San Jose defenseman Erik Karlsson reached 100 points this season but couldn’t spark his team to victory as the host Winnipeg Jets beat the Sharks 6-2 on Monday night.
Josh Morrissey had a goal and two helpers for the Jets (45-32-3, 93 points). Mason Appleton, Adam Lowry, Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele each had a goal and an assist. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 19 pucks.
James Reimer made 27 saves for the Sharks (22-42-16, 60 points).
With the victory, Winnipeg needs to register a single point over its final two games against Minnesota and Colorado, respectively, to guarantee a spot in the postseason.
San Jose got on the board 20 seconds into the game when Karlsson scored off a nifty give-and-go for his 99th point of the year.
The Jets responded quickly. On the power play 51 seconds later, Scheifele found Pierre-Luc Dubois in the slot, making it 1-1.
Winnipeg went ahead 2-1 with 12:46 left in the first. Reimer got caught outside his crease as Lowry batted the puck into the undefended net.
The Jets built their lead to 3-1 with 5:34 remaining in the opening frame when Connor tipped in a shot from Dylan DeMelo.
Neither team added to their goal totals in the second.
The Jets struck just 16 seconds into the third period. Appleton potted a rebound off the rush, putting Winnipeg ahead 4-1.
Karlsson got his second goal of the game on the power play with 16:18 still on the clock in the third, getting San Jose back within two.
The goal was Karlsson’s 100th point of the season, marking the 15th time a blue-liner reached 100 points in a season in NHL history and first since Brian Leetch in 1991-92. Bobby Orr has the record with 139 points in 1970-71.
Morrissey wouldn’t let the Sharks gain momentum, as 2:06 later, he went top shelf to get the Jets back up 5-2.
Scheifele grew the lead to 6-2, finishing off a pass from Connor, coming with 12:25 left in the contest.
–Field Level Media
