Winnipeg, MB (SportsNetwork.com) - Paul Maurice's coaching debut with Winnipeg was a successful one as the Jets took a 5-1 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes on Monday.
Following a season-worst fifth-straight loss, a 6-3 decision against Columbus on Saturday, Winnipeg fired head coach Claude Noel on Sunday and replaced him with Maurice, who hadn't coached in the NHL since getting fired by Carolina in November of 2011.
"I think we did a good job of being ready to play tonight," said Winnipeg winger Andrew Ladd. "We have some more work to do in getting down his system that he wants us to play, but we have plenty of time to get it going and make a push for the playoffs."
Olli Jokinen, Blake Wheeler, Devin Setoguchi, Eric O'Dell and Michael Frolik all scored for the Jets, who got 18 stops from Ondrej Pavelec.
Oliver-Ekman Larsson scored the only goal of the game for the Coyotes, who have dropped five of six. Mike Smith allowed all five goals on 38 shots.
"You can start anywhere and we have to show improvement," said Phoenix head coach Dave Tippett. "Our goalies have to do better, our defense has to be better and our top forwards have to do better, it's as simple as that."
Ekman-Larsson scored on the power play at 12:16 of the first to get Phoenix on the board, but Jokinen lit the lamp 36 seconds later to tie the game and send the hosts on a winning course.
The Jets went up for good at the 18-minute mark of the first, as O'Dell beat Smith with a quick snap shot from the slot after grabbing a loose puck.
"Our compete level and energy level of our group," said Maurice. "They did the one thing we had talked about that when adversity came to the doorstep that next goal was huge. The bench didn't get quiet, we stayed positive and that's the start of the foundation of handing adversity over the course of the game and sticking with it."
It was a 3-1 game at 8:49 of the second as Mark Scheifele threw a shot on net from the right boards that was stopped, but Wheeler was in front to tuck in the rebound.
Winnipeg took a 4-1 lead at 4:18 of the third after Frolik's wrister from the left circle fooled Smith, and Setoguchi scored on the power play near the midway point to cap the scoring in the game.
Game Notes
Winnipeg plays in Calgary on Thursday ... Phoenix plays at St. Louis on Tuesday ... These teams didn't meet last season, and split a pair of games in the 2011-12 campaign ... Phoenix went 1-for-2 on the power play, while Winnipeg finished the game 1-for-8.
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