The Columbus Blue Jackets are really good at come-from-behind victories.
And they're just as good as giving the other team a come-from-behind victory.
They went to the latter Saturday night, giving up the tying goal with 1:03 left and eventually losing 3-2 in overtime to the Minnesota Wild from the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
Here are three things from the OTL:
Z OUT EARLY
Zach Werenski left the game in the first period after a questionable hit from Minnesota's Jacob Middleton — something the Wild have become known for this season. Here's the hit:
oh no, this jacob middleton hit on zach werenski ends in an injury to werenski's face pic.twitter.com/BnaKzr8CYN
— Hockey Wilderness (@hockeywildernes) March 27, 2022
Werenski left the game and did not return, forcing the Blue Jackets to play a majority of their game without their minutes-leading defenseman. It was a high hit, and depending on the sweater one was rooting for likely impacted their opinion of the hit.
Scratch that ... Middleton hit him high after Werenski took a shot. Might've been an elbow to the chops. Werenski was immediately checking his teeth and stayed down for a long time.
— Brian Hedger (@BrianHedger) March 27, 2022
No penalty called. Werenski to the room.#CBJ
If the sweaters were reversed, the Xcel Energy Center would have been up in arms. Underdiscussed item: High does not necessarily mean dirty, or even cheap. But high does mean, well, high. And it was a high hit.
JAKE'S HOT
Jake Voracek's fifth goal of the season Saturday was his fifth consecutive game with a point. It was also his third goal in the last ten games, after scoring just twice in his first 53 games.
#SCORACEK#SCORACEK#SCORACEK#SCORACEK pic.twitter.com/tOxQAox6qD
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) March 27, 2022
That goal gave the Blue Jackets a 2-1 lead; one they would hold on to until the final minute-ish of regulation. To go with his five goals, the 32-year-old also has 43 assists. He's four away from the third-best assist tally of his 14-year career, and his leadership continues to be an anchor for this young team.
GOTTA GET TOUGHER
The Minnesota Wild are the kind of team that's good enough to make the postseason, but not the kind of team that most would consider a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. They play an overly physical, scrappy-for-the-sake-of-scrappy style that will get them, at best, into the second round of the postseason. (Don't tell them that, though.)
But it's games like this one that proves one thing: this team has to do a better job of defending itself when they get pushed around. Zac Rinaldo was brought in last summer to do just that, but that didn't work out after he refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine. With youngsters like Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko likely on the way this fall, look for the Blue Jackets brass to go get a big body or two this summer that'll put an abrupt end to the antics that teams like Minnesota rely on for some regular-season success.
UP NEXT
Columbus returns home for a Tuesday night battle against the New York Islanders. Puck drop is 7:00 P.M. The Isles went 7-1-1 over their last nine games before falling Saturday to the Boston Bruins. New York has a game Sunday afternoon with the Tampa Bay Lightning before making the trip to Nationwide Arena.
