With 180 seconds remaining in the first period of the Columbus Blue Jackets game with Buffalo Tuesday night, defenseman Seth Jones raced up ice, maneuvering through Sabres before deftly slipping a pass through four converging defenders to Cam Atkinson, streaking up the right wing.
With the hard work out of the way, Atkinson did what he did best, shelfing a shot over the glove of Sabres goalie Anders Nilsson.
The goal would give the Blue Jackets a 2-0 lead over the Sabres and would prove to be the winner as Columbus went on to collect a 3-1 win in Nationwide Arena.
The game-winner was Atkinson's eighth of the season, establishing a new club record for a campaign. The Boston College product broke the mark of seven game-winning goals that was held by Brandon Saad (2015-16), Atkinson (2014-15) and Rick Nash (2010-11 and 2003-04).
The goal was also Atkinson's 120th as a Blue Jacket moving him into a tie with R.J. Umberger for second on the franchise's career list.
| Player | Goals | Games Played | Goals/Game | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RICK NASH | 289 | 674 | .429 |
| 2 | CAM ATKINSON | 120 | 375 | .320 |
| R.J. UMBERGER | 120 | 445 | .270 | |
| 3 | DAVID VYBORNY | 113 | 543 | .208 |
| 4 | GEOFF SANDERSON | 88 | 261 | .337 |
| 5 | RYAN JOHANSEN | 79 | 309 | .256 |
