An offensive explosion.
Jack Roslovic had a four-point day with two goals and two assists to help the Columbus Blue Jackets over the Edmonton Oilers, 6-5, on Saturday afternoon at Nationwide Arena.
Roslovic's goals are his first goals in 14 games. Patrik Laine had three points with a goal and two assists. Kirill Marchenko had two goals, and Boone Jenner had a goal and an assist. Johnny Gaudreau had two assists. Adam Boqvist, Kent Johnson, and Gavin Bayreuther added helpers.
Connor McDavid had four points with two goals and two assists. He's on a six-game point streak (six goals, 10 assists).
Warren Foegele, Leon Draisaitl, and Zach Hyman also scored for the Oilers. Draisaitl is on an eight-game point streak (seven goals, five assists) and has goals in seven straight.
Brett Kulak and Tyson Barrie each had two assists. Darnell Nurse had an assist. Barrie is on a six-game point streak (three goals, five assists). Nurse is on a four-game point streak (zero goals, four assists).
Joonas Korpisalo stopped 43 shots and faced 23 in the third period to pick up the win. Jack Campbell (10 saves on 14 shots) was pulled midway through the second period for Stuart Skinner (10 saves on 12 shots).
Coming into play, Campbell was unbeaten in regulation since Jan. 11, a string of 11 straight games. He lost his last three decisions in overtime or shootout coming in.
Cole Sillinger returned to the lineup after missing Thursday's game due to illness. Lane Pederson was a healthy scratch. Sean Kuraly received a 10-minute misconduct in the first period. The Blue Jackets swept the two-game season series against the Oilers.
Sellout and a season-high crowd of 19,004 at Nationwide Arena to watch #LetsGoOilers @ #CBJ.
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) February 25, 2023
Blue Jackets Score Just Enough
Saturday was Kids Takeover Day at Nationwide Arena and one kid continues to shine for the Blue Jackets.
The 22-year-old Marchenko started the offensive fireworks at 1:14 of the game with assists by Gaudreau and Jenner to break a five-game pointless drought. He's up to 17 points (16 goals, one assist) on the season through 36 games and is second among rookies in goals, just three behind Seattle Kraken's Matty Beniers. Marchenko and Jenner co-led the Blue Jackets with five shots on goal.
Could get used to this from 86 and 13 for some time. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/VPrn3KPKo4
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) February 25, 2023
Jenner added a power-play goal at 1:33 of the second period with Laine and Roslovic getting on the board. He leads the team with 18 goals and co-leads the club with six power-play goals alongside Marchenko. Jenner has eight points (four goals, four assists) in five of his last seven games dating back to Feb. 11.
Jenner from Laine and Rolsovic. pic.twitter.com/1jHVgJCMx0 #CBJ
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) February 25, 2023
Jenner's goal in the 2nd period marks his 318th career NHL/CBJ point, surpassing David Vyborny for the 4th-most points in franchise history. #CBJ
— CBJ Public Relations (@BlueJacketsPR) February 25, 2023
Marchenko added his second goal at 3:24 of the second period with Gaudreau earning his second point, team-leading 39th assist, and 54th point. Gaudreau has points (one goal, four assists) in four of his last five games.
Marchenko's second from Gaudreau. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/IdeQ0QO2Pk
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) February 25, 2023
Laine's 17th made it 4-0 at 5:56. Boqvist has points (two goals, four assists) in five of his last six games.
Laine's 17th from Boqvist and Roslovic. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/4ruLASM7BB
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) February 25, 2023
Roslovic's fifth of the season, and first of two, came at 9:01 of the third period with Laine adding his third point of the game, and Johnson picked up an assist.
Roslovic from Laine and Johnson. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/CPv8FdnU1B
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) February 25, 2023
Then Roslovic added another at 14:56 which held up as the game-winner. Bayreuther added the assist.
A look at Roslovic's second goal of the game, assisted by Bayreuther. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/0oBR01Opm8
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) February 25, 2023
Seven-Goal Second Period
The Blue Jackets only led 1-0 after one period and then added three goals in the first 5:56 of the second period to take a 4-0 lead.
Yet, no lead is safe when McDavid and Draisaitl are part of the opposition.
The Oilers scored four goals in the middle frame as part of a seven-goal frame. Foegle's goal innocently started it all at 6:40 and McDavid's second goal at 14:42 culminated the scoring surge. He also added a shorthanded goal at 12:51. It's the first time in McDavid's career that he has multiple goals in three straight games. He now has a career-high 48 goals. McDavid also had a game-high five hits and seven shots.
Trying To Contain McDavid And Co.
Vladislav Gavrikov was on the ice for practice on Friday but was a healthy scratch for the fifth consecutive game due to trade-related reasons. Where he might go remains to be seen. The saga will have some clarity soon with the trade deadline less than a week away on Friday, Mar. 3 at 3:00 pm ET.
The Blue Jackets did all they could to contain McDavid (113––48-65) and Drasaitl (88––36-52), a scoring duo that's 1-2 in the entire league, as they combined for five points (three goals, two assists) on 12 shots.
The Oilers feature the No. 1 power play in the sport and were held to one goal in four opportunities. Columbus was 1-for-4. The Blue Jackets had 16 blocked shots to Edmonton's eight.
Off Into The Wild
The Blue Jackets are in Minnesota for a rematch against the Wild at Xcel Energy Center on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 2:00 pm ET. The Blue Jackets fell to the Wild, 2-0, on Thursday in Columbus on Feb. 23.
