PITTSBURGH — Winnipeg found its push in the third period, turning a one-goal deficit into a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on Monday.
Alex Iafallo started the surge, Adam Lowry finished a crease scramble, and Cole Perfetti delivered the winner nine seconds after Pittsburgh had tied it. The Jets scored three times in a 4:19 span to improve to 2-0-1.
Quick facts
- Winnipeg erased a 1-0 third-period deficit for a 3-2 victory.
- Iafallo posted a goal and an assist; Clay Stevenson stopped 29 shots.
- Ben Kindel and Declan Carlile each had a goal and an assist for Pittsburgh.
- Sergei Murashov made 30 saves in the Penguins’ first loss of the season.
- Perfetti has two goals and three assists through three games.
The clubs went through a scoreless opening 20 minutes before Kindel gave Pittsburgh the lead at 9:27 of the second. He knocked Carlile’s pass out of the air at the top of the crease.
The goal was initially disallowed for a high stick, but video review showed Kindel’s stick was below the crossbar. Pittsburgh carried the 1-0 edge into the third.
Iafallo pulled Winnipeg even at 4:43. Isak Rosen’s shot produced a rebound that deflected off Erik Karlsson’s stick, and Iafallo collected it below the goal line before slipping the puck inside the right post.
Lowry put the Jets ahead 2-1 at 7:08, using his backhand on a loose puck near the crease after Iafallo drove hard to the net.
Pittsburgh answered at 8:53 when Carlile stepped into the slot and beat Stevenson off a feed from Kindel. Carlile, who entered the season with two NHL goals in 46 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning, has now scored in consecutive contests.
The tie lasted only nine seconds. Josh Morrissey set up Perfetti high in the zone, and the forward fired a one-timer past Murashov at 9:02 for the deciding goal.
Winnipeg had also won 3-2 in Detroit on Sunday. Pittsburgh, which had opened 2-0-0 while outscoring opponents 13-5, took its first setback of the young season.
