Wild loses again to Winnipeg; Dean Evason says team 'soft' in front of net

WINNIPEG — No one on the Wild flung off their gloves to brawl.

Pushing after the play was uncommon, and even the shoving between whistles wasn't overt.

After getting shut out in a slugfest last week that included three scraps and led to one suspension, the Wild didn't initiate Round 2 in its return to Winnipeg eight days later for a rematch.

The team also didn't put up a fight with its performance, getting crushed by its Central Division rivals 6-3 on Wednesday in front of 12,527 at Canada Life Centre to split the season series 2-2.

"Just disappointed to lose points against a team that is beatable," Wild forward Marcus Foligno said.

In its last 10 games, the Wild has lost only twice and both setbacks came courtesy the Jets.

Winnipeg's Mark Scheifele scored a natural hat trick and picked up an assist, captain Blake Wheeler assisted on four goals including Scheifele's hat trick, and goaltender Connor Hellebuyck had 33 saves after a 27-save shutout vs. the Wild on Feb. 8.

Ever since that 2-0 loss by the Wild, the reunion felt like the most intriguing date on the calendar.

An unpenalized hit by the Jets' Brenden Dillon on Foligno in that game sparked two simultaneous fights and a third tussle broke out in the third period — the second of the night between Foligno and Winnipeg's Adam Lowry.

Foligno was suspended two games for kneeing Lowry during that confrontation, and his first game back in the lineup just so happened to be against the Jets.

But if any animosity lingered between the two sides, the action on the ice didn't show it.

"It seemed like a real flat game early," Wild coach Dean Evason said. "Sometimes that happens obviously if there's a buildup to how physical it's going to be."

A shot by captain Jared Spurgeon banked off Joel Eriksson Ek and behind Hellebuyck at 10 minutes, 29 seconds of the first period for Eriksson Ek's 15th goal of the season and Spurgeon's third assist in the past two games. But despite snagging the lead, the Wild still wasn't sharp and just how off the team was became apparent in the second period when Winnipeg seized control.

"We're seeing, a little more now, little lapses in our game where we're just not as desperate as we should be and it cost us," defenseman Alex Goligoski said.

BOXSCORE: Winnipeg 6, Wild 3

Scheifele tied the score at 1 when he redirected in a Wheeler pass at 11:20 after peeling away from traffic in front. Then, with 12 seconds to go in the second, Scheifele converted from the half-wall on the power play to help Winnipeg go 1-for-2; the Wild blanked on its two power plays.

Only 1:07 into the third period, Scheifele polished off his second hat trick of the season when he whacked in another setup from Wheeler.

"We were soft in front of our net," Evason said. "There were some plays that we usually take care of in around our goaltenders. They had so many pucks at open nets and open looks. We usually take care of that back side, and we didn't."

After the hats were cleared off the ice, another Jets-themed celebration ensued — this time because Cole Perfetti capitalized on a deflection at 2:23 en route to his two-point effort.

The Wild finally responded when Mats Zuccarello scored from inside the left faceoff circle at 4:20, but Winnipeg added a fifth goal on a Kyle Connor breakaway at 10:02 before a Paul Stastny empty-netter at 17:50 after Dmitry Kulikov registered the Wild's league-leading 14th goal at 6-on-5 with 3:14 remaining. Zuccarello and Kirill Kaprizov assisted on the play, their second points of the game.

Cam Talbot had 25 saves for the Wild, suffering his first loss in five starts.

The Wild won't face the Jets again in the regular season, but the issues the team had in Winnipeg could continue to haunt it if they make the trip back to Minnesota.

"Give them credit, they're working for their playoff lives," Foligno said of the Jets, who are 13 points behind the No. 2 Wild in the division. "Everyone is. It's going to be more emotional, more desperate teams down the stretch with the last little bit of games here, and that's the hockey we need to start expecting from ourselves."