Tough game out of the break.
Joonas Korpisalo made 38 saves but John Tavares scored two goals and the Blue Jackets were shut out for the first time since Jan. 8, losing 3-0 to the Maple Leafs at Nationwide Arena Friday.
1st Period
Tavares opened the scoring on a Maple Leafs power play at 5:45 with a backhand shot from the right doorstep after receiving a sweet feed from Mitch Marner.
#LeafsForever Tavares goal pic.twitter.com/PbRQn9GepI
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) February 11, 2023
Toronto nearly doubled their lead at 8:09 after Johnny Gaudreau's pass from the right point was tipped and then taken by William Nylander on a breakaway, but he was denied by Korpisalo.
Korpisalo bailed out his teammates after a defensive-zone giveaway at 13:55 when he denied a backhand shot from Alex Steeves from the doorstep.
Columbus had a chance to score a short-handed goal at 19:18 when Eric Robinson fired a shot from the slot but it deflected off of Morgan Rielly's stick and went into the netting.
The Maple Leafs led the Blue Jackets 1-0 on the scoreboard and 14-6 in shots on goal heading into the second period.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE JACKETS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TOR MAPLE LEAFS | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
2nd Period
Nylander had a chance to score after picking Erik Gudbranson's pocket but fired wide of Korpisalo from the right circle at 2:08.
Gaudreau had a chance to tie the game at 11:27 with a backhand shot but he missed the net.
Korpisalo made a great save, moving from left to right to deny Zach Aston-Reese from the left circle while the Maple Leafs were short-handed.
Nylander had his second breakaway of the game at 16:20 but Korpisalo was up to the task and made the save.
Gaudreau had another great chance to tie the game at 18:27 but Ilya Samsonov got enough of his glove on it to make the save.
The Maple Leafs took a 1-0 lead into the final period of regulation with a 28-21 advantage in shots on goal.
3rd Period
Toronto doubled its lead at 7:49 when Pierre Engvall finished a one-timer from the right circle off a sweet feed from Rielly.
#LeafsForever Engvall goal pic.twitter.com/h7o4QMiYqh
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) February 11, 2023
The Maple Leafs added to their lead at 8:38 when Tavares fired a wrist shot from the slot past Korpisalo, scoring his second goal of the night.
#LeafsForever Tavares goal pic.twitter.com/IBwHNEHoNN
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) February 11, 2023
Liam Foudy nearly scored his first NHL regular season goal at 17:22 with a wrist shot from the left circle but it hit the post.
Korpisalo denied Engvall from scoring his second of the night on a breakaway at 18:35.
The 3-0 final held up as the Blue Jackets fell to 15-33-4.
Stats
- Shots on Goal: TOR 41-30 CBJ
- Faceoff %: TOR 41.1-58.9 CBJ
- Power play: TOR 1/4-0/3 CBJ
- Takeaways: TOR 8-6 CBJ
- Giveaways: TOR 3-4 CBJ
- Blocked shots: TOR 14-18 CBJ
- Hits: TOR 6-16 CBJ
-
5-on-5 stats (via naturalstattrick.com):
- Expected Goals (xG): TOR 2.17-1.94 CBJ
- Chances (CF): TOR 52-47 CBJ
- Shots (SF): TOR 29-25 CBJ
- Scoring Chances (SCF): TOR 30-21 CBJ
- High-Danger Chances (HDCF): TOR 11-8 CBJ
Injury Update
Adam Boqvist and Nick Blankenburg returned to the lineup after being out with upper-body injuries. Boqvist last played on Jan. 27 and Blankenburg last appeared on Jan. 25.
Next Up
The Jackets head north of the border to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday at Scotiabank Arena at 7 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.
The club returns home to take on the New Jersey Devils at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.
