babcock was bemoaning the point that got away, saying his team couldn't match the intensity and urgency of the Jets as the game wore on.

"It's disappointing," Babcock said. "Any time you're up, you want to shut the game down and you want to take care of it and keep playing. But I thought we didn't stay with it the same way and I thought they got better in the third, and in the end we get what we get."

Matthews said the puck bounced a bit during his chance to be the overtime hero on the breakaway.

"It's late in the game in overtime. It's tough to make moves, the ice is a little rough so I tried slide it in there. The goalie read it well and it's 3-on-3 so you get the puck going one way, it's an odd-man rush the other," he said. "I think in the first place, we shouldn't have been in overtime...we need to learn to play with the lead."

Laine's first goal of the night came just one minute into the third period when he fought off a Maple Leafs defenseman, spun and fired home a wicked wrister. That cut Toronto's lead to 4-2.

Mark Scheifele made it a 4-3 game midway through the third, converting a Josh Morrissey rebound. It was Scheifele's third goal of the season and Morrissey's first-ever NHL point.

Laine then tied the game after Nik Ehlers fed him for shot into a wide-open net with 55 seconds remaining.

"I actually, before the game started, I told him 'I'm going to try and look for you, be ready for that pass and just put it in the net.' At first I was going to shoot that one but there was a lot of people in front of the net. I saw the goalie come out far and knew if I put it over there it's a goal," Ehlers said following the game.

Laine fired his final bullet of the night, the game-winner at 2:40 of the extra session.

Toronto (1-0-2) opened the scoring early in the first period when Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien got caught out of position. Mitch Marner was stopped in alone, but Connor Carrick buried the rebound.

Toronto made it 2-0 late in the first when Morgan Rielly won a puck race in the corner and fed Nazem Kadri, who one-timed a shot through the pads of Hutchinson (36 saves).

The Jets found themselves in penalty trouble early in the second with a pair of players in the box at the same time. Toronto made them pay dearly, as William Nylander ripped a shot past Hutchinson on the two-man advantage. Matthews made a nifty cross-ice pass to Nylander to record the first assist of his NHL career.

Toronto wasn't done. Just eight seconds later, Kadri got his second of the game and the boo-birds were out in full effect at the MTS Centre.

Winnipeg finally gave its crowd something to cheer about when Tyler Myers converted on a two-on-one feed from Scheifele late in the second to make it 4-1. And that's when the raucous rally began.

Andersen finished with 29 saves.

NOTES: There was plenty of nostalgia in the air Wednesday night as Jets inducted the "Hot Line" -- Anders Hedberg, Bobby Hull and Ulf Nilsson -- as the first three members of the team's Hall of Fame. The trio led the World Hockey Association Jets to AVCO Cup Championships in 1976 and 1978. ... Winnipeg won both games against Toronto last season; a 4-2 victory in Toronto in November and a 6-1 decision at Winnipeg in December. ... The Jets have earned points in their last nine games against the Maple Leafs (8-0-1). ... Maple Leafs scratches were D Frank Corrado, D Roman Polak and C Seth Griffith. The Jets parked veterans D Mark Stuart and RW Chris Thorburn in the press box. C Brian Little is also out due to injury.
Top Game Performances
 
Toronto   Winnipeg
Nazem Kadri 2 Points Patrik Laine 3
Nazem Kadri 2 Goals Patrik Laine 3
William Nylander 1 Assists Mark Scheifele 2
Nazem Kadri 1 Power Play Goals Patrik Laine 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Frederik Andersen .853 Save Percentage Michael Hutchinson .900
Frederik Andersen 29 Saves Michael Hutchinson 36
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Toronto 40 4 2-2 2-3 6 28
Winnipeg 34 5 1-3 0-2 4 36
Upcoming Games
  • Winnipeg will play their next game at home against Edmonton. The Jets have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .667 after a loss.
  • Toronto will play their next game on the road against Minnesota. The Maple Leafs have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .500 after a loss.