The Washington Capitals scored four times in the third period, including a pair of power play goals on a major penalty, and defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets by a final of 5-1 on Friday night at Nationwide Arena.
Denton Mateychuk scored the only goal for the Blue Jackets.
Here are three takeaways from a game that was close until it wasn't:
Thing One: Closer Than The Final Score Would Indicate
The final score is, of course, the final score — 5-1 Capitals; a four-goal loss for the Blue Jackets.
But this was a 0-0 game until there was 1:41 left in the second period, when on just their second (and final) shot on goal of the period, Washington took a 1-0 lead off the stick of John Carlson.
John Carlson
— Capitals Brasil (@WCapitalsBrasil) October 25, 2025
McMichael, Lapierre
pic.twitter.com/YglMDhvDwF
"That's not a 5-1 hockey game. It was such a great game. It really was," said head coach Dean Evason after the game.
Columbus dominated for long stretches of both the first and second periods and ended the middle frame with a 10-2 advantage in shots on goal. They hit a post, a bar, and were stymied by another hot goalie — this time Logan Thompson.
Thompson made a total of 34 saves and was named the #1 Star of the Game, the third time in four losses in which the opposition goalie was named the top player of the night.
"That's not a 5-1 hockey game. It was such a great game. It really was." – Dean Evason
In five-on-five play, the Blue Jackets expected goals was 3.94 to Washington's 2.44, according to MoneyPuck. Another analytics site, Natural Stat Trick, gave Columbus a 3.42 to 2.58 advantage.
Both metrics gave the Blue Jackets the upper-edge in each individual period played — again, at even strength.
Unfortunately for the Blue Jackets, the game was not played at even strength for a crucial five minute stretch in the third period...
Thing Two: A Major Penalty
...with 7:25 left in the third period, Mathieu Olivier picked up a five-minute major for elbowing Declan Chisholm.
No major ever comes at the right time, but this one was particularly crushing. With the Capitals leading 3-0, Mateychuk had just scored to cut into the lead and a second would-be goal by Dmitri Voronkov had just been taken off the board for a distinct kicking motion.
Still, the Blue Jackets were quickly building momentum and were still fighting to get back into the game. That's when Olivier allegedly went high with an elbow to Chisholm, and after review, was off the ice for five minutes to give the Capitals what would turn out to be a game-clinching man-advantage.
Mathieu Olivier receives a 5 minute major for a hit to the head of Declan Chisholm pic.twitter.com/peeJ7xsy2k
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) October 25, 2025
Evason was strong in his opinion that the major was too much.
"(Chisholm) gets hit. First, he stops, jumps out of the way. We're just going to finish the check. Arms are in finishing the check; there's no chicken wing. His head hits the glass. He gets hit on this side. He holds (the other side) of his face," said Evason.
"(Then) plays the very next shift. He plays hockey. For a five-minute major? I don't understand it, I just don't. I'm talking to some very intelligent hockey people that just don't understand what that call was. There's no intent."
Chisholm briefly went down the tunnel but was back on the ice minutes later and as Evason said, didn't miss a shift. The Capitals scored a pair of power-play goals to go up by the eventual final of 5-1.
Thing Three: Chinny's Best Game To Date
Despite playing just 9:03, the least of any Blue Jackets skater, Yegor Chinakhov was one of the more noticeable players on the ice Friday night. He had an expected goals for of 0.42, which was fourth on the team but first by a wide margin when you take into consideration time on ice.
He was jumping into plays and played a strong two-way game in limited time on ice, and could be in line to move up from the fourth-line duties he's been relegated to for his first four games of the season.
As trade rumors continue to swirl regarding Chinakhov, games like this could add to his value, or give him a larger role that could potentially keep him content in Columbus.
Up Next:
Columbus will play the second leg of their first back-to-back this season when they head to PPG Paints Arena to play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday. Puck drops at 7:00 p.m.
