A tough loss.
After Mathieu Olivier scored the first goal of the game 1:08 into the third period, the Canadiens scored two goals of their own in a span of 57 seconds and won 3-1 Wednesday night at Nationwide Arena.
1st Period
Not much happened in the first period. The best chance for either team came from an Eric Robinson deflection at 6:36 that was denied by Montreal goaltender Sam Montembeault. According to naturalstattrick.com, there was only one high-danger chance in the first period.
Both teams were still looking to score heading into the first intermission with Montreal holding a 7-6 advantage in shots on goal.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE JACKETS | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| MTL CANADIENS | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
2nd Period
The game opened up in the second period.
Montreal nearly opened the scoring 90 seconds into the period on the power play when Sean Monahan had a couple point-blank chances at the doorstep, but was denied by Joonas Korpisalo.
Just as the penalty expired, Eric Robinson found Olivier wide open on a breakaway, but he was robbed by Montembeault's glove at 3:24. Just 14 seconds later, Nyquist had a breakaway of his own, but was denied trying to beat Montembeault to the five-hole.
At 4:58, Erik Gudbranson fought and got the better of Michael Pezzetta.
About two and a half minutes later, the Jackets went on the power play and had two magnificent chances, first a shot by Johnny Gaudreau that Montembeault stopped and then Kent Johnson had a chance that deflected off the stick of Joel Armia that was booked for the back of the net.
With seven seconds left in the period, the Canadiens pushed with three shots on goal from Mike Matheson, Jake Evans, and Josh Anderson.
The second period ended the same way it started, with a scoreless tie. Montreal had an 18-16 edge in shots on goal.
3rd period
Columbus opened the scoring just 68 seconds into the final period of regulation after Matheson gifted a turnover to Olivier who fired a wrist shot from the right circle past Montembeault.
#CBJ Olivier (2) goal pic.twitter.com/viOfBQf3Kp
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) November 24, 2022
Montreal answered 90 seconds later as Arber Xhekaj's left-point wrist shot beat Korpisalo through a screen.
#GoHabsGo Xhekaj goal pic.twitter.com/i0O671DhgC
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) November 24, 2022
57 seconds later, the Canadiens took the lead after Kirby Dach sent a centering pass from the right circle that deflected off the skate of David Savard and in.
#GoHabsGo Savard goal pic.twitter.com/EeKfbQTIwX
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) November 24, 2022
Boone Jenner had a chance to tie the game with a shot from the left slot but Montembeault made the save with 6:02 to play.
The Jackets pulled Korpisalo with 2:11 to go in regulation, but Montreal scored on a long shot by Monahan with 1:53 to play to extend the Canadiens' lead to 3-1.
Columbus had a chance to score on a 6-on-4 power play with 1:09 left but couldn't find the back of the net and fell 3-1.
The Jackets dropped their second game in three contests and now fall to 7-11-1 on the season.
Stats
- Shots on Goal: MTL 29-31 CBJ
- Faceoff %: MTL 43.9-56.1 CBJ
- Power play: MTL 0/3-0/3 CBJ
- Takeaways: MTL 3-5 CBJ
- Giveaways: MTL 3-5 CBJ
- Blocked shots: MTL 21-14 CBJ
- Hits: MTL 13-15 CBJ
-
5-on-5 stats (via naturalstattrick.com):
- Expected Goals (xG): MTL 1.36-2.19 CBJ
- Chances (CF): MTL 42-48 CBJ
- Shots (SF): MTL 25-23 CBJ
- Scoring Chances (SCF): MTL 20-21 CBJ
- High-Danger Chances (HDCF): MTL 3-6 CBJ
Injury Update
Yegor Chinakov missed tonight's game with an upper-body injury and is considered day-to-day.
Next Up
The Blue Jackets' next two games are on Friday at Nationwide Arena against the Islanders and on Saturday in Nashville against the Predators. Both games begin at 8 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.
