Jets get much-needed depth scoring in victory over Sabres

WINNIPEG – Jets head coach Scott Arniel got the secondary scoring he was looking for from unlikely sources Friday. 

Depth forwards Cole Koepke and Tanner Pearson each had a goal in Winnipeg’s 4-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. 

“When your fourth line can do that and score you two goals, that’s a big game-changer, especially in the second period of a tight game,” Arniel said. “We did a good job of not trying to open it up, and when those guys get an opportunity like that, a breakaway, 2-on-1 or 2-on-0, whatever it was, that’s big for our group. 

“I don’t know if you saw our bench? Our bench was pretty excited about it as well. It just takes a little bit of heat off everyone.”

Top-liner Kyle Connor scored his team-leading 15th goal of the season and linemate Gabriel Vilardi added an empty-netter. Eric Comrie made 34 saves. 

Winnipeg (14-12-1) had only registered goals from forwards other than Connor, Vilardi and Mark Scheifele in one of its previous seven games. 

“It’s huge for us,” Koepke said of his line’s contribution. “We haven’t quite had a game like that for us this year. We’ve been just really working at it, and have just been trying to continue to build our game. It was great for us as a line, and the team was rolling as well, so it’s even better when it comes in a win.” 

Koepke was a free-agent signing during the summer and has one goal and three assists through 18 games. 

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stopped 19 shots for Buffalo (11-13-4), which was playing the second contest of a season-long six-game road trip. 

After Connor scored 4:24 into the game, Jason Zucker tied it up with five minutes left in the first. 

Pearson scored the go-ahead goal at 2:22 of the second on a breakaway after a pass from Koepke, then Koepke used a backhand to bury his goal with 1:18 left in the period. 

“I knew there was a good chance (Koepke) was behind me,” Pearson said. “He said afterwards that he probably picked the guy to give me more time. Thankfully, it did.” 

Pearson was also a free-agent add and has four goals and one assist in 25 games. 

The Jets headed straight to the plane after the victory for a flight to Edmonton for Saturday’s tilt against the Oilers. 

While Winnipeg is 2-5-1 in its past eight games, the club is also trending upward and is 2-1-1 in its last four. 

The players redeemed themselves after a 5-1 loss to the Sabres on Monday in Buffalo — a blowout that sparked a players-only meeting following the team’s fifth loss in six outings. 

“I thought tonight as a whole we did a better job,” Arniel said. “As much as you saw their speed, I thought we did a really good job of getting numbers back whenever possible. 

“It was a solid game where we forced them to play in their end a lot more, certainly more than we did down in Buffalo and we were rewarded for it.” 

WORLD CUP FEVER

Switzerland native and Jets forward Nino Niederreiter will be cheering for two teams at the same time when the World Cup rolls around next year. 

Canada’s draw was announced Friday, with the 27th-ranked squad facing off against No. 17 Switzerland, No. 51 Qatar and the winner of a European playoff in March. 

The Canadians take on Switzerland in Vancouver on June 24. 

“I know the national team coach of Switzerland very well,” Niederreiter said of Murat Yakin. “He’s a pretty good friend of mine, so it’s exciting. When I saw the draw and they play against Canada, it’s kind of cool to see. (Canada) is a home away from home for me so it’s great to cheer both on.

“But at the same time, I’m definitely hoping the Swiss are going to go far.” 

Niederreiter’s father-in-law knows Yakin and that’s how they met. They even play golf in the summer. 

Niederreiter, 33, has represented Switzerland numerous times, including at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and nine world championships. He’s already been selected to the roster for the 2026 Olympics in Italy. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 6, 2025.