Despite trailing by multiple goals in the third period, the Blue Jackets rallied back to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 in a shootout on Saturday at Nationwide Arena.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | OT | SO | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE JACKETS | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | (2-4) | 4 |
| PIT PENGUINS | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | (1-5) | 3 |
1st Period
Mathieu Olivier opened the scoring with his fifth goal of the season with a short-handed tally at 7:47 after his feed to Cole Sillinger on a two-on-rush deflected below the goal line, where Olivier picked it up and scored with his backhand.
What's the best way we can honor Jeff Rimer tonight?
— Bally Sports Columbus (@BallySportsCBUS) March 30, 2024
By starting the scoring off with a shorty from Mathieu Olivier!#CBJ pic.twitter.com/78rAan70k7
Elvis Merzlikins stopped every shot he faced in the period, including a backhand shot on a breakaway from Sidney Crosby at 14:32.
The Blue Jackets led the Penguins 1-0 after the first period and outshot the visitors 13-11.
2nd Period
Drew O'Connor tied the game at 13:29 with a right-circle one-timer thanks to a great feed from Bryan Rust.
A thing of beauty
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 31, 2024
Drew OConnor has tied his season/career-long goal streak of three games! pic.twitter.com/GYgTai5lWq
Rust put Pittsburgh ahead at 18:55 with a left-circle one-timer off a fantastic cross-ice feed from Sidney Crosby.
Doesn't look Rusty to us pic.twitter.com/YKv2FuDHLM
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 31, 2024
The Penguins led 2-1 after 40 minutes despite being outshot 26-20.
3rd Period
Rickard Rakell doubled Pittsburgh's lead at 8:59 with a backhand shot from the slot that trickled past Merzlikins.
The defensive effort, the offensive finish pic.twitter.com/ofAi41fM16
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) March 31, 2024
The Jackets responded immediately as Kirill Marchenko scored his 19th of the year at 9:08 after taking Damon Severson's bank pass, dancing around Kris Letang, and firing a wrist shot from the left circle.
Marchy cuts the Penguins lead back to 1!#CBJ pic.twitter.com/aQo2Ol4OQ7
— Bally Sports Columbus (@BallySportsCBUS) March 31, 2024
Zach Werenski tied the game with his seventh goal of the season at 11:47 with a short-side shot from the left circle after making a nice move around Jack St. Ivany.
WE HAVE A TIE GAME!#CBJ pic.twitter.com/vKmVrbjLye
— Bally Sports Columbus (@BallySportsCBUS) March 31, 2024
The teams were tied at three after 60 minutes with Columbus outshooting Pittsburgh 36-32.
Overtime
Johnny Gaudreau had the best chance in overtime with a breakaway at 1:42, but Alex Nedeljkovic made the save.
Shootout
Damon Severson scored the winner in the fourth round.
With the win, the Blue Jackets improve to 24-38-12.
Stats
- Shots on Goal: PIT 33-38 CBJ
- Face-off %: PIT 57-43 CBJ
- Power play: PIT 0/2-0/4 CBJ
- Giveaways: PIT 3-4 CBJ
- Takeaways: PIT 5-8 CBJ
- Blocked shots: PIT 24-15 CBJ
- Hits: PIT 7-17 CBJ
-
5-on-5 stats (via naturalstattrick.com):
- Expected Goals (xG): PIT 1.94-1.84 CBJ
- Shot Attempts (CF): PIT 52-58 CBJ
- Shots on Goal (SF): PIT 25-27 CBJ
- Scoring Chances (SCF): PIT 24-22 CBJ
- High-Danger Chances (HDCF): PIT 10-6 CBJ
Injury Update
- Boone Jenner is out with an illness.
- Adam Boqvist is out with an upper-body injury sustained on Mar. 14 against the Ottawa Senators. There is no timetable for his return.
- Sean Kuraly is week-to-week with a lower-body injury sustained on Mar. 12 against the Montreal Canadiens.
- Yegor Chinakhov is day-to-day with an upper-body injury he suffered on Mar. 12 against the Canadiens.
- Justin Danforth suffered a concussion on Mar. 7. He is day-to-day.
- Kent Johnson has been placed on injured reserve with a torn labrum in his left shoulder that will sideline him for the remainder of the season. He underwent successful surgery on Mar. 7 and is expected to make a full recovery in six months.
- Patrik Laine entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program on Jan. 28 and will be away from the team indefinitely.
- Adam Fantilli suffered a calf laceration on Jan. 28 and is expected to miss eight weeks.
Next Up
The Blue Jackets are back at it on Monday when they host the Colorado Avalanche at 7 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.
The club remains at home to host the New York Islanders on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.
