WINNIPEG — Connor Hellebuyck admitted it was difficult to stay patient as he was reaching a milestone of 300 NHL career wins.
After being in net for a pair of losses, the Winnipeg Jets goalie finally accomplished that feat in Tuesday’s 5-2 victory over the Nashville Predators.
“It feels good,” said Hellebuyck, who had 26 saves in the victory. “The anticipation was killing me a little bit.
“That’s not how I played it out this week, but the guys played so hard in front of me and the crowd was incredible tonight. That’s a very memorable one.”
Hellebuyck became the third-fastest NHL netminder to reach 300 wins (300-179-43) in 538 regular-season games. The only other goaltenders to accomplish the milestone faster are Andrei Vasilevskiy (490 games played) and Jacques Plante (521).
The Michigan product is also the fastest U.S.-born netminder in NHL history to reach the 300-win mark, the 41st goalie overall to notch 300 victories and the 30th to have 300 victories and at least 40 shutouts (he has 42).
Plante is the only netminder to tally 300 wins and 40-plus shutouts at a faster pace.
“You know, for the longest time I was just playing. Taking it day-by-day, having fun, working hard and trying to get better,” Hellebuyck said.
“As you get a little older in this league and things start to happen and you start to achieve some things, that kind of sets in and you start to realize that you’re doing some great things.”
The 10-year veteran was Winnipeg’s fifth-round selection in the 2015 draft (130th overall).
Hellebuyck leads the league with 25 wins (25-6-2) and has five shutouts this season.
When he was selected the game’s first star, he grabbed the Jets' logo on the front of his jersey as 13,105 fans at Canada Life Centre cheered.
“I was trying to share the moment with the fans,” Hellebuyck said. “At the heart of our game, we’re kind of entertainers. They’ve been with us through the start of this. Everyone that was in the crowd tonight, I was trying to give them a piece of that emotion that I was feeling.”
The two-time and reigning Vezina Trophy winner also thanked the organization and his teammates.
Hellebuyck led a team effort Tuesday in downing the Predators, who were 1-for-7 on the power play. Winnipeg scored on its lone man advantage.
Morgan Barron and Josh Morrissey scored 16 seconds apart in the first period to get the Jets on their way.
Kyle Connor, Gabriel Vilardi and Nino Niederreiter also had goals for Winnipeg (28-12-2), which halted a three-game losing skid (0-2-1). Mark Scheifele added a pair of assists.
“He very much embraces Winnipeg, and I think Winnipeg embraces him,” Barron said of Hellebuyck. “That’s really cool to see, the connection that such a great player has with such a great city.”
He was also glad Hellebuyck didn’t have to keep waiting for the milestone.
“I know we kind of let him down to get that 300th win for him a few times, but it was really cool for him to get it, especially in that fashion,” Barron said. “He made some huge saves for us at the end there.”
Filip Forsberg ended an 18-game scoring drought with his 10th of the season for the Predators (13-21-7), who finished a season-high six-game road trip (2-4-0). Juuse Saros made 25 saves for Nashville and Roman Josi also scored.
Forsberg has seen plenty of Hellebuyck during his career.
“He’s been great,” the veteran forward said of Hellebuyck. “He’s been probably their best player since he came into this league.
“They have a good system in front of him, too. It makes it somewhat easy. I wouldn’t call it easy, he’s obviously made some great saves, but I think the combination of those two obviously is a winning factor for these guys. He keeps showing up.”
Morrissey left the game limping early in the second period after crashing into a goalpost when he was clipped by Scheifele. Coach Scott Arniel said he’ll be assessed Wednesday.
Nashville’s Steven Stamkos and Luke Evangelista left the game during the second period and didn’t return. Coach Andrew Brunette had no update.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 7, 2025.
Judy Owen, The Canadian Press