Joonas Korpisalo's excellent play was spoiled in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Dallas Stars.
The Blue Jackets failed to muster much offense on the night, and that trend carried over to the shootout, where all three players failed to hit the net, much less score. On the bright side, the club tallied at least one point for the third consecutive game.
Here are three things from Sunday night at Nationwide Arena:
KORPISALO SOLID AGAIN
The Blue Jackets have had their fair share of issues this season, but goaltending is low on the list. Korpisalo played masterfully, stopping 31 of 32 through 65 minutes.This save on Jamie Benn may have been his best on the night.
Goodness, gracious. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/b6TjmFFjqK
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) March 14, 2021
In the shootout, his team failed to give him any run support, and though he stopped two of three, it wasn't enough to pull out a victory.
Radulovs game winner. #GoStars #CBJ pic.twitter.com/0H57pAKFug
— Alison (@AlisonL) March 14, 2021
LOW EVENT HOCKEY
If you happened to see this game, you don't need me to tell you that it was mostly a forgettable hockey game. If you happened to miss this game, congratulations on saving yourself three hours. NaturalStatTrick agrees, as the game featured an astronomically low six high-danger scoring chances apiece. In addition, overall shot attempts for the game were 49-45 in favor of the Dallas Stars.
Interestingly enough, the website tallies the same totals for Columbus in Saturday's 4-3 OT win: 45 shot attempts and six high-danger chances.
Perhaps it's anecdotal, but I can't recall a game that featured so little juice - both ways - in recent memory.
SHOOTOUT STRUGGLES CONTINUE
The Blue Jackets don't exactly have a shootout ace, but this was a painful one to watch. First up was Cam Atkinson, who missed high and wide with a slapshot. Next was Patrik Laine, who missed high and wide with a snapshot. Finally, Max Domi made a move that beat Jake Oettinger, but he put it over the net.
To recap, the Blue Jackets' three shot attempts missed the net.
It's been tough sledding for the Blue Jackets in the shootout this year. With the misses, Atkinson moved to 0/4, Laine to 0/2, and Domi to 0/3. In fact, only Alexandre Texier (who scored this beauty) and Oliver Bjorkstrand have scored in the shootout this year, per hockey-reference.
