Game No. one of 82 is in the books in the Dean Evason era. The first win will have to come another day.
Matt Boldy had three points (one goal, two assists) and Joel Eriksson Ek and Matts Zuccarello scored to lift the Minnesota Wild 3-2 over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night at Xcel Energy Center.
Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves for the Wild. Marcus Johansson had two assists. Jonas Brodin and Kirill Kaprizov each had an assist.
Kent Johnson had two points with a goal and an assist and Zach Werenski scored for Columbus. Elvis Merzlikins made 23 saves. Cole Sillinger, Damon Severson, and Yegor Chinakhov had assists for Columbus.
Hard-Fought
In what goes down as a loss in the standings, it was an entertaining game between both clubs.
| COLUMBUS | GAME STATS | MINNESOTA |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | SHOTS | 26 |
| 45.8% | FACEOFF % | 54.2% |
| 1 / 3 | POWER PLAY | 1 / 3 |
| 2 / 3 | PENALTY KILL | 2 / 3 |
| 20 | HITS | 14 |
| 15 | GIVEAWAYS | 11 |
| 1 | TAKEAWAYS | 2 |
| 8 | BLOCKED SHOTS | 18 |
| DATA VIA ESPN | ||
Matt Boldy's tally at 17:51 of the first period broke the scoreless tie for Minnesota. Kent Johnson's first of the year at 2:00 of the second period tied the game at 1-1.
ATTENTION #5THLINE, WEVE GOT A KENT JOHNSON GOOOALLL
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) October 11, 2024
Our first of the season!@FanaticsBook | #CBJ pic.twitter.com/tEFrD8vWOv
With 9:36 remaining in the second period, the Jackets thought they had a 2-1 lead thanks to recent newcomer James van Riemsdyk on the power play, but a successful challenge to review goaltender interference by the Wild erased the goal.
Eriksson Ek scored at 16:35, just as the Wild's power play ended to give the Wild a 2-1 lead through 40 minutes. Zuccarello's goal at 9:58 of the third period extended the two-goal lead.
The Blue Jackets have 58% of even-strength possession and 60% of even-strength scoring chances through 40 minutes tonight.
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) October 11, 2024
A solid start to the Dean Evason era thus far. #CBJ
With 17:06 remaining in the third period, Werenski scored on the power play to give Columbus a chance to the very end.
A laser from Z for his first of the campaign! @FanaticsBook | #CBJ pic.twitter.com/Vcc57FMbmy
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) October 11, 2024
Looking at @NatStatTrick, pretty even game tonight. 5x5, expected goals were 1.60-1.42 in favor of CBJ.
— Jeff Svoboda (@JacketsInsider) October 11, 2024
A fairly defensive game -- high-danger chances only 6-6. #CBJ defensive structure was solid.
Top line was dominant in puck possession (16-4 shot attempts in favor).
It's nice to see the power play come away with a goal — almost two — as the team pushes forward.
A New Era Under Way
If there’s an identity to watch for from this team under new head coach Dean Evason, it’s work ethic. That's been among the common words and traits Evason has stressed in the early-going of his coaching tenure in Columbus when talking about what he expects from his team.
In the first game of 82, there was a lot to like in that department, while the Jackets certainly have some areas to clean up as most teams do at the beginning of a new season.
"We didn't get the result, which we're not happy with obviously, but we got the effort, we got the work, we got the visual of how we want to play, the reinforcement of how we want to play," Evason said after Thursday's loss.
Can't Solve Gustavsson
One of the best players for the Wild was their goaltender, Gustavsson, who did what he could to thwart the best players for the Blue Jackets.
Johnson led Columbus with two points including the game-tying goal in the second period. He played 18:04 and was one of four Blue Jackets with at least four shots on goal (Sean Monahan and Jake Christiansen each had four), and Werenski led the game with seven shots on 11 attempts.
3-2 is the final in Minnesota, despite a feverish late push from the Blue Jackets.
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) October 11, 2024
A lot to like in the first game action from Dean Evason's group but they come up on shot short. On to Denver. #CBJ
Zach Werenski postgame after the 3-2 #CBJ loss: "Obviously we're not happy with the result, but I feel like our body of work in that game and how we played, if we do that, if that's our standard, we're going to win a lot of hockey games."
— Jeff Svoboda (@JacketsInsider) October 11, 2024
Mile High
The mini two-game road trip concludes on Saturday, Oct. 12 when the Blue Jackets take on the Colorado Avalanche at 9:00 p.m. ET from Ball Arena.
