Blue Jackets take a ‘step in right direction’
The gritty, have-to-have-it mentality that led to a goal from Oliver Bjorkstrand with 15.1 seconds left in regulation against Carolina on Thursday felt like a moment that the Blue Jackets could later point to as the moment when things changed.
Then, a few minutes later in overtime, Hurricanes forward Martin Necas broke up an attempted pass by Jack Roslovic, leading to a breakaway and the winning goal by Sebastian Aho in a 4-3 Jackets loss at Nationwide Arena.
The result certainly negated the energy pulsing through the limited-capacity crowd after Bjorkstrand's goal with an extra skater, but there's a lot the Jackets can take into their six-game road trip which starts Saturday.
Columbus had coughed up a 1-0 lead within a minute of Zach Werenski's second-period goal, then came back from a goal down twice in the third period to earn a point.
“I'm really proud of the guys for not getting deflated when (the Hurricanes) score that goal late and we find a way to jam one home with the extra guy,” Jackets captain Nick Foligno said. “That was huge.”
In the race for the fourth and final playoff spot in the NHL'S Central Division, the Jackets are now three points behind the Chicago Blackhawks, one point ahead of the Nashville Predators, and even in points per game with the Dallas Stars, who have played four fewer games.
All three won on Thursday. After Thursday, though, a postseason berth — while still a very tough hill to climb — doesn't seem as far-fetched.
Here are some takeaways:
Crucial point
The Jackets earned five of eight possible points in four consecutive games against a Hurricanes team that has its eyes on the Stanley Cup.
In the big picture, the Jackets played one of their better games of the season in the loss and should feel confident entering a road stretch that begins Saturday in Detroit.
“That's a big point for us,” coach John Tortorella said. “Four games against one of the top teams in the league, we go 21-1 against them. And the two periods we played were probably two of the best we've played all year long.”
Hustle play
Bjorkstrand's tying goal would have
been insignificant, if not for defenseman Seth Jones.
With 55 seconds left and the Blue Jackets' net empty, Hurricanes forward Warren Foegele had the puck in open ice with his eyes set on the clinching goal. Jones sprinted up the ice, got his stick on Foegele's as he was about to shoot from inside the blue line and the puck missed wide.
“I just tried to make it tough on him,” Jones said.
Just 40 seconds later, the Jackets score the goal that earns them an extra point that might be important in a month's time.
“Funny how it works, huh?” Tortorella said. “You think it's over and then you get that break and you find a way. I hope it keeps propelling us.”
Throughout the second and third periods, the Jackets did a great job of getting behind Hurricanes defensemen pinching along the boards on the forecheck.
Max Domi had the best look among the breakaways with a third-period rush with the score tied 2-2. But his shot attempt was snatched out of the air by Carolina goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic.
Foligno said the odd-man rushes were a product of execution.
“We're getting a lot better at that,” he said. “We have enough speed and we can be dangerous when we get those pucks by guys, when we have a lot of speed coming up the ice.”
Not finishing those moments, then losing on a deflected pass, are the differences between a win and a loss, and the type of things Tortorella is looking to eliminate.
“Again, really good stuff tonight for us, but we end the game by giving them something free,” he said. “Those are the things we got to have more value in and making sure we don't give things for free. That's how we get completely over the hump as far as trying to string some wins together.” jmyers@dispatch.com @_jcmyers
HURRICANES 4, BLUE JACKETS 3, OT
Carolina 0 2 1 1—4 Columbus 0 1 2 0—3
FIRST PERIOD: Penalties: Kukan, CBJ (Tripping), 9:03; Staal, CAR (Interference), 14:39; Foligno, CBJ (Tripping), 15:59. SECOND PERIOD: 1, Columbus, Werenski 4 (Jones, Stenlund), 7:03. 2, Carolina, Paquette 3 (Skjei, Lorentz), 7:49. 3, Carolina, Necas 7 (Svechnikov, Bean), 17:16. Penalties: Foegele, CAR (Elbowing), 19:36.
THIRD PERIOD: 4, Columbus, Atkinson 12 (Jones, Laine), 3:20 (pp). 5, Carolina, Niederreiter 14 (Hamilton, Slavin), 15:42. 6, Columbus, Bjorkstrand 12 (Jones, Atkinson), 19:44. Penalties: Bean, CAR (Hooking), 1:55.
OVERTIME: 7, Carolina, Aho 14 (Necas), 1:26.
Shots on Goal: Carolina 14-9-8-2: 33. Columbus 8-14-14-0: 36. Power-plays: Carolina 0 of 2; Columbus 1 of 3. Goalies: Carolina, Nedeljkovic 8-2-2 (36 shots-33 saves). Columbus, Korpisalo 8-10-6 (33-29). A: 4,033 (18,500). T: 2:32.