Mark Scheifele scored the overtime winner against the San Jose Sharks to secure the Winnipeg Jets' 10th consecutive win and etched his name in franchise history in the process.
The Jets threw everything they had at Vitek Vanecek, and he had an answer each time. That was until a Josh Morrissey slap shot with 25.9 seconds left in the third period snuck through. In overtime, the Jets' first draft pick after the relocation back to Winnipeg left his mark on the game.
The 31-year-old was quickest to the rebound and slid it in between the legs of Vanecek, giving him his 32nd goal of the season and 329th of his career. Ilya Kovalchuk held the record for most goals in Jets/Atlanta Thrashers history, scoring 328 goals in 594 games.
The first stat Scheifele has been able to cross off the list is goals, but he is quickly closing in on several other categories. He trails Blake Wheeler by 42 games, 97 assists and 30 points for first in each statistic. He's also second in power play goals and hat tricks, trailing Kovalchuk.
The longest-serving Jet spoke to the media following the game and talked about what setting the franchise record means to him.
"He wouldn’t believe it, that’s for sure. A kid from Kitchener, playing with the Kitchener Dutchman way back when I was 16, I never would have believed you. All you’ve got to do is trust in God’s plan, and that’s what I’ve done."
Before signing his seven-year, $8.25M AAV extension on Oct. 9, 2023, intense rumours had swirled about whether Scheifele had a long-term future with the organization. GM Kevin Cheveldayoff decided to re-sign Scheifele, and the move has paid off.
In the first season of the seven-year deal, Scheifele will not only break multiple Jets records but will set them at heights incredibly difficult to reach.
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