It’s not about how you start, but how you finish.
The Blue Jackets could not have started worse, and this game was seemingly over before it started. The Oilers' quick-strike offense (read: Connor McDavid) jumped out to a three-goal lead 10 minutes into the game and had many calling for a pull of Sergei Bobrovsky. The Jackets, maybe a little jet lagged from their flight out west, shook off whatever it was and stormed back with seven unanswered goals, and cruised to a victory.
Here are five thoughts from the win.
Miscommunication
This was a weird start. The Oilers dumped the puck in, and Sergei Bobrovsky went out to play it behind the net. He and Markus Nutivaara got their signals mixed up and ended up turning the puck over to McDavid – not the player you want to turn the puck over to, McDavid quickly fed a pass to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and the Oilers had a quick 1-0. Little did we know that this was just the start of things to come.
McDavid cannot be stopped
Thank goodness the Jackets no longer play in the Western Conference. They have a hard enough time dealing with Connor McDavid twice a season; they couldn’t handle playing him more than that. McDavid, as he does to pretty much every team in the league, torches the Blue Jackets. This was the sixth time in his career facing Columbus and in those games he has 12 points. Tonight, he was the reason the Oilers jumped out to an early lead. He contributed on all three goals, assisting on two and scoring the other. He could have easily had another goal, but Bobrovsky made a big stop on him on a breakaway.
Bobrovsky with a slick stop on Connor McDavid.#CBJ pic.twitter.com/zbfKjKUg7S
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) March 28, 2018
Most Dangerous Lead in Hockey
It wasn’t quite a 4-1 lead, but teams should know by now they can’t just sit on a three-goal lead. The Oilers showed very quickly why they are not a playoff team this season. The Jackets down three, stormed the Oilers with shots and pressure. The Jackets just stopped letting the Oilers have the puck and quickly erased that 3-0 deficit with three goals of their own, highlighted by two goals in 52 seconds.
Milestones
When you score seven goals you are bound to have someone hit a milestone, and the Jackets had a few. With his first period goal, Artemi Panarin hit 70 points for the third consecutive season. In his three seasons in the league, Panarin has compiled 222 points, tenth in the NHL over that span.
Panarin always seems to be in the right place at the right time, eh?#CBJ pic.twitter.com/Sv6OcISp7W
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) March 28, 2018
Assisting on that Panarin goal was Pierre-Luc Dubois, his 25th assist on the season and 40th point. The 40 points by itself is a significant milestone but it also means Dubois passes Rick Nash for most points by a rookie forward in franchise history (Nash had 39 points back in 2002-03). Dubois is still a few points away from the franchise rookie record, sitting seven behind the 47 that Zach Werenski had last year.
Even in a down season, Cam Atkinson continues to be a model of consistency. He scored his 20th goal of the season, the fifth consecutive season he’s accomplished that. He may not get much fanfare outside of Columbus, but he is a premier scorer in this league. He is one of just 19 players to have at least 20 goals in each of the last five seasons.
Make it Rain on the Road
There weren’t any hats thrown on the ice in Edmonton, but Thomas Vanek made it rain goals. He scored three of the Jackets' six goals, his 11th career hat trick. The Jackets have been scoring a ton lately, particularly in road games; they went the first 70 games without a hat trick and now have three in their last seven. Vanek’s trick was the third for the Jackets in their last four road games, and they are one off the franchise record for hat tricks in a season.
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