ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ

“M-V-P! M-V-P!�

“That’s one of those things I’m going to remember for the rest of my life,� Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck told reporters of the chants before Game 1. “That was really cool.�

He did, after all, have the lowest goals against average (2.01) in the National Hockey League. He’s the reigning winner of the Vezina Trophy for the top goalie — and will likely win it again.

But as Game 1 against St. Louis played out on Saturday — and Hellebuyck allowed three goals on the Blues’ first 10 shots — I kept thinking of a line from a classic sports movie.

In “Rocky IV,� the protagonist boxer went to the USSR to fight the indomitable Ivan Drago. At first, the Russian pulverized Rocky. But then, Drago showed fatigue and Rocky got in some punches.

“You see!� Rocky’s trainer screamed from the corner. “He’s not a machine! He’s a man!�

So, yeah, even though the Blues blew Game 1, by the score of 5-3, they showed they can crack the wall that is Hellebuyck. That’s something. Quite a confidence boost for this series.

Of course, it doesn’t matter if they can’t get any shots on net.

Saturday’s third period (and really, much of the second) featured infuriating hockey. St. Louis couldn’t get anything going offensively. Just two shots in the third! On a night that the game’s top goalie showed vulnerability, the Blues didn’t show the ability to rise up.

Credit the Jets. Strong defense. Talented team. President’s Trophy. All that stuff. But the Blues have fared well against many top teams in recent weeks — St. Louis itself is a top team of late. But St. Louis must fare better Monday night, because the Jets could be teetering on “Playoff Helle.�

That’s what — the experience when a good Jets team fails in the playoffs because Hellebuyck bucks his regular-season trends in the postseason.

Beginning in 2019, when the Blues beat the Jets, Winnipeg has made the playoffs every year but one, yet only won one series.

Two years ago, Hellebuyck had a 3.44 goals against average in the first round.

Last year, Hellebuyck had a 5.23 goals against average in the first round.

Five point two three!

So even after Saturday’s victory, I’m sure some Winnipegians are worried.

Now, others could flip my theory, based on Hellebuyck’s verbalized confidence. See, Hellebuyck did make a brilliant save on a Jordan Kyrou breakaway that prevented St. Louis’ fourth goal. That would’ve been a game-changer. Instead, Hellebuyck told reporters after Game 1: “You just have to make one big save and that’s going to be the difference maker — I thought that was it. That being said, I felt good all night. I was just waiting to get some action. I thought we were controlling the play pretty well there. We played great and now we just have to move on to the next one and continue to do it.�

For the night, St. Louis took those first 10 shots — which included the three goals — in the first 22 minutes. In the next 38, the Blues mustered seven shots. That’s unacceptable.

Defensively, Hellebuyck said of his third-period Jets: “I thought we just continued with our details, continued putting the pressure on and getting the puck deep and not turning it over in the right areas. When we’re holding the puck the whole time it makes it like that.�

Meanwhile, on the other end of the ice, Hellebuyck’s adversary looked like Hellebuyck in January.

Jordan Binnington made save after save, while throwing in some impossible acrobatics — some Cirque du Binnington. As you likely read in Tom Timmermann’s dispatch from Manitoba, “Binner� and Hellebuyck were the goalies for Canada and America in the 4 Nations Face-Off. Canada scored in overtime off Hellebuyck to win the trophy. So, combine that with previous “Playoff Helle,� and there is quite a bit of pressure on the Winnipeg netminder.

In Game 1, the Blues scored high on him all three times — two glove side, one pad side. In all, three goals but 17 total shots. We’ve seen so much of Jim Montgomery’s mastery this season from behind the bench. The Blues coach must cook up something for Game 2 to generate more shots. To activate offensive aggressiveness.

Test Hellebuyck. Make him prove that the playoffs can actually be heavenly for Winnipeg.