The Minnesota Wild are running away with Game 3, with much of the damage coming in the second period, including what must have been a dizzying sequence of events for the Winnipeg Jets.
14:40 into the second period: Eric Staal scored his first goal of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Just 20 seconds later (15 minutes into the second period): Jordan Greenway made it 5-2 for Minnesota, scoring his first career NHL goal.
About one minute after Staal’s 4-2 goal: Tyler Myers took an awkward fall into the boards thanks to a collision with Marcus Foligno. PHT will keep an eye out for updates on Myers’ condition beyond missing the remainder of Game 3; it looked scary at first, although Myers looked a bit better as he was leaving the ice.
Here’s video of Myers’ injury:
Myers scored his second goal of the series earlier in the second period, seemingly giving the Jets a real shot at tying things up. Instead, the game’s gotten away from Winnipeg being that Foligno scored a late goal in the middle frame to expand the lead to 6-2.
[NBC’s Stanley Cup Playoff Hub]
Defenceman Tyler Myers will not return to tonight’s game.
— Winnipeg Jets PR (@WpgJetsPR) April 16, 2018
Post-game update:
The third period was quiet, as Minnesota ended up winning by that 6-2 score to reduce Winnipeg’s series lead to 2-1.
Much was made about how the Wild play better hockey at home in Minnesota, and tonight’s performance validated that notion. It has to be heartening to Bruce Boudreau’s crew that Devan Dubnyk allowed a goal or two that he’d like to have back - including to Winnipeg’s deadly power play - and yet the Wild took control of the game and won.
Foligno: "This win gives us a lot of confidence. We can beat this team." #mnwild
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) April 16, 2018
The Wild hope to tie the series (while Winnipeg aims for a 3-1 lead) in Game 4, which takes place on Tuesday. You can catch the contest on CNBC beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.