Mikael Granlund wins first professional playoff hat trick as the star beats the top seed Jets in 3-1 series

DALLAS (AP) — Mikael Granlund defeated Winnipeg 3-1 on Tuesday night for his first career playoff hat-trick, and Jake Oettinger defeated Winnipeg 3-1 on Tuesday night to lead the Western Conference playoff second round.

Mikko Rantanen raised his NHL-leading playoff total to 19 points (9 goals) on Granlund's second goal, which broke the 1-1 score with 2:08 left in the second phase and put the stars ahead.

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Granlund made a double fist pump from his knees and then suddenly jumped to the skates after his third goal, in the fourth of these playoffs, in a powerful game with 12:37 left. The 33-year-old striker scored only once in his first 69 playoff games, Minnesota in 2014.

Game 5 will be held in Winnipeg on Thursday, when the stars will have the first chance to reach the Western Conference Finals for the third consecutive year.

Nikolaj Ehlers scored for the Jets, who lost all five road games in the playoffs.

The main assist for the third Grand Lund goal came from Miro Heiskanen, the first 10-game playoff appearance since January 28 in its last 32 regular season games and knee injury, a prominent defensive player in the roster.

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It was shortly after Kyle Connor's kick in the first half of Kyle Connor's double fine against Haydn Fleury. Grand Lund scored before the four-minute fine ended.

Granlund scored his first goal after skating Brandon Tanev near the midfield after two blue lines, and then hit Connor Hellebuyck, who shot 38-foot shot in just 8 1/2 minutes of the game to lead 1-0.

Since winning the first game in Las Vegas in 2023, Hellebuyck has now lost the playoffs to nine consecutive playoff road games. The two-time Vezina Trophy winner is a favorite of odds for the highest goalkeeper award this season, allowing 24 goals in five road losses in these playoffs.

The Jets started in Phase 2 with one minute left in the power play, while Dallas technically killed the tripping free throw. But Ehlers scored from a serious angle, his shot from the rounded round to the left, under the goalkeeper's legs, entered the network as Tyler Seguin was out of the box.

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