The San Jose Sharks hosted the Columbus Blue Jackets in the two teams’ first meeting of the season. Both are currently sitting in the bottom five in the NHL standings and appear to be favorites in the draft lottery during the coming offseason.
The Blue Jackets made a major change earlier this week, announcing that Jarmo Kekalainen was relieved of his duties, and President of Hockey Operations John Davidson will act as the interim general manager. Saturday’s game was their first outing since the news broke on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Sharks are returning home for the first time since their All-Star break and bye week. They played two games on the road, losing 1-0 to the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday, then defeating the Calgary Flames 6-3 the following night.
The Blue Jackets wanted to bounce back in the first game of their new era, while the Sharks looked to impress their home fans, whom they hadn’t seen for two and a half weeks. As a result, it seemed like this should be a very competitive game despite the teams’ positions in the standings, and that’s exactly what we saw.
The Important First Goal and Johnny Breakaway
The first goal is important in any hockey game, but the numbers showed that it’s likely crucial, particularly in this game. The Blue Jackets were 6-17-2 entering the night when their opponent scored the first goal. Meanwhile, the Sharks were 4-26-2 under the same circumstances. Although the Sharks have made some miraculous comebacks this season, an early goal against is often a sign of bad things ahead. The Blue Jackets, on the other hand, tend to fall apart in the third period and lose games they likely should’ve won, which certainly wasn’t the case on Saturday.
The Sharks got the all-important first goal, as Anthony Duclair was able to beat Elvis Merzlikins on a breakaway just 3:39 into the game. Johnny Gaudreau tried very hard to tie the game back up, getting three breakaway opportunities in the first period alone. On the first, a mix of him losing the puck and a well-timed poke-check by Kaapo Kahkonen stopped a quality scoring chance. Then he hit the post on his second chance and missed the net on his third.
The Blue Jackets would tie it up and take the lead later in the period, but neither was off Gaudreau’s stick. He did score in the second period, but following a challenge, it was overturned, as Boone Jenner was offside. Despite not scoring a goal, he was one of the most noticeable players on the ice for either team. He was making plays consistently and easily could’ve had a hat trick if just a couple of bounces had gone his way. After the game, both Gaudreau and Vincent joked about his luck during the game. Gaudreau said “It just wasn’t my night tonight, going to stick with passing for the next few games” while his coach stated “I have never seen that, three breakaways and not even one shot on goal,” before letting out a laugh.
Werenski Back on the Board
It had been quite a while since Zach Werenski had found the back of the net. October 20th against the Calgary Flames was the last time the Blue Jackets star defenseman was able to do so, and 39 games later, he was finally able to do it again. That said, he had been producing offensively, entering the night with 29 assists on the season, but his goal-scoring from the blue line has always been a big part of his game, so getting him back on track in that regard will be key for the team.
Russian Line Lighting it Up
The Blue Jackets reunited the Russian line consisting of Kirill Marchenko, Dmitri Voronkov, and Yegor Chinakhov, which paid off quickly. Marchenko gave them the lead late in the first period, and Voronkov got his 16th of the season to improve it to a 3-1 lead 7:14 into the second period. The line was making an impact every time they took the ice, and by the end of the second period, they combined for seven shots among the three players.
Vincent was deploying his top six heavily, as all six reached double digits in ice time after two periods. Meanwhile, Kent Johnson, for example, only had 4:09 at that point. With the way their top lines were playing, it made sense to get them as many scoring opportunities as possible, but it was certainly a dangerous decision in a game full of end-to-end action where they could easily get worn out quickly. The bottom six got a little more ice time during the third period, but overall, the Blue Jackets certainly relied heavily on their top lines for most of the night.
Comeback Kids Make it a New Hockey Game
The Sharks have made quite a few comebacks this season, and they were able to do it once again to tie the game in the second period. A second breakaway goal by Duclair and a power-play one-timer by Fabian Zetterlund gave us a brand new hockey game late in the second frame. Duclair’s goal was a much cleaner move than we saw in his first goal, which seemed a bit like he lost the puck, but it found the back of the net. This time, he completed his deke and left Merzlikins with no chance to make a save. Zetterlund’s goal was the result of a great pass by Calen Addison, as the puck went straight across the slot, leaving Merzlikins in no man’s land once again.
Duclair has become somewhat of a menace against one of his many former teams. Against Columbus in his career, he now has five goals in seven games. Considering his time in Ohio’s capital city didn’t go well, it makes sense that he finds another gear any time he plays them. He was one of the most noticeable players on the ice for the Sharks, and it’s no coincidence he found the back of the net.
Kahkonen Keeps Sharks Alive
The Sharks were giving up quite a few shots and a lot of dangerous scoring chances. Kahkonen put together a strong performance, which seems to be the case more often than not lately. He’s had some struggles this season, but he kept his team in the game tonight. Of course, he wasn’t perfect, and if some of Gaudreau’s aforementioned breakaways were on target, the score could’ve quickly gotten out of hand, but that wasn’t the case. He made some key saves, as did Merzlikins on the other end of the ice, but it’s hard to argue against Kahkonen being the more impressive goaltender in this game. When all was said and done, he made 37 saves on 41 shots, and the Sharks weren’t able to get him the last goal he needed.
The Captain Wins It for Columbus
Jenner found his way on the scoreboard, beating Kahkonen with just 12.9 seconds remaining in regulation. The Sharks fought and probably deserved to walk away with a point, but it wasn’t meant to be. Instead, the Blue Jackets walked away with a 4-3 win in a very hard-fought game. It’s fitting that Columbus’s captain was the one to seal the deal as well, just a couple of days after Davidson made it clear that he’s staying with the organization for the foreseeable future.
Jenner had this to say about the goal post-game, “It was a good breakout pass by Provy up to Johnny, I knew he was waiting for that perfect time to get me the puck and hit me with it and was able to just get a shot off backhand and found a way through.” Werenski added a note as well, saying, “We’ve always found ways to lose this year, it seems like. We found a way to win with twelve seconds left, which hasn’t happened yet this year. So definitively feels good to be on the right side of things but I would’ve liked to be up a couple more goals in the third period and win that way, but we’ll take it.”
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After a hard-fought game that could’ve gone either way, the Blue Jackets walked away with a win following a last-minute go-ahead goal. The Sharks kept themselves in a game that easily could’ve gotten out of hand early and nearly walked away with at least a point, but it simply wasn’t meant to be. The Sharks will host the Vegas Golden Knights in a matinee matchup on Monday, while the Blue Jackets will head to southern California to finish their road trip against the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks.