Power-play tweaks show promise
LOS ANGELES — After going five games without a power-play goal, the Blue Jackets seem to have found a combination that works.
In the two games heading into Thursday night at the Los Angeles Kings, the Jackets scored three power-play goals in five attempts, including two in the first period Monday of a 5-1 win over the Washington Capitals.
Assistant coach Brad Larsen has tinkered with the power play over the past couple of weeks, and moving Alexander Wennberg down low to play in front of the opposing goaltender seems to have been a successful move. Coach John Tortorella said general manager Jarmo Kekalainen brought up the idea of putting Wennberg up front based on where he played previously in Europe.
“It took us two years to find the best position for Wennberg on the power play. We tried him everywhere but there,” Tortorella said. “Down there, he’s able to make more plays. He has done a terrific job in front of the net.”
Flipping Artemi Panarin and Cam Atkinson has also helped. By moving Panarin to the left-side wall and Atkinson to the right, it gave Atkinson a more natural shot. Atkinson scored his first power-play goal of the season Saturday against Chicago.
At practice Wednesday, newcomer Thomas Vanek moved into the center position on the first power-play unit and he said he spent a lot of time talking with his new power-play mates.
“I haven’t played there too much over my career, but I like it; I think it’s a good spot,” Vanek said. “I told Cam and Panarin, ‘I’m not going to just try to stand in the middle for you guys.’ I’ll be kind of roving around and let their skill take over, and when they need me there for a quick giveand-go, I’ll be there.”
The Blue Jackets came into Thursday’s game ranked 30th in the NHL in power-play success, scoring 15.4 percent of the time. They spent much of the season ranked last, so the recent success has been welcomed.
“It’s huge. That’s how you win down the stretch,” said captain Nick Foligno, who now is working the middle on the second unit. “Your penalty kill has to be good, but your power play has to score some big goals. Those goals Monday kept Washington at bay. They were timely goals.”
In-N-Out menu
With all the changes the Blue Jackets made at the NHL trade deadline, Tortorella has some decisions to make as far as who goes into the lineup and who sits.
Even with Josh Anderson out for a month because of a knee injury, Tortorella had Vanek making his debut Thursday against the Kings and Foligno back after missing four games. It’s not a bad problem to have. When a couple of defensemen get healthy — Markus Nutivaara and Dean Kukan have been out — that only adds to the line of healthy scratches.
On Thursday, Lukas Sedlak and Markus Hannikainen were out of the lineup with Boone Jenner sliding to the fourth line. Defensemen Taylor Chorney and Scott Harrington also were healthy scratches. The Jackets have 25 players on their active roster — two more than had been previously allowed. Teams can carry additional players after the trade deadline ends as long as they are under the salary cap.
“There are going to be some tough decisions, and it’s not always going to be that typical guy who is going to be out,” Tortorella said Wednesday. “We are going to go on total merit as we go down these last 19 games. … I’m really excited about the push in the lineup as far as competition for jobs at this time of year.”
Getting reacquainted
Foligno and new defenseman Ian Cole have met many times when the Jackets and Penguins squared off, including during the postseason.
On Wednesday, Foligno and Cole broke bread and talked things out.
“It’s great to get to know one another and not just by crosschecking each other in front of the net,” Foligno said. “We laugh because, at the time, you have to hate each other and that’s the way you play. I told him it’s nice to have him here doing that to other teams. I don’t have to worry about him anymore.”