Can’t get started
Blue Jackets come out sluggish again
ST. LOUIS — The Blue Jackets got away with a poor start Friday night, coming back to win in overtime at home.
But they couldn’t do the same thing Saturday against the St. Louis Blues, not on the road, not against one of the NHL’s best teams.
Sluggish until they were trailing by two goals, the Jackets fell to the Blues 4-1 at Scottrade Center.
“That team was better than we were tonight,” Jackets coach John Tortorella said. “They started better than (us). We were chasing, and when you’re chasing against a veteran club like that, a good team, it’s tough to crawl back into it.”
Both teams flew into St. Louis late Friday night after games — the
Jackets after a 2-1 win in overtime against the Jets to cap a fourgame homestand; the Blues following a 2-1 win at Carolina — but the Blues looked much fresher when the game started.
“We talked about the start before the game: ‘How are we going to come out? Are we going to be ready to play?’” center Brandon Dubinsky said. “Again, another night where we weren’t ready to play right from the get-go. We’ve got to find a way, especially on the road, to come to work on time.”
Dubinsky noted that the team has gotten off to slow starts in practices, as well.
The Blues fired off one shot after another at Joonas Korpisalo, racking up 28 attempts and 14 shots on goal in the first period.
Still, it appeared the Jackets would survive the first period unscathed. But with 34 seconds left, the Blues finally put in the puck.
Korpisalo, who finished with 38 saves in his third start of the season, couldn’t squeeze Colton Parayko’s hard shot from the right circle, and with the puck loose behind Korpisalo, Vladimir Sobotka stuck in the rebound for an easy goal — his first of the season.
The Blues boosted their lead to 2-0 6½ minutes into the second period when Joel Edmundsson ripped a
long shot that appeared to nick a Blue Jackets player’s stick before going in off Scott Upshall’s skate.
The Jackets weren’t as fortunate with bounces. After Blues goalie Jake Allen made a stellar kick save on Cam Atkinson’s shot from point-blank range, Atkinson had an open net on his rebound attempt. With Allen sprawled on the ice,