Jets Beat Penguins 2-1 For 1st Win: Kyle Wellwood Scores 8 Seconds Into The Game (VIDEO)
WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- Kyle Wellwood scored 8 seconds into the game, and the reborn Winnipeg Jets earned their first win by beating the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1 on Monday night.
Tanner Glass netted Winnipeg's other goal, Alex Burmistrov had two assists, and Ondrej Pavelec stopped 28 shots to earn the win for the Jets – formerly the Atlanta Thrashers.
Zbynek Michalek had the only goal for Pittsburgh, which got 33 saves from Marc-Andre Fleury.
Heading into the game, the Jets (1-3) were one of three winless NHL teams. The other two, the New York Rangers and Columbus Blue Jackets, were idle Monday.
Pittsburgh (3-2-2), which played without top forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, has lost two in a row.
After the opening faceoff at raucous MTS Centre, passes between Nik Antropov and Burmistrov ended with Wellwood beating Fleury. Wellwood tied former Thrashers player Ron Petrovicky for the franchise's fastest goal.
Winnipeg went up 2-0 with just over a minute left in the first period when Burmistrov stole the puck from defenseman Kris Letang along the boards. Burmistrov sent the puck over to Glass in the high slot and he fired a shot through the legs of a screened Fleury.
Pittsburgh got within 2-1 with 1:38 left in the second period when Michalek scored from just inside the blue line.
Letang assisted on the goal, giving him seven points this season, including one goal. Letang had been tied with Ottawa's Erik Karlsson for most points by a defenseman.
Pittsburgh, which is playing 13 games in the first 24 days this season, was without Malkin (knee) and Tyler Kennedy (concussion-like symptoms). Crosby (concussion) also stayed home as he continues his recovery from his injury sustained in January.
NOTES: Winnipeg was missing forward Evander Kane, who sat out because of an undisclosed lower body injury. Defenseman Ron Hainsey left the game in the second period with an upper body injury and didn't return. ... The Jets outshot the Penguins 35-29.
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10/18/11 12:44 AM ET Associated Press