Winipeg Jets left wing Nikolaj Ehlers celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 18, 2016.Bruce Fedyck
Nikolaj Ehlers isn't particularly interested in personal accolades.
He scored twice and rookie Patrik Laine's three-point outing included his 18th goal of the season early in the second period as the youth in the Winnipeg Jets lineup lifted them to a 4-1 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday afternoon at MTS Centre.
"All I care about is how the team is doing, and the personal comes second," said second-year Jets forward Ehlers, who was named the first star for a second consecutive game. "But it's not that I've been feeling like I haven't played well. I feel really good and am playing with a lot of confidence, and just playing the game and it has worked out."
Mark Scheifele's two assists make him the first Jet to hit the 30-point plateau this season, while Blake Wheeler's ninth goal of the season proved to be the game-winner.
"He's a guy when it rains it pours. He creates a lot of opportunities," said Wheeler of linemate Ehlers. "It was nice to see him get a good look at the goalie and put it where he wanted to."
Connor Hellebuyck made 27 saves for the Jets (15-16-3), improving his personal record to 12-10-1 on the season.
Calvin Pickard got the start in goal for the Avalanche (11-18-1), but his homecoming was spoiled in his first career NHL start in his hometown of Winnipeg.
"That lapse in the third period, I don't know how quickly they scored the two goals, but it was quick and that was the difference in the hockey game," said Pickard, who stopped 26-of-29 shots to drop his record to 5-6-1 on the season. "When we're hard pressed to score goals I have to come up with another big save."
"It's a lot of fun always coming back to Winnipeg and seeing friends and family, and playing in front of them."
Colorado's lone goal came on the power play with just more than two minutes left to play as Jarome Iginla scored his fourth of the season.
Ehlers' second of the game was an empty-netter with 30 seconds remaining. Three of Ehlers' seven goals this season have come in his past four games, after snapping a 15-game drought.
Laine opened the scoring at 7 minutes 6 seconds in the second period, taking a Scheifele feed for a one-timer on a two-on-one rush. Laine's 18 goals keep the 18-year-old securely in third in the NHL goal scoring race behind Boston's David Pastrnak (19) and Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby (21).
"[Scheifele] is a really good passer. He got the pass to me and it was easy to score," Laine said. "I knew he was going to pass so I had to be ready."
Wheeler's ninth of the season also came on a two-on-one rush as Mathieu Perreault set him up at 2:54 of the third.
The Jets penalty kill, which has struggled this season – entering Sunday ranked 28th in the league at 75.6 per cent – killed off two of three Colorado power plays.