Kyle Connor scored two goals in the third period to open a one-goal game, and Connor Hellebuyck earned his 25th career shutout to help the Winnipeg Jets defeat the Seattle Kraken 3-0 before a sellout crowd on Thursday night at Climate Pledge Arena.
The Kraken (9-15-2, 20 points) need a win Saturday against the Columbus Blue Jackets, underway at 7pm PT (950 KJR / Kraken Audio Network) to salvage a 2-2 homestand. The Kraken dropped back to back losses for the first time since Nov. 17-19, against Chicago and Colorado.
Philipp Grubauer, whose rebound effort helped keep the Kraken within a goal through the first 40 minutes after leaving the game Monday vs. Pittsburgh with three goals on the first four shots, took the loss with 30 saves.
Dominic Toninato put the Jets up 1-0 at 5:24 of the first period, finishing Paul Statsny's feed from behind the net after a Kraken turnover.
Grubauer turned in a pair of impressive saves in the second period, stopping Nikolaj Ehlers on a break, then following up with a glove save after 6-foot-7 defenseman Logan Stanley put his entire frame into a loose-puck slap shot.
Winnipeg (13-9-4, 30 points), whose struggling power play finished the game 31st in the NHL (68.4), turned away five Kraken power plays and won for the fourth time in six games.