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Jets blow 2-goal lead, recover to beat Coyotes in SO

Jan 19, 2015 - 4:37 AM Winnipeg, MB (SportsNetwork.com) - Bryan Little registered the lone marker in the shootout and Winnipeg blew a late two-goal lead but rebounded to top Arizona by a 4-3 count at MTS Centre.

Little began the third and final round by beating Mike Smith high to the glove side and under the crossbar. Shane Doan could have kept the game going, but shot into the pads of Ondrej Pavelec to end the contest.

"We didn't make it easy on ourselves," Little said. "You know that's an area we've been pretty good at this year, is holding leads and playing good third periods. But tonight we let it slip a bit. I mean it still feels good to get both points."

Little, Dustin Byfuglien and Michael Frolik scored in regulation for the Jets, who have won four in a row and pulled into a tie for third place in the Central Division with Chicago at 58 points. Pavelec finished with 28 saves.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Lauri Korpikoski and Tobias Rieder tallied for the Coyotes, who have lost five consecutive games but earned a point for the first time during this dubious run. Smith stopped 27 pucks.

"I like the way we hung around the game," said Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett.

Little staked the Jets to a lead at 4:08 of the first by one-timing an Andrew Ladd feed home to finish a 2-on-1, before Ekman-Larsson's blazing shot from the left circle slipped home at 7:36.

Frolik put the hosts back on top at 1:39 of the second, capitalizing on a misplay by the Coyotes defense. Smith stopped a puck behind his net and dished to Connor Murphy, who fanned on a pass which made it as far as the slot before Frolik tapped it into an open net.

Byfuglien gave Winnipeg a 3-1 edge by finishing off a 2-on-1 break by cradling a Mark Scheifele pass and scoring under the crossbar from the right wing before the midway point of the third period.

Korpikoski's man-advantage score with 6:39 to play made it a one-goal contest again, and Doan's prayer from the blue line was answered on a Rieder deflection in front with 3:50 to play.

Each team failed to convert a power-play chance in the extra session.

Game Notes

Winnipeg improved to 4-4 in shootouts this season, while Arizona fell to 3-3 ... The Jets, who improved to 5-1-1 over their last seven games, played without forward Mathieu Perreault, who is sidelined by a fractured arm sustained from a slash by Chicago Blackhawks forward Daniel Carcillo ... Arizona picked up its first point of season when trailing after two periods (0-17-1) ... Following the contest, Tippett pronounced forward Mikkel Boedker, who saw limited action in the third period and overtime, day- to-day with an upper-body injury.