WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- If the Winnipeg Jets could play all season long as if they had already been eliminated from the postseason, they'd be going to the playoffs.
Eliminated from the postseason earlier in the week, the Jets (37-35-7) won their fourth game in a row for the first time all season, posting a 4-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night at the MTS Centre.
Connor Hellebuyck stopped 28 of 30 shots to post the victory, including a couple of nifty glove saves late in the game. Mike Condon turned aside 23 of 26 shots at the other end of the ice.
Last year, the Jets (37-35-7) had their only five-game winning streak of the season after they were eliminated from the playoffs.
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Left winger Mathieu Perreault notched the winner with a quick shot from the slot at 7:46 of the third period. His 12th goal of the season was aided by 6-foot-4 Patrik Laine, who provided the screen.
Left winger Nikolaj Ehlers put the game out of reach in the dying seconds with his 24th goal of the season into an empty net.
The Senators (41-27-9) opened the scoring after back-to-back turnovers in the Jets' end by right winger Joel Armia and defenseman Nelson Nogier.
The latter was gift-wrapped right on the tape of Derick Brassard. The Ottawa center quickly found Mike Hoffman to the left of Hellebuyck and the left winger's one-timer found the top corner blocker side at 16:15.
The Senators were also in a giving mood. Center Chris Kelly misjudged the angle of his attempted back pass off the boards behind his own net and the puck squirted in front of Condon, where Jets captain Blake Wheeler scored quite possibly the shortest goal of his career, nudging the puck just a few inches for his 25th of the season at 3:29.
Just 11 seconds later, Hoffman's attempted pass into the slot deflected off Jets center Bryan Little's stick and between Hellebuyck's legs, also for his 25th goal of the year.
The Jets tied the score at 2 after hemming the Senators in their own zone for the entire two minutes of a power play. With four exhausted penalty killers practically tripping over their tongues, defenseman Jacob Trouba's shot was knocked down by Condon but sat in his crease and center Adam Lowry backhanded home his 15th goal of the season at 10:43.
NOTES: Scratches for the Jets were D Paul Postma, D Ben Chiarot, D Toby Enstrom, G Ondrej Pavelec, LW Shawn Matthias and C Marko Dano. Joining them from the Senators were D Mark Methot, C Christopher Didomenico and D Erik Karlsson. ... The Senators' power play is clicking at 17.6 percent (42 of 238) this season. ... The Senators' six-game winning streak in Winnipeg ended. ... The Jets have seven wins after going into the third period with a deficit, including two this week. They had three such wins all of last season.
