James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images
On Sunday, the Winnipeg Jets punched their ticket to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in dramatic fashion with the help of a game-tying goal in the closing seconds of the third period. Fans almost blew the roof off the Canada Life Center after the puck went in the net, and some guys at a nearby arena also went nuts during a men’s league game that was being played at the same time.
The Winnipeg Jets have made the playoffs more often than not since setting up shop in Manitoba’s capital in 2011, but the team is still in search of its first Stanley Cup since bringing an NHL franchise back to the city that lost the first iteration of the club in 1996 (the team that is now the Minnesota Wild).
They headed into the Stanley Cup Playoffs with very high hopes this year after finishing with the best record in the NHL, although that also meant they had the opportunity to fall victim to the so-called Presidents’ Trophy curse.
The Jets pulled out to a 2-0 lead in the series before the Blues were able to even things up while taking advantage of Connor Hellebuyck, the Winnipeg goaltender who got absolutely shelled in the three road games where he had a .758 save percentage and posted a goals against average of 7.28 (numbers that improved to .879 and 2.33 in front of a friendly crowd.
The series eventually headed back to Winnipeg for Game 7 on Sunday, and things got off to a very inauspicious start after Hellebuyck allowed two goals on the first four shots he faced in the first period. He was able to clean things up as the contest progressed, but the Jets still found themselves down 3-1 when they pulled him to get an extra skater with a little more than three minutes left in the third.
Vladislav Namestnikov narrowed the deficit to one with 1:54 on the clock, and Winnipeg continued to grind until Cole Perfetti gave them the miracle they needed with a deflection to tie things up with just 1.6 seconds remaining.
That moment transpired while some guys in another arena in Winnipeg were partaking in a men’s league contest with slightly lower stakes. Players who were sitting on the bench (as well as a referee standing at center ice) had their eyes glued to the phones they were using to watch the other game, and we were treated to an incredible scene when the Jets forced overtime.
A men’s league in Winnipeg was watching the Jets LIVE during their game, and their reaction to the game-tying goal was PRICELESS 🤣
Even the ref joined in on the celly 😭
(via Carter.polanski/IG) pic.twitter.com/3BjIpoQZlp
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 5, 2025
Winnipeg capped off the victory when Adam Lowry scored in double overtime, and they’ll be facing off against the Stars in the next round after sending St. Louis home.