The No. 1 overall Winnipeg Jets announced before Game 6 against the Dallas Stars that No. 1 center Mark Scheifele’s father, Brad, had died unexpectedly the night before.
Scheifele told the team he was going to play in Saturday’s game to honor his father. Not only did he play, he opened the scoring in the second period and was a force with nine hits.
The Stars were able to rally when Sam Steel scored in the second period and, late in the third period, Scheifele had to haul down Steel to prevent a breakaway. Thomas Harley scored in overtime before the penalty expired for a series-clinching 2-1 victory.
Scheifele received a lot of respect in the handshake line, including a long hug from Stars captain Jamie Benn, who was fined after Game 5 for sucker punching Scheifele.
The Stars will head to the conference final for the third year in a row. They lost the last two, including last year against the Edmonton Oilers, their next opponent.
USA TODAY provided updates on Game 6 between the Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets. Game highlights:
Thomas Harley connects with a one-timer from the slot at 1:33 with 13 seconds left in the Mark Scheifele penalty. Dallas is heading to its third consecutive Western Conference final with a 2-1 overtime victory. It will be a rematch of the 2024 conference final that Edmonton won.
Things to remember: The Stars have nearly two minutes of a power play. Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey is injured.
Connor Hellebuyck and Jake Oettinger were U.S. goalies at the 4 Nations Face-Off. They showed why by matching big saves in the third period. Hellebuyck stopped Mikko Rantanen in tight and Oettinger robbed Mason Appleton with a diving save. Forget the narrative about home Hellebuyck vs. road Hellebuyck. He has looked good in Dallas.
Mark Scheifele trips Sam Steel with 14.8 seconds left in regulation. First penalty of the game. Should it have been a penalty shot?
Jets kill off the remaining seconds of the period. Power play will extend into overtime.
Still 1-1 after Dallas’ Evgenii Dadonov hits the post.
Oettinger dives across the crease to get a piece of Mason Appleton’s shot with the net wide open.
He’s back on the ice after a collision.
He fights off two defenders for a scoring chance, but his shot goes wide.
The Jets forward is grimacing on the bench after a collision with Miro Heiskanen.
He stretches out and gets his leg on a shot by Mikko Rantanen, who’s left alone in front.
No sign of injured Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey.
Heartbroken Mark Scheifele is having a dominant performance. Not only did he score, he has nine hits through two periods. He opened the scoring but Sam Steel tied it up with his first goal of the playoffs. Shots were 12-8 Winnipeg in that period. Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey left the game with what appears to be a leg injury.
The Jets defenseman is limping after being involved in a collision with Mikko Rantanen.
Sam Steel, who had a good chance in the first period, connects this time. He walks into a rebound and beats Connor Hellebuyck under the crossbar at 11:12. Stars 1, Jets 1
The Jets get their first sustained pressure and connect. Nikolaj Ehlers is stopped on a breakaway and with the Stars on a delayed penalty, Scheifele picks up a rebound and beats Jake Oettinger at 5:28. Jets 1, Stars 0
Still scoreless.
Considering the Jets have a minus-5 goal differential in the first period in the playoffs, they have to be happy to escape with the scoreless tie. The Stars did control a lot of the play, but not a lot of their shots got through. Shot attempts are 26-12 Dallas. Shots on net are 6-3. Connor Hellebuyck makes a chest save on Lian Bichsel and a pad save on Matt Duchene. Jake Oettinger stopped the Jets’ best chance, by Cole Perfetti.
Dallas was in the Winnipeg zone for nearly two minutes. Three shots on net. Shot attempts widely in Stars favor.
Dallas’ Tyler Seguin shoots wide of an open net.
No shots yet for Winnipeg. Dallas has two.
Connor Hellebuyck makes a save on Mikko Rantanen early.
Game 6 of the Stars-Jets series is at 8 p.m. ET in Dallas.
The NHL roster report shows that Mark Scheifele will be out for the opening faceoff and center his usual line with Kyle Connor and Gabriel Vilardi. The Stars will start with the Roope Hintz-Mikael Granlund-Mikko Rantanen line.
Jets coach Scott Arniel said Mark Scheifele will play in Game 6 after the death of his father.
“He said that would be the wishes of his dad, that he would want him to play,” Arniel said. “I know he’s been rooting us on.”
Jets captain Adam Lowry reflected on Brad Scheifele, Mark’s father, who died unexpectedly. He said he had seen him numerous times during the team’s fathers’ trips.
“The energy that he had was unmatched,” Lowry said. “His joy and excitement for life, he really passed that down on to Mark. I think his positivity, his outlook on life, just a genuinely happy person. A terrible loss, obviously.”
He added: “It’s tough to put into words how gutted we all feel for Mark and his family.”
Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said Saturday afternoon that star forward Mark Scheifele’s father, Brad, died overnight.
“As an organization, we’re doing everything we can to support him and give his family our most sincere condolences,” he said.
He said coach Scott Arniel was heading to the team hotel to talk to Scheifele and would provide an update later.
Dallas Stars fans on reddit asked people to make $55 contributions to charities supported by Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele in honor of the player and his late father. Scheifele wears No. 55.
Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck is 0-5 on the road this postseason with a 5.84 goals-against average and a .793 save percentage. In his last game in Dallas, he gave up three goals on 24 shots. He had a shutout while at home in his last game.
The Jets lost all three road games in the first round against the St. Louis Blues with goalie Connor Hellebuyck being pulled in each game. They played better in Dallas in the second round but lost both of those games to drop to 0-5 on the road this postseason. Their road losing streak is nine games stretching back to 2023.
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