That's a bit of a surprise.
Yegor Chinakhov scored a breakaway goal, Kent Johnson and Boone Jenner each scored on the power play, Sean Kuraly scored a short-handed goal, and Johnny Gaudreau added an even-strength goal to lift the Blue Jackets past the Florida Panthers in a surprising win, 5-3, on Sunday at Nationwide Arena.
Kuraly's sixth goal of the season gives him five points (four goals, one assist) in the last four games. The go-ahead short-handed goal at 1:57 of the third period was the first short-handed goal of his career. Jack Roslovic has the other short-handed goal for Columbus this season.
A shorty for Kuraly. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/iYldnuqLgL
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 21, 2022
Gaudreau had a three-point night, adding two assists in addition to his goal. Jenner's team-leading eighth goal gives him a four-game points streak (four goals, two assists). Marcus Bjork, Eric Robinson, Andrew Peeke, Gus Nyquist, and Emil Bemstrom added assists.
Matthew Tkachuk, Aaron Ekblad, and Colin White scored for the Panthers. Tkachuk is on a four-game points streak (three goals, five assists). Gustav Forsling added two assists and has six in five straight games. Nick Cousins had two assists. Josh Majura had an assist.
Daniil Tarasov made a career-high 47 saves on 50 shots. It was his first game action since he came on in relief against the Boston Bruins on Oct. 28. Sergei Bobrovsky made 18 saves on 23 shots. Bobrovsky's seven-game winning streak against the Blue Jackets came to an end.
Roslovic did not play (illness). Trey Fix-Wolansky made his season debut, playing 11:21 with two shots, a blocked shot, and had two hits while he was +1. Head coach Brad Larsen coached his 100th career game.
Yegor Bombs
It wasn't exactly a bomb but the result was just as nice.
Yegor Chinakhov turned on the jets after a steal and turned the play into an unassisted first-period breakaway goal. The tally tied the score at 1-1 at 11:21. With 10 points (three goals, seven assists) this season, Chinakhov has already matched his assists total from a season ago and appears poised to break the other scoring totals.
Don't think they're asking "who's Yegor Chinakhov" anymore. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/EUuRgTyQoA
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 20, 2022
Chinakhov had the goal, two shots, a blocked shot, two hits, and a takeaway in 13:20. He has four points (one goal, three assists) in his past five games.
Career-High
Tarasov had the game of his young NHL career. In his 10th career game, and sixth this season, Tarasov stopped a potent Florida attack, making a career-high 47 saves on 50 shots. His previous career-high of 43 saves came on opening night in a loss against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Panthers attempted 94 total shots and Tarasov earned his first win since Oct. 23 against the New York Rangers.
Tarasov's goals saved above expected was 0.63 per MoneyPuck. The Blue Jackets had 29 blocked shots to Florida's four. Vladislav Gavrikov had a team-high seven.
#CBJ Daniil Tarasov's 47 saves tonight vs. #TimeToHunt are tied for the second-most saves by a rookie goaltender in Blue Jackets' franchise history.
— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) November 21, 2022
Pascal Leclaire had 48 saves on 1/14/06 ... also against Florida.
Steve Mason had 47 saves on 12/17/08 vs. #SJSharks
5-on-5 stats from #TimeToHunt @ #CBJ (via @NatStatTrick)
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) November 21, 2022
xG: FLA 2.65-1.52 CBJ
CF: FLA 74-33 CBJ
SF: FLA 43-19 CBJ
SCF: FLA 40-14 CBJ
HDCF: FLA 9-5 CBJ
The Blue Jackets won 5-3. Hockey is a weird game.
The @BlueJacketsNHL bounce back behind a 46-save performance by Daniil Tarasov!#CBJ pic.twitter.com/OZoelb7RYK
— Bally Sports Columbus (@BallySportsCBUS) November 21, 2022
"He was unbelievable!"
— Bally Sports Columbus (@BallySportsCBUS) November 21, 2022
Johnny Gaudreau praises Daniil Tarasov's 46-save performance in the @BlueJacketsNHL's bounce-back victory.#CBJ | @shelleyhawk45 pic.twitter.com/zdekN1YE6y
Daniil Tarasov reflects on how special it was to get the win against Sergei Bobrovsky, who hails from the same hometown in Russia.#CBJ | @DMaetzMedia pic.twitter.com/RUhGISErQZ
— Bally Sports Columbus (@BallySportsCBUS) November 21, 2022
Top 10 Scoring Rookie
Originally credited to Johnson, the second-period power-play goal at 2:53 was later credited to Jenner, before going back to Johnson. Regardless of who gets the goal—it's Johnson's by the way—the tally gave the Blue Jackets a 2-1 lead.
Johnson's goal is his fourth this season and he has nine points, which is good enough to place him in the top 10 among rookie scoring. The power-play goal is the first of his career.
Imagine if he was playing more than 12:36 a night.
KJ is in the top 10 among rookies for scoring. PPG like this is why. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/T4xJUwvsLJ
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 21, 2022
Gaudreau picked up his fourth helper in as many games on the play to continue a four-game points streak. He leads the team with 11 assists and 18 points. Bjork picked up an assist, and his key play to keep the puck inside the blue line made this all possible.
Johnson played 13:26 and has three points (one goal, two assists) in his last four games. He also had a blocked shot.
A replay of KJs Michigan attempt so close! pic.twitter.com/Ult5RDD8BZ
— CBJ Center (@CBJcenter) November 21, 2022
#CBJ HC Brad Larsen on Kent Johnson's attempt at "The Michigan": "If you can pull it off in a game, good on you. I have no issue with that. I don't think he's doing it trying to embarrass them. That's the play he thought he could score with."
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) November 21, 2022
Thanksgiving Eve
The Blue Jackets continue game five of the six-game homestand when the Montreal Canadiens come back into town on Wednesday, Nov. 23 at 7:00 pm ET. The Blue Jackets defeated the Canadiens on Nov. 17, 6-4.
