43 dang seconds.
The Columbus Blue Jackets were 43 dang seconds away from fighting back to force OT against the No. 1 team in the Metropolitan Division, after winning the shot battle 38-25.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAPITALS | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| BLUE JACKETS | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Fresh off a failed power play – and with less than 6:30 to go in the game – Matt Calvert, Markus Nutivaara and Brandon Dubinsky finally got one past Capitals goalie Braden Holtby. Calvert took the puck up the ice and threw it to Nutivaara near the top of the right circle. Nutivaara found Dubinsky, who followed his own shot and at long last gave the Blue Jackets a second goal to even the score at 2-2.
It was all for naught, though, as Nicklas Backstrom buried one for the Capitals with 43 dang seconds left.
The Blue Jackets outplayed the Capitals in almost every way except on the scoreboard. The Jackets put up 17 shots on goal in the second, coming from odd-man rush opportunities, slot chances, and rebounds in the blue paint. None found their way past Holtby. Meanwhile, one of Washington’s seven shots beat Sergei Bobrovsky, putting the Jackets in a rough spot entering the third.
Special teams remains a serious issue for the Blue Jackets, who went 0-for-3 on the power play themselves including a sequence in the third right before Dubinsky's goal where they didn't put a single shot on goal during the two-minute advantage.
The Capitals also scored their first goal on the Blue Jackets’ struggling penalty kill unit, on a shot by John Carlson from just above the top of the right circle. Sergei Bobrovsky surrendered the equalizer with a somewhat Seth Jones-obstructed view.
To their credit, the Jackets came out strong. Alexander Wennberg gathered a rebound at the top of the right circle and found an open David Savard in the dead center of the attacking zone just above the circles just two minutes into the game, and Savard fired a beautiful wrist shot to beat Holtby and open the scoring for the night. Later in that period, Josh Anderson dropped the gloves with Caps winger Tom Wilson after a collision along the boards. Both got a couple good swings in before Wilson landed a clean punch and took down the Blue Jackets’ young winger.
In the end, though, a high volume of shots and doesn't mean much if you only convert twice – and that's what sunk the Jackets' hopes tonight.
Injury Update
Lukas Sedlak took a puck to the face a bit over 10 minutes into the second period and left the game. He took a few shifts afterwards, but didn't see the ice after the 11-minute mark of the third period. It may be nothing, but it's worth keeping an eye on the next couple of games.
Ryan Murray was out once again for the Blue Jackets with a back injury, and there is still no definite timetable for his return. Sonny Milano was also out and should be looking for a return in the next few weeks with an oblique injury.
Next Up
The Blue Jackets will rematch the Capitals Friday in Washington, before hosting the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.
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