1st Ohio Battery's countdown of the top 10 moments of the season for the Blue Jackets continues with Matt Calvert.
RESULT: Matt Calvert scores game-winning shorthanded goal vs. New York Rangers
DATE: Friday, November 18, 2016
LOCATION: Nationwide Arena
WHAT HAPPENED: Matt Calvert, doing his job, stood in the way of a Nick Holden slap shot at the right point and as luck would have it, it was a shot that Holden kind of chunked. He got under it, and the puck sailed straight into Calvert’s face.
“Absolutely terrifying” is the best way to describe it.
Calvert’s forehead was opened by the impact and he dropped immediately to the ice in distress. With the assistance of athletic trainer Mike Vogt, he hurriedly got down the tunnel to the Blue Jackets dressing room to receive medical attention.
No one expected Calvert to return to the game – and with the benefit of hindsight, maybe he shouldn’t have – but the ensuing series of events were something out of a folk tale, leading to a night that everyone in the building would remember.
John Tortorella later said he expected Calvert would return, he just didn’t know when. Perhaps he was pulling a “coach” fast one on us, but that would explain the lack of surprise on his face when Calvert came back to the bench early in the third period.
Thirty-six stitches and some other minor repairs later, Calvert was back.
The crowd recognized it. His teammates recognized it. Calvert’s presence on the bench was a huge lift, and it happened to come at a time when the Blue Jackets really needed it. They were up 2-0 in the game but slowly saw their grip on it start to slip, and a Mika Zibanejad goal early in the third period brought the New York Rangers back to level terms at 2-2.
And a few minutes later, they were handed a power play opportunity with a chance to pull ahead.
Instead, Calvert was on the ice and (surprise!) made it happen in a shorthanded situation. He broke down the right side and took one look at a passing option before ripping a shot inside Henrik Lundqvist’s arm and into the net, giving the Blue Jackets a 3-2 lead that they would not relinquish.
The scar healed nicely, after all.
