Epic Jets comeback among takeaways from thrilling 2-OT win in Game 7 against Blues
Dave Lowry scored the series winner at 16:10 of the second overtime, when he deflected Neal Pionk's shot from the just inside the blue line past Blues goalie Jordan Binnington.
The Jets largely dominated each overtime period, but Binnington was outstanding, keeping the score tied 3-3 after the Blues blew a two-goal lead late in the third period. Binnington stopped 11 shots in the first overtime, including a Hadyn Fleury slap shot that hit a stick in front and dove down quickly, forcing the Blues goalie to make an unreal left-pad save. Binnington also denied Nikolaj Ehlers on a partial breakaway.
Advertisement
Winnipeg was stopped seven more times in the second OT and hit a post before Lowry ended this one with his third goal of the series.
That the Jets even reached overtime was pretty incredible. With the Jets trailing 3-1 and goalie Connor Hellebuyck pulled for an extra attacker, they got a goal from Vladislav Namestnikov at 18:04 to make things interesting. With Hellebuyck again on the bench, Cole Perfetti scored his second of the night, this one off a perfect deflection at 19:57.
The Blues raced to a 2-0 lead in the first period and never trailed until Lowry's overtime heroics finished them off. Jordan Kyrou scored just 1:10 into the game and grinding forward Mathieu Joseph doubled their lead at 7:16.
Advertisement
Jets coach Scott Arniel said his team was nervous at the start but settled in as the game wore on. They pulled to within 2-1 on Perfetti's power-play goal at 11:41 of the second period, another pretty deflection. But Radek Faksa answered back for the Blues at 19:25, scoring his first of the series off the rush, to make it 3-1 St. Louis.
It would be the Blues' final goal of the series. Hellebuyck faced only 13 shots the rest of the way — only four each in the third period and first overtime — and stopped them all.
Related: NHL Games Today: 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs Schedule, Dates, Times, and Results
3 takeaways after Jets eliminate Blues with Game 7 win in double overtime
Credit: James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images
1. Resilient Jets
This was a super resilient effort by the Jets, one that saved their season. Not only did they have that epic comeback late in the third period, but they did it without two of their most important players.
Advertisement
They were without No. 1 center Mark Scheifele for the second straight game due to an unspecified injury. Then the Jets lost their top defenseman Josh Morrissey in the first period. He left the game following Joseph's goal put the Jets in a 2-0 hole.
But others stepped up in a massive way for their brothers. Pionk had three assists, including on Namestnikov's goal and Lowry's game-winner, and played nearly half the game with a whopping 46:15 TOI. HIs defense partner Dylan Samberg logged an even 44 minutes; and Dylan Demelo was out there more than 36 minutes.
Up front Kyle Connor played 36:08 and had three assists; Namestnikov saw more key minutes (25+) and scored a hugely important goal; and Perfetti netted a pair.
Also Read:: NHL free agency: Top forwards available in 2025, including Mitch Marner
2. Game 7 history
This was the 200th Game 7 in Stanley Cup Playoff history and the 50th decided in overtime. Interestingly, the previous Game 7 to go to overtime was exactly one year ago — May 4, 2024 — when David Pastrnak scored the series-winner for the Boston Bruins in a 2-1 first round victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Advertisement
You have to go back to April 30, 2023 for the most recent Game 7 decided in multiple overtimes. That was when Carter Verhaeghe lifted the Florida Panthers to a 4-3 win in triple overtime to eliminate the Bruins in the first round.
Of course, this was the second Game 7 in as many days in these Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Dallas Stars overcame a 2-0 deficit in the third period by scoring four unanswered goals for the 4-2 win. The Stars and Jets will meet in a best-of-7 second-round series beginning Wednesday in Winnipeg.
3. It really is 'Win'ipeg
The Jets won 30 times at Canada Life Centre this season. Only the Carolina Hurricanes and Los Angeles Kings (each with 31) had more victories at home in the regular season.
And it really was 'Win'ipeg in this first-round series against the Blues. The Jets won all four games played in the 'Peg, scoring four goals or more three times and outscoring the Blues 16-10. On the road, the Jets were 0-3 and totaled just five goals. Worse, Hellebuyck was pulled in each of those games.
The good news for the Jets is that they have home-ice advantage for the entirety of the postseason, earning that right as the Presidents' Trophy winner with the League's best record in the regular season.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
5 hours ago
- New York Post
Jets' team leaders run walk-through the day after loss to Giants
Take flight with the Jets Text with Brian Costello all season as he brings Sports+ subscribers the latest Jets intel from on the field and off. tRY IT NOW The Jets held a walk-through Sunday, the day after their loss to the Giants. There was a twist: It was run by the players. No coordinators or assistant coaches were on hand, only head coach Aaron Glenn, there to oversee the one-hour workout. Advertisement The idea for it was Glenn's. It was something the Lions used to do on occasion. Players were in charge of directing the drills and situations, calling plays and instructing one another. Linebacker Jamien Sherwood called the plays for the defense, and quarterback Justin Fields handled the calls for the offense. Advertisement Justin Field ran the walk-through for the defense the day after the Jets' preseason loss to the Giants. Bill Kostroun / New York Post '[It was] an ownership thing. Also us owning the calls, owning the defense, really leaning into what it is our coaches are going to be calling and why are they calling it, and can we even step in and predict it as a defense?' free safety Andre Cisco said. 'It was just players-led from that standpoint. We took ownership of how many reps we were going to get, and just holding guys accountable, how we're getting the ball, executing the calls. It was effective. '[Glenn] said this is something that he envisions his team being, a player-driven team. So those player-driven practices are a way to enforce it.' Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood ran the walk-through for the defense the day after Gang Green's preseason loss to the Giants. Bill Kostroun / New York Post Advertisement The Jets added needed depth to their defensive front Wednesday, trading for a pair of defensive tackles: Harrison Phillips of the Vikings and Jowon Briggs of the Browns. Of the two, the 6-foot-3, 307-pound Phillips is the more experienced, entering his eighth season. In 17 games last season, he had 56 tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble. Advertisement The Jets landed him in exchange for second-round picks in 2026 and 2027. They sent Cleveland a 2026 sixth-round pick and also received a seventh-rounder in 2026 for the 6-foot-1, 313-pound Briggs. A seventh-round pick in 2024, he recorded 13 tackles in six games for the Browns last year. The Jets were in search of depth up front behind star Quinnen Williams. Get the insider's view on Gang Green Sign up for Inside the Jets by Brian Costello, a weekly Sports+ exclusive. Thank you Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Enjoy this Post Sports+ exclusive newsletter! Check out more newsletters Wide receivers coach Shawn Jefferson said in his nearly two decades working with wideouts he has only coached one receiver faster than rookie Arian Smith: Rondale Moore. The key is Smith, a rookie fourth-round pick, translating that blinding speed into production. 'You got to play with that speed all the time because speed kills in this league,' Jefferson said. 'If you have it, it's a luxury, and when you don't have it, it's a detriment. His thing is playing full speed all the time, which he does. Also, learning how to control that speed in routes.'
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Why the Jets' run-first mentality means keeping Breece Hall
Yahoo Sports host Andrew Siciliano and NFL writer Charles McDonald discuss the talks around New York potentially dealing its former second round pick and why a change in offense under new head coach Aaron Glenn makes them one of the more fascinating teams in football. Hear the full conversation on 'Inside Coverage' - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen. View more Video Transcript I'm fascinated, Charles, by the Jets this year because, you know, Fields was one to five passing last week. I really couldn't care less, but they've made it clear they're gonna run the bleeping football. And if you're drafting right now, Braxton Allen ahead of Bruce Hall clearly in your fantasy draft. Um, Aaron Glenn was asked about trading Bruce Hall, second round pick, had a great start to his career out of Iowa State, then the big knee injury. He's clearly still a very very good back, but Braxton Allen is just a bowling ball at 21 years old, and he's gonna be the guy. He said, no, we're not trading Bruce Hall. Like, we're gonna run the ball. And someone came back and said, well, isn't this kind of a passing league? And he said, hey, who says it's a passing league? The team that won the Super Bowl, what were they in passing, meaning the Eagles? He goes, they were 29th. And what were they in running? They were first. You can win in this league by running the football. Kevin Stefanski's revamping his run game, brought in Mike Bloomgren, the former Stanford O-line coach and the former Rice head coach to go back to what they did here in 2020 and 2021 and 2023 as defenses get smaller and smaller. In response to teams spreading it out. It goes back the other way. Offenses like the Jets go, we're gonna go big and we're gonna run it right at you. Yeah, it's football at its purest form because, at the end of the day, this sport is still about big people being able to move other big people. And that's what the Jets are gonna try to do. When you look at their offensive line, there's a lot of pedigree here. Oluasannu, sorry, left tackle, was the first round pick last year down the stretch, when he took over at left tackle for the final month of the season last year, he looked incredible. They've got Barry Tucker, who's been injured, but even still, through the injuries, he's been fantastic this preseason. First round rookie Arman Benbow. They've got Josh Myers competing with former second round pick, Joe Titman from Wisconsin. So, like, there's a lot of investment put into This offensive line, and I think, I think they're gonna have a good year up front, which should let them run the ball. Now the pass is gonna be inconsistent because I think that's just, you know, kind of who Justin Fields is. A player, but man, they're going to run the crap out of the ball. And even when you look at where their running back room is, I look at, look at their personnel and look at how their running back room is, is is, uh, constructed. And you have Raylan, uh, Raylan Allen who is, you know, the bulldozer back, and I think at this point in his career we've kind of figured out Bruce Hall, maybe more work on the receiving side where you can kind of get in space and really explode down the field, that's tough to defend, um, and you got, uh, hopefully, you know, a pretty good coaching staff coming over from the Lions, uh, kind of trying to put that together. So it's, it's gonna be a much different offense than what you saw last year with Aaron Rodgers and how many times they're trying to throw it, but, uh, it's gonna be refreshing because I think there's still a way to win games in this in this league, and the Eagles were the extreme version of it, obviously, with just really good defense and running the ball. Close
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Why the Jets may be 'boom or bust' with Justin Fields
Yahoo Sports NFL analyst Nate Tice and fantasy analyst Matt Harmon discuss how New York's offense may look with its new quarterback this season. Hear the full conversation on 'Football 301' - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen. View more Video Transcript I have settled on, as we've gotten closer to the season, that the Justin Fields-like idea of this offense. It's gonna be one of those things that, like, you talk yourself into in March and April, you know, when there are no actual games on, be like, you know, this team could be respectable. Like this, this team could be respectable with Justin Fields at quarterback, and Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall on this offensive line, and then we're in December and like Tyrod Taylor starting games. I don't know. I, I just, like to me, I think Fields is what he is. We talked about this yesterday. I don't necessarily totally know how he fits in what I imagine this offense wants to be, from a pass game standpoint. I don't love Fields, who's a little bit too robotic as a passer anyways and as a processor. I hate just giving him one option, and which is all you've got in this passing game. Like, we're looking at Tyler Johnson on the depth chart. Tyler Johnson has played for like 11 freaking teams. Josh Reynolds, Josh Reynolds got cut by the Jaguars this offseason, so I didn't even know he was on the Jaguars. Like Mason Tolliver is a 2nd round rookie tight end that. Yeah, like what are we, what are we talking about? So it's just, it's, it's so much. Justin Fields is so much like a touchdown to checkdown passer. He's, that is who he has become. And Garrett Wilson's a guy you want to feed a lot of targets in the intermediate area. I just, I just, I'm. Again, I, I, I've gone from being like, oh, that was a pretty nice little signing by the Jets to just be respectable to now I just, I, I just feel like this is gonna end up being one of the worst passing games in the league, so really depressing to start this off. Fields. The archetype of this player is Hertz, is one guy, Russell Wilson is the other guy, Daniel Jones is another guy. They are, those guys, they play almost exactly the same. They don't throw over the middle. They throw beautiful goal balls, but Daniel Jones doesn't throw them, so he's a little bit different. They scramble a ton. They're very good scramblers. They take a lot of sacks, and they're just, and they're bad in the quick game. So it's a unique style. You can make it work. The freaking Eagles just won the Super Bowl, making this work, but you need a great run game, okay? Jets can get there, but you also need dudes on the outside. If you're only going to throw to the outside, I need not one, but two real players on the outside, not saying both have to be All-Pro receivers, but guys that can tangibly win on the outside. That's the only way this offense can work. It's not adding up to me, and I think it's gonna be very boom or bust, the most extreme boom or bust kind of passing game you can picture, um, but positive sides, you know, the run game could be cool. Close
