WINNIPEG — Cole Perfetti was anxious for another shot at the NHL playoffs.
The young Winnipeg Jets forward only played in one of the club's five first-round games last year. Now, Perfetti — coming off his best season as a pro — is looking forward to facing the St. Louis Blues in the first round of this year's NHL post-season.
The best-of-seven series will begin here Saturday.
"I can’t wait to get Game 1 going,” Perfetti said after Winnipeg's 2-1 overtime win over the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday night before the club's 16th sellout of the season at Canada Life Centre. "There’s a lot of anticipation.
"In the second half of the year, it started to feel a little more real, like we’re going to be there, we’re going to be a top seed so we’ve been progressing throughout the year. I only got one taste of it last year … I’m excited for this year.”
The Jets wanted to use Wednesday's contest to prepare for the playoffs.
“We created a lot (offensively), I thought,” Perfetti said. “We wanted to use it as a good tune-up for Game 1 and I thought we played pretty good.
"Their goalie (Ville Husso) played pretty well. We had a lot of great chances and didn’t give up too much and I thought that was a pretty good performance for us.”
Perfetti assisted on Neal Pionk’s second-period goal to give him 50 points on the season for the first time.
Winnipeg beat the Blues 3-1 to snap a 12-game winning streak recently.
“Obviously, they’ve been playing good hockey as of late, since the break,” Perfetti said. “They’re a good team.
"We saw them four or five games ago so we know we can beat them. We’re familiar with them, we know their game. They’re playing well and it’s going to be a fun series.”
Pionk agreed.
“Yeah, can't wait. Best time of year,” he said. “Tonight was just about keeping good habits and making sure we do the right things.
"Now we play for real. It will be a fast, physical series. They’ve had a heck of a run after the break there, one of the hottest teams in the league. We've got to be ready to go.”
Husso made 42 saves — many of them brilliant — and was impressed by the Jets as they head into the playoffs.
“They play a solid game pretty much all 60 minutes,” he said. “Their talent, their skill, and their back end is pretty good.
"It was fun to follow (Jets goalie Connor) Hellebuyck, too. He makes the game look so easy there. They have a good chance, for sure.”
Hellebuyck won the William M. Jennings Trophy for the second year. It is presented annually to the goaltender(s) who play a minimum of 25 games for the team that's allowed the fewest regular-season goals.
Winnipeg allowed just 191 goals this season.
“Winning it two years in a row is pretty impressive, I think,” Perfetti said. "Some nights, it was great team defence, some nights it was Helle (Hellebuyck) or Comms (Eric Comrie) standing on their heads.
"And that’s what you need if you want to be successful in this league and win that trophy."
Jets coach Scott Arniel was pleased with both the Jennings Trophy and that Winnipeg amassed a club-record 116 points this season.
"Again, amazing accomplishment for these guys to put a season together like that,” he said. “I can't credit the players enough for what they've done.
"Just stayed focused, all 82 games. To get it here at the end was special, in front of all our fans."
The players talked about the Jennings from the start, Arniel said.
“We did a lot of team-building stuff at the beginning of the year,” he said. "It was amazing that every group came back (and said) part of our identity, first and foremost, was going to be how we defended like we did last year.
"To be in hockey games, we had enough skill to score goals but everybody knows that when it comes to Game 83 and on, the teams that defend the best are the ones that usually end up at the end of the day holding that trophy.
“It's everybody believing in a certain way to play and that gives you the chance to win hockey games. You back it up with an outstanding goaltender. Goaltenders. That makes it much more difficult to play against us."
Mark Scheifele scored the game-winner in overtime.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on April 16, 2025.
Jim Bender, The Canadian Press
