Winnipeg, MB – Winnipeg, MB (SportsNetwork.com) - Eric Gryba, Kyle Turris and Mike Hoffman tallied in the second period, leading Ottawa to a 5-3 decision over Winnipeg at MTS Centre.
Milan Michalek added a goal and two assists for the Senators, who managed a split of their four-game Canadian road swing after dropping the previous two.
Ales Hemsky picked up three helpers and Jared Cowen also tallied to back a 46- save effort from Craig Anderson.
"No lead is safe until the game is over and that was the case tonight," said Ottawa head coach Paul MacLean. "Our goaltender really held the fort for us there at the end."
Bryan Little, Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom lit the lamp for the Jets, losers of three in a row and five of seven.
Ondrej Pavelec was pulled after yielding five goals on 20 shots in less than two periods. Al Montoya stopped all 12 shots the rest of the way.
"We've been doing everything we can to keep ourselves in games," said Byfuglien. "There's going to be nights it goes the way it does and that's what happened tonight. We have to find a way, stick to our game plan and just move on."
Gryba made it 3-1 for Ottawa on his diving attempt into an open net at 2:03, but Enstrom beat Anderson on the advantage with 4:15 gone to bring the Jets back to 3-2.
Turris placed a shot under the crossbar at 8:58 and the visitors once again led by two goals, then Jason Spezza fed Hoffman for a one-timer in the right circle -- his first career goal -- to make it 5-2 on the advantage 38 seconds later.
Byfuglien's rip from the boards along the right wing shrunk Winnipeg's deficit to 5-3 at 2:13 of the third, but that was the last time the Jets beat Anderson, who hade 21 stops in the final 20 minutes.
Winnipeg had an extra skater for most of the last two minutes of regulation, but couldn't reduce its deficit further.
Ottawa hit the scoreboard just prior to the midway point of the first period. Michalek accepted a cross-ice feed and shot from the right side. The puck glanced off a Jets defenseman, popped into the air and landed just beyond Pavelec's outstretched arm and over the goal line.
A lengthy review finally determined the puck crossed the line on its edge by millimeters.
Little's power-play marker, a backhander off a Byfuglien rebound, evened the game with 3:01 left, but Cowen managed to bounce one home from the point to restore the Sens' one-goal margin 38 seconds later.
Game Notes
The Senators have won all four games in Winnipeg since the Thrashers franchise arrived from Atlanta prior to the 2011-12 season ... Spezza added three assists for Ottawa ... Both clubs are in action on Monday, as the Senators return home to face Nashville, while the Jets head to Denver.
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