Zach Werenski has been a steadying force for the Columbus Blue Jackets since he entered the NHL in 2016-17.
Playing a team-high 24:17 in the club's 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators, Werenski tallied two primary assists. His sublime playmaking was on display throughout the game, and he was the catalyst for two of the team's goals, assisting on goals scored by Jack Roslovic (his first) and Eric Robinson. Both goals were consequential for the Blue Jackets. The first tied the game at 1-1, and the second was the game-winner.
Werenski Reads And Joins The Rush
Jack Roslovic finishes off Werenski's feed on the odd-man rush to tie it up at 1 for the Jackets!#CBJ pic.twitter.com/5l5hEsGoYr
— Hockey Daily 365 (@HockeyDaily365) March 17, 2022
Head coach Brad Larsen must love plays like this, where Werenski and eventual goal-scorer Roslovic start the play behind their own net by forcing a turnover. Roslovic moves the puck to Patrik Laine on the wing, and both fly up ice. Gus Nyquist makes a heady play to take away the strong-side defender, and Laine sends a pass to the weak-side, where Werenski has filled a lane.
This effectively defeats Ottawa's neutral zone forecheck, as the Senators are unable to match Werenski and Roslovic's speed. Werenski holds the puck on his hip pocket to perfection, which hides his intentions. Is he going to shoot? Is he going to pass? At the last moment, Werenski slides the puck across the royal road and onto the backdoor, where Roslovic is able to put home a tight-angle shot.
Werenski Sends Stretch Pass
Eric Robinson takes Werenski's long stretch pass and surprises Forsberg with a sneaky wrister to give the Jackets a 2-1 lead!#CBJ pic.twitter.com/MMynq5i7ju
— Hockey Daily 365 (@HockeyDaily365) March 17, 2022
If Larsen loves that first goal, you can rest assured that Senators' head coach D.J. Smith hated this one. The Senators get the puck deep and go for a change. Elvis Merzlikins stops the puck behind his net and leaves it for Werenski.
Werenski surveys the ice, then hits Robinson with a hard, direct stretch pass that hits him on the tape at the far blue line. Robinson collects the puck, then shoots it across his body, beating Anton Forsberg off the far post. As Robinson gathers the puck, you can see two Senators players just now coming onto the ice, and the player that Robinson snuck behind, Erik Brannstrom (#26), throws his hands up as if to say, "where was everybody?"
Both assists go a long way to demonstrate what makes Werenski a special player. It's not so much the technical passing ability (he even admitted that his pass to Roslovic was too far ahead of him), but his mental makeup that allows him to process the ice and make the right play exactly on time. Werenski leads all Blue Jackets defensemen in points with 10-29-39 in 55 games. With games like he had on Wednesday night, it's not difficult to understand why.
