Blowing late leads has been the story of the season so far. After going up 7-1, the Jackets gave up 3 unanswered goals and likely had many fans holding their breath. This time was different. They were able to respond with two goals in the third period to ice the game. Here’s how it went down.
1st Period
For the second game in a row, the Jackets gave up a goal in the first minute of play. Cozens found Dahlin streaking undefended through the slot, and Tarasov didn’t stand a chance.
BUF Goal 1-0: Dahlin (Cozens, Mittelstadt) 0:30
Puck possession tilted toward the Jackets after the goal. They were doing a good job of suppressing shots but still struggled with getting the puck out of their own zone.
The white jerseys caught a break when the puck bounced off of an official and to Gaudreau. Fantilli wasn’t quite able to get the pass but got just enough of it to send it back to Gaudreau, who tucked it home on-handed.
CBJ Goal 1-1: Gaudreau (Fantilli) 10:35
Next, Gaudreau and Fantilli set up a second goal. This one was highlight reel worth. Gaudreau gathered the puck along the boards and created space while Fantilli skated behind the net. Johnny bounced the puck off the boards right behind the net and perfectly onto Fantilli’s stick. The rookie found a small hole from a sharp angle and didn’t miss.
CBJ Goal 2-1: Fantilli (Gaudreau, Provorov) 14:40
The first power play of the night was given to the Jackets with 56 seconds left when Chinakhov was cross-checked into the boards. The boys created a SportsCenter Top 10 goal before the period was over. Some good puck movement found Marchenko in front of the net. Marchy took it between his legs and top cheese. Disgusting.
CBJ PP Goal 3-1: Marchenko (Gaudreau, Werenski) 19:48
Three-point period for Johnny Hockey. Not bad.
After giving up the early goal, Columbus dominated the period. After one, they led in shot attempts 21-11 and limited Buffalo to only 3 shots after they scored on their first of the game.
2nd Period
The Jackets continued to dominate the game in the second period. Eventually, the Russian line continued its streak. Chinakhov made a nice play to create space in the offensive zone. He dropped the puck to Marchenko, who was able to create his own screen to make it 4-1.
CBJ Goal 4-1: Marchenko (Chinakhov, Peeke) 7:37
NATURAL HAT TRICK ALERT
Just 18 seconds later, Marchenko got his third of the net off the rush. That’s his second career hat trick. It was the fastest natural hat trick in Blue Jackets’ history. That wasn’t the only record broken, either. Marchenko’s 2nd and 3rd goals set the franchise record for fastest goals scored by a single player.
CBJ Goal 5-1: Marchenko (Chinakhov, Provorov) 7:55
At this point, everyone might as well join in on the fun. Gudbranson sniped one top corner off a Texier pass.
CBJ Goal 6-1: Gudbranson (Texier, Kuraly) 8:52
Okposo went off for tripping shortly after the goal. Unfortunately, the Sabres were able to stop the bleeding by killing off the penalty.
But the floodgates reopened when Texier connected with Kuraly on a 2-on-1 to make it 7-1.
CBJ Goal 7-1: Kuraly (Texier, Gaunce) 12:27
The Sabres got one back when Peeke turned the puck over on a zone exit. He passed it to no one, and it landed on a Buffalo stick. Okposo was able to put the goal on the ensuing possession.
BUF Goal 7-2: Okposo (Mittelstadt, Olofsson) 18:54
Buffalo actually dominated the shot attempts in the latter part of the period. However, the Jackets were able to score 4 goals on 0.74 expected. Could they hold on to the dreaded five-goal lead?
3rd Period
Peeke went off for holding two minutes into the third period, which led to another Buffalo goal. Seriously, why does he continue to play NHL games?
BUF PP Goal 7-3: Thompson (Dahlin, Tuch) 2:57
Five minutes later, Cozens got one past Tarasov off the rush. Gulp. We’ve seen this movie before.
BUF Goal 7-4: Cozens (Benson, Mittelstadt) 7:51
This time, however, the Jackets were able to respond. Johnson had the puck on the point and faked a shot before passing to Werenski. Zach shot the puck right at Sillinger, who was able to deflect it into the net. That’s a really nice play at a very important moment.
CBJ Goal 8-4: Sillinger (Werenski, Johnson) 8:30
Sillinger and Johnson teamed up for the ninth goal of the night. Silly had the puck near the net and found KJ for a one-timer from the slot.
CBJ Goal 9-4: Johnson (Sillinger, Bemstrom) 10:59
They pushed hard for their 10th goal, but 9-4 is how it ended.
Team Leaders
Goals: Marchenko (3)
Points: Marchenko, Gaudreau (3)
CF%: Johnson, Bemstrom (77.78)
xGF%: Johnson (94.97)
Shots: Sillinger (4)
Shot attempts: Fantilli, Kuraly (5)
Final Thoughts
The word “learning” has been thrown around a lot recently. But it seems as if some of that learning was finally put into practice tonight. You could smell the comeback brewing after the 7-4 goal, but two of the kids stepped up to ice the game. You could see the Blue Jackets loosen the grips on their sticks after finally responding to several unanswered third-period goals.
A whopping 14 Columbus players recorded a point in this game, including 10 multi-point performances. Hopefully, confidence continues to build for a group that’s had a rough season.
If you’ve been reading my writing for a while, you know I can’t let a bad performance get by without comment. Peeke continues to play bad hockey and was directly responsible for Buffalo’s second and third goals. The first came after a turnover on a zone exit, and the second was after he committed a holding penalty. He’s statistically one of the worst defensemen in the league and he continues to see the ice.
This was a great win led by the team’s best players. Let’s keep it going.
Up Next
The Blue Jackets are back in action on Wednesday at home against the Capitals at 7:00 PM ET.