Both teams had a lead so someone had to blow it.
A big second period helped lift the New York Islanders over the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-3 at UBS Arena on Thursday night.
Mathew Barzal had four points with two goals and two assists, and Cal Clutterbuck and Kyle Palmieri scored the last three consecutive goals 4:49 apart as part of a five-goal second period.
Pierre Engvall started the scoring in the first period, and Bo Horvat scored two third-period goals 20 seconds apart and had an assist for a three-point night.
Noah Dobson, Hudson Fasching, Casey Cizikas, Scott Mayfield, Mike Reilly, Brock Nelson, Julien Gauthier, and Samuel Bolduc had assists. Gauthier is on a three-game point streak (two goals, two assists).
Semyon Varlamov stopped 32 shots.
Adam Fantilli had three points with two goals and an assist, and Emil Bemstrom scored in his return to the lineup for the Blue Jackets. Bemstrom added an assist.
Kent Johnson had two assists, and Zach Werenski added to his team lead with his 19th assist and 20th point. Jake Bean had a point.
Spencer Martin made 28 saves.
Tonight marks the first time ever four @umichhockey products are skating for the same NHL team in the same game. Pretty amazing considering the history of that program. A cool night for KJ, Blanks, Mo and Z. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/nj1j2x83Z5
— Jeff Svoboda (@JacketsInsider) December 8, 2023
First Period
| 1 | 2 | 3 | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE JACKETS | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| NY ISLANDERS | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 |
The Blue Jackets and Islanders came into this contest eager to turn the page as both clubs suffered overtime losses after blowing three-goal leads on Tuesday.
Columbus lost 4-3 to the Los Angeles Kings, while the San Sharks came back on the Islanders 5-4.
In this one, Engvall did his part, scoring the game's first goal at 4:00, with Dobson getting the assist. The play occurred following Andrew Peeke's turnover in the Blue Jackets' defensive zone.
Pierre Engvall puts the Isles on top early pic.twitter.com/ndqFRriMc3
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 8, 2023
Not a coach, so I'm not sure what the exact coverage was supposed to be on the Engvall goal, but it looks like either Gaudreau or Jenner left him alone in the LW circle while Peeke battled net-front with Palmieri.
— Brian Hedger (@BrianHedger) December 8, 2023
Either way ... somebody blew a coverage there badly.#CBJ
Second Period
Looking to pull even with the Islanders and benefit off a team that's struggled in their own right to close out games, Bemstrom tied the game at one apiece at 5:56. Fantilli and Johnson picked up assists.
Welcome back, Bemstrom. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/0xX2L4gPT4
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) December 8, 2023
It was Bemstrom's first game since Nov. 14, as he was in Cleveland where he scored 10 goals dating back to Nov. 16.
At 10:11, Fantilli gave Columbus their first lead, with Johnson picking up his second assist and Zach Werenski getting on the board with the helper.
Fantilli #CBJ pic.twitter.com/pKxuzlf8Lp
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) December 8, 2023
The Islanders fought back with three straight goals to end the second period. Clutterbuck tied the game at 14:30, with Fasching and Cizikas getting the assists.
knotted up at 2! pic.twitter.com/yzG6Mz7YME
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) December 8, 2023
Barzal scored at 18:51 to give New York the lead back, with Mayfield and Reilly getting on the board.
MAT. BARZAL. pic.twitter.com/jVR2OpgZSG
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) December 8, 2023
Only 28 seconds later, Palmieri added the fourth goal at 19:19 on the power play, with Nelson getting the assist and Barzal picking up his second point.
Palmieri on the doorstep! pic.twitter.com/yO70uUUIHb
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) December 8, 2023
Third Period
Fantilli scored for Columbus at the 1:27 of the third period for his first multi-goal and three-point game. He's the fourth-youngest player in Blue Jackets history with a three-point game.
Fantilli has three points including his first multi-goal game tonight. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/CBa7IMLThi
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) December 8, 2023
However, the Islanders kept the scoring distance at two with Barzal's second goal at 5:31.
Horvat's two third-period goals 20 seconds apart capped this one off in a 7-3 victory for the home team.
Bo Horvat with two goals in under a minute pic.twitter.com/ypLCWhm8If
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) December 8, 2023
Stats
- Shots on Goal: CBJ 35-35 NYI
- Face-off %: CBJ 54.8-45.2 NYI
- Power play: CBJ 0/1-1/2 NYI
- Giveaways: CBJ 11-12 NYI
- Takeaways: CBJ 4-4 NYI
- Blocked shots: CBJ 12-22 NYI
- Hits: CBJ 18-18 NYI
-
5-on-5 stats (via naturalstattrick.com):
- Expected Goals (xG): CBJ 2.42-2.56 NYI
- Shot Attempts (CF): CBJ 67-53 NYI
- Shots on Goal (SF): CBJ 31-33 NYI
- Scoring Chances (SCF): CBJ 29-26 NYI
- High-Danger Chances (HDCF): CBJ 10-10 NYI
Injury Update
Patrik Laine, Erik Gudbranson, and Elvis Merzlikins missed tonight's game with illnesses. Adam Boqvist was placed on IR retroactive to Dec. 5 and will miss approximately four weeks with a shoulder strain. Damon Severson was placed on IR retroactive to Nov. 19 and will miss approximately six weeks with an oblique injury. Jack Roslovic has been on IR since Nov. 13 with a fractured ankle that will sideline him for four to six weeks. Cole Sillinger is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Next Up
The club returns home to Nationwide Arena for the second of a back-to-back when they host the St. Louis Blues on Friday at 7:00 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.
The team wraps up their quick two-game homestand when they play the Florida Panthers at Nationwide Arena on Sunday, Dec. 10, at 1:00 p.m. ET on NHL Network.
