Korpisalo’s approach wins him starts in goal
Coach John Tortorella’s decision to start Joonas Korpisalo in goal in the Blue Jackets’ first game back from a five-day break was based in part on Sergei Bobrovsky not performing well coming off breaks.
But it also was largely because Korpisalo has continued to earn opportunities.
“We can get him into a rotation and not always say, ‘OK, let’s play Korpi because Bob needs a rest,’ ” Tortorella said. “And he deserves that type of respect now.”
Korpisalo made 35 saves in Thursday’s 2-1 win against the Stars, and he stopped all three shots in the shootout. He is 4-1-0 with a 2.32 goals-against average and .929 save percentage in his past five starts after losing three of his first four starts.
“His work habits from last year to this year are off the chart,” Tortorella said. “I give (goaltending coach Ian Clark) a lot of credit as far as teaching him a little bit about that. He has shown me from Day 1 that he doesn’t let things bother him, if it’s a bad goal, a bad night or a bad situation where he’s not playing a lot. … He has a great mental maturity. He has grown to where you look at him differently.”
After Korpisalo dropped his stick, lunged right and deflected Tyler Seguin’s shot with his arm to prevent what seemed a certain goal late in the second period, Bobrovsky greeted Korpisalo with a gigantic grin.
“It was a ‘wow’ save,” Bobrovsky said. “I was happy for him. … Perfect timing for that too. I enjoy watching the saves more than watching the goals.”
Bobrovsky, who appeared in 38 of the Jackets’ 46 games before the break, last played Jan. 12 against Vancouver. While he noted he likes to play often, he said the 11-day gap between starts shouldn’t affect him poorly on Tuesday at the Vegas Golden Knights.
“I used that window of time to work in the gym, do the off-ice stuff to maintain my body, recover mentally and prepare myself to do the most important part of the season,” Bobrovsky said. “It will be an intense finish. In February, we’ve got lots of divisional games. It will all be pretty tight games.”
Sneak peek
Forward Nick Foligno said playing in Las Vegas for the first time will be “a pretty cool experience.” The Blue Jackets captain had a chance to see the Golden Knights’ 17,500-seat T-Mobile Arena — minus the ice — in June while attending the NHL awards ceremony.
“I’m excited to experience that,” Foligno said. “It will give me a little bit of emotional attachment to the game, because it’s like the first time you play in a lot of big buildings — you’re excited and awed. I’ve heard the crowds are great, so it will be fun to be a part of.”
Foligno said of the Golden Knights’ surprising success this season, “They’ve had a lot to rally around in that city, and they’ve got a lot to prove. More or less, you’ve got 22 guys that are (angry) they were left (unprotected in the expansion draft) and they’ve got something to prove.”
Said Bobrovsky, “They’ve got a crazy record there. It will be an interesting challenge.”
Together again
Based on practice, it appears that defensemen David Savard and Jack Johnson will skate together again on Tuesday. They were reunited as a pair against Dallas.
“We got into a rhythm early, which helped,” Johnson said. “You get into the flow of the game, then you feel like you’re off and running.”
Savard said, “It felt good to be back with him. I’m really familiar playing with him.”
Savard had a teamhigh five of the Jackets’ 21 blocked shots in 21:53 of ice time.
Johnson led the team with four hits, and had two blocked shots. Both were plus-1.
Killer effort
The Jackets killed off all four Stars power plays, including one with 6:21 left in the third period for too many men on the ice, and another late in overtime. Coming into the game, the Jackets had allowed their past five opponents a total of five power-play goals on 11 chances.
“Good sticks. I thought we were aggressive when we needed to be aggressive,” Tortorella said. “We really worked well as a unit out there. And, obviously, the one toward the end of the third period was a huge one to kill. Those are the ones that are tough to kill off, but we found a way to get it done.”