The first game of the season! I remember those days. Looking out at the ice, knowing that the mistakes were all out there, waiting to happen. The coach taking me aside and telling me that the ice guy buries 20 goals under the blue paint & it was my job to dig them up. Knowing that this would be the last time my gear would not smell of sweat or vodka.
It’s a Bizzarro-World season in the NHL; Provorov is week-to-week with an injury and Buffalo’s Josh Norris is fully healthy and uninjured. Apparently everyone in the Jackets’ locker room will wear a letter on their sweater this season, as everyone pretends that Olivier hasn’t been playing the Captain’s role all through the preseason.
Pre-Game Live Odds by Sportsbook:
You are +530 with your spouse if you clean the bathroom without being asked to do it.
First period:
- Both teams started off throwing pucks off the iron
- PEN: CBJ Soucy makes his presence felt and gets a stick up high. Penalty called.
- PEN: BUF Thompson needed to hook his stick on Guds 30 seconds later.
- Almost 1.5 minutes of 4v4 leads to Samuelsson scoring a quick goal off an unfortunate Mateychuk deflection that beats Greaves. Ostlund, Power assists. 0-1.
- CBJ gets 30 seconds of PP time. Nothing happens.
- After the abbreviated PP, nothing really continues to happen except for the occasional big hit.
- Buffalo has some zone time, Greaves makes a couple of good saves, the puck gets out of the DZ and Sillinger absolutely buries the puck (76.8 mph, Mr. Tyrer informs us) into the Buffalo net. Coyle, Mateychuk assists. 1-1.
- The Jackets have apparently discovered how to make a puck that doesn’t freeze, as the puck keeps bouncing around on the ice. Alternatively, it’s the beginning of the season and everyone on the ice is periodically getting a case of the yips. It’s probably the puck thing, right?
- Ukka Pekka Luokanen is just a fun name to say. Ukka Ukka Ukka. How soon can he get traded to Winnipeg?
- Samuelsson takes a holding call against Heinen, and Columbus gets an actual power play opportunity. Matthew Knies finds one of those 20 buried goals and makes everyone forget… erm… what’s his name again? The guy with one secondary assist in two games in Toronto? That guy. Coyle, Werenski assists. 2-1 CBJ
- Before Shelly could finish raving about Coyle’s power-play prowess during last season, Zach fires a puck in off Fantilli’s mitt and into the net. Werenski & Knies assists. 3-1 CBJ.
First period numbers:
8-6 shots for CBJ
1/2 pp for CBJ
1/1 pk for CBJ
16/24 on faceoffs for CBJ
Second Period
Here comes the long-shift period, which is often more a contest of line-change discipline than talent. Let’s see what happens.
- Greaves has a big save against Power, the puck goes the other way, and Quinn finds a quiet place to hide and then scores his first goal of the season. He’s good at that. We should not let him do that. Benson, Ostlund assists. 3-2 CBJ
- Buffalo got some momentum off Quinn’s goal, someone took a penalty, then Olivier popped the puck into the empty Buffalo net. Metsa, all 20-years and 5’9 of him, took exception. Good for him. Also a wee bit not wise. Olivier was gentle to him in the knuckle exchange.
- Full 2:00 5v3 power play for Buffalo. Dang. Good triangle for Columbus, good active sticks from the defenders, and a couple of great saves by Greaves. Guds made a great block against Buffalo, and then another one from Guds and then Zach uses new dad strength to keep the puck out of the net. Jackets kill the penalty. Dahlin has to make a spectacular play to prevent the two attackers coming out of the box from scoring.
- Also, Kiddo #2 spectacularly failed to spill the orange juice they were pouring. It only stayed inside the glass by the power of surface tension.
Back to the ice.
- Fantilli is 9/9 on draws thus far. Crazy. Oh yeah, Matthew Knies has decided he loves the cannon fire. Emil Andrae gets his first assist (a pretty one, too) as a Jacket, and KJ is rewarded for working his tiny butt off. 4-2 CBJ
- Shots are 3-3 in the second period, which is crazy when one team had a two-minute, two-man advantage.
- Power works his big butt off, and CBJ finally takes a delayed penalty after Buffalo rags the puck for an odd amount of time. KJ with the hooking penalty, Buffalo back on the power play.
- Pretty good puck movement by Buffalo, but Greaves is apparently a full inch taller when Columbus is undermanned on the ice. Good stick work from the guys. Konsta Helenius gets the goal, but the penalty had expired. McLeod, Power assists. 4-3 CBJ.
- It sounds like both teams, but the Jackets especially, have lost the rhythm of their defensive game with the penalties. The ice conditions late into the second period are not helping, either. Maybe the TV timeout will help them get back on form.
Hey, this is Andrae’s third team in one offseason. Wow. Bet he knows how to pack a suitcase.
- Buffalo with some extended zone time but the Jackets shovel the puck out of the zone. The linesmen call a ghost offside call, but a Fantilli faceoff win (11/11? Is he eating his Wheaties for dinner?) and a well-timed dive by Columbus’ own killer hobbit run out the clock to the period.
- Knies ties Panarin for points in a debut; I think he’s the only Jacket with multiple goals in his debut.
Second Period numbers
6-12 for the Jackets. That’s what 2 minutes of 5v3
No pp for the Jackets in the period
4/4 on the PK for the Jackets
25/41 on the faceoff dot after two periods
Third Period
As expected, the second period was a little bit more ragged than the first period. Guds was interviewed during the second intermission, and he never said the famous Detective Murtaugh line, even though he earned it after his second blocked shot on the 5v3 PK.
Now the ice is cleaned, the lads are back, and we’ll see what happens next. PD, did you remember to bring the burning sweetgrass and an eagle pin feather?
- Buffalo started out with some good zone time, but nothing comes of it. Olivier clears the puck, and all is good.
- Voronkov is back on a line with Monahan and Nichushkin. I like that line. It should be very hard to play against.
- Ukka Ukka Ukkanen makes a good save. Such a fun name to say. (I’m going to get in trouble with PD if I keep up with this).
Jackets have the youngest top line in the NHL. Unfortunately, I couldn’t read the graphic, because radio doesn’t have pictures, Mister Jody Shelly!
- Lomberg, Garland, Heinen as a 4th line did better than expected when pinned in the DZ, worked hard and cleared the zone.
- Dang, Fantilli is good on draws tonight. Or Buffalo sucks. Or both. Probably both.
- Buffalo is using the high ice to maintain zone control. Keeps the Jackets pinned in the zone, but you’re not getting great shot attempts. But they got a slashing call against Sillinger.
- A good save by Greaves and a good clear by Heinen. Change quickly, Coyle quickly clears, then Quinn decides to kill the iron and puts it hard off the post through Greaves’ 5-hole. This is hockey: good and lucky are often synonymous.
- Werenski slides the puck through and springs Knies on the breakaway. Ukka Ukka Ukkonen makes a solid save to keep his teammates’ pulses going.
- The referee accidentally calls Samuelsson for tripping Nichushkin and Columbus gets their two-and-a-quarterth penalty. Second unit gets a decent amount of time on this PP. Monahan repays the favour and scores CBJ’s second PP on the night. Nichushkin, Voronkov the assists 5-3 CBJ.
- Fantilli 13/16 on the draws tonight. Sorry. 14/17.
- Buffalo looking for a penalty; the referee says, “yeah, you did nothing with the first five I gave you. Pound rocks.” Play continues.
- Olivier gets sprung by Coyle and puts the puck into the empty net. Assist to Coyle, 6-3 CBJ.
- Bones gives Knies the final shift on the ice. Nice touch.
GAME OVER!!!
Great win for the Jackets; big game from the big guy in his Jackets debut. Knies has the all-time lead in goals in his debut game as a Blue Jacket, and ties Panarin with 3 points in his debut.