Kirill Marchenko's Natural Hat Trick Leads Blue Jackets' Offensive Explosion In 9-4 Win Over Sabres

By Coby Maeir on December 19, 2023 at 9:40 pm
Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Kirill Marchenko (86) celebrates his goal with teammates during the second period against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center.
Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
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Over a year after losing 9-4 at home to the Sabres, the Blue Jackets returned the favor with a 9-4 victory of their own at KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Tuesday. 

1st Period

  1 2 3 F
BLUE JACKETS 3 4 2 9
BUF SABRES 1 1 2 4

After Yegor Chinakhov turned the puck over in the neutral zone, the Sabres rushed down the ice, leading to Casey Mittelstadt finding Dylan Cozens with a drop pass before Cozens sent a backhand pass to Rasmus Dahlin, who scored from the slot at 0:30.

The Blue Jackets tied the game at 10:35 after a good forecheck by Johnny Gaudreau led to a shot by Adam Fantilli from the slot that found Gaudreau at the left doorstep where he scored. 

Fantilli gave the Jackets the lead at 14:40 from the right goal line thanks to a nifty feed from Gaudreau that he sent off the boards behind the net. 

Kirill Marchenko doubled Columbus' lead on the power play at 19:48 with a ridiculous between-the-legs goal from the left doorstep. 

The Blue Jackets led 3-1 after the first period and took a 14-4 advantage in shots on goal into the middle frame. 

2nd Period

Marchenko added another goal at 7:37 with a wicked wrist shot from the top of the left circle.

Just 18 seconds later, Marchenko completed his natural hat trick with a left-circle wrist shot off the rush.

Erik Gudbranson joined the scoring party at 8:52 with a great wrist shot from between the circles off a cross-ice feed from Alexandre Texier

Thanks to a nice play on the wall by Brendan Gaunce and a sweet saucer pass by Texier, Sean Kuraly gave the Jackets a 7-1 lead from the doorstep at 12:27.

Kyle Okposo answered for Buffalo at 18:54 with a right-slot slap shot to cut the Columbus lead to five.

The Blue Jackets led 7-2 after two periods and outshot the Sabres 27-18 through 40 minutes.

3rd Period

Tage Thompson cut the Columbus lead to four with a power-play missile from the left circle at 2:57.

Cozens scored Buffalo's fourth goal of the game at 7:51 with a right-circle wrist shot off the rush.

After a nice play by Kent Johnson at the top of the circles to find Zach Werenski at the left circle, Werenski put the puck on Cole Sillinger's stick at the goalmouth to give Columbus an 8-4 lead. 

Johnson gave Columbus a 9-4 lead at 10:59 with a one-timer from the high slot thanks to a feed from Sillinger.

With the 9-4 win, the Blue Jackets improved to 11-17-5. 

Stats

  • Shots on Goal: CBJ 33-29 BUF
  • Face-off %: CBJ 45.3-54.7 BUF
  • Power play: CBJ 1/2-1/3 BUF
  • Giveaways: CBJ 5-8 BUF
  • Takeaways: CBJ 4-6 BUF
  • Blocked shots: CBJ 15-13 BUF
  • Hits: CBJ 12-20 BUF
  • 5-on-5 stats (via naturalstattrick.com):​
    • Expected Goals (xG): CBJ 2.70-4.04 BUF
    • Shot Attempts (CF): CBJ 51-51 BUF
    • Shots on Goal (SF): CBJ 31-21 BUF
    • Scoring Chances (SCF): CBJ 28-29 BUF
    • High-Danger Chances (HDCF): CBJ 10-10 BUF

Injury Update

  • Patrik Laine is expected to miss six weeks with a clavicle fracture (From 12/15).
  • Adam Boqvist is expected to miss four weeks with a shoulder strain and is on IR retroactive to Dec. 5.
  • Damon Severson is expected to miss six weeks with an oblique injury and is on IR retroactive to Nov. 19.
  • Boone Jenner is on IR and is expected to miss six weeks with a broken jaw he suffered on Dec. 8.
  • Jack Roslovic is on IR and is expected to miss four to six weeks with a broken ankle he suffered on Nov. 12

Next Up

The Blue Jackets are back in action in Columbus on Thursday when they take on the Washington Capitals at 7 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.

The club remains at home to host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.

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