WHAT A NIGHT.
The Blue Jackets came back from a two-goal deficit, then blew a two-goal deficit of their own in the third period. Despite the adversity, they took down the Avalanche in overtime on Wednesday night, 5-4.
In the first period, both teams generated good chances but were unable to score. The Blue Jackets killed off two minor penalties in the first 20 minutes with some timely blocked shots and excellent goaltending from Joonas Korpisalo, who was making his second consecutive start after he beat the New Jersey Devils on Sunday evening. Per Natural Stat Trick, expected goals in the period favored Colorado by a slim margin: 0.75 vs. 0.68.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | OT | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE JACKETS | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| AVALANCHE | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
The second period saw the Avalanche jump out to a 2-0 lead. First, Logan O'Connor beat Korpisalo with a wrist shot from the left circle. Then, Nazem Kadri and Bowen Byram found themselves with a 2-on-1. Kadri made a pass across the ice, and Byram snuck the puck under Korpisalo's blocker to double the Avalanche's advantage.
Before the period ended, Jake Bean scored his second goal of the season to bring the Blue Jackets within one. After a long shift in the Avalanche's zone, Tyson Jost followed the wrong man as the Blue Jackets cycled the puck, opening up some ice for Bean. With the puck on his stick, Bean fired a wrister which deflected off of Erik Johnson before trickling past Avalanche netminder Jonas Johansson.
Bean making things happenpic.twitter.com/wDsvOmAMTC
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 4, 2021
The Blue Jackets carried the momentum from Bean's goal over to the third period, and they were rewarded for it just one minute and 13 seconds into the final frame. Jakub Voracek saw Cole Sillinger in front of the net and fired a pass in his direction. Sillinger, who was battling for position with former Blue Jacket defenseman Jack Johnson, redirected the puck past Johansson to tie the game at 2-2.
COLE COMES UP CLUTCH #CBJ pic.twitter.com/1Vn7oDBlYb
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 4, 2021
Sillinger wasn't done. Three minutes and 13 seconds later, he added his second goal of the period off of a beautiful feed from defenseman Gabriel Carlsson, who had stepped up and joined the rush. Carlsson is known as a stay-at-home defenseman, but he showed that his game has a bit of finesse.
HOW BOUT THIS KID #CBJ pic.twitter.com/zFBpQ4XvUo
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 4, 2021
Four minutes and 30 seconds later, Jenner scored a typical Boone Jenner goal. On the rush, his initial wrist shot from the right circle was saved. The captain followed it up with a backhand that beat Johansson and extended the Blue Jackets' lead to 4-2. It was Jenner's sixth goal of the season, which leads the team.
THE CAPTAIN #CBJ pic.twitter.com/eFxhAT8h41
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 4, 2021
With 3:26 remaining and Johansson pulled, the Avalanche drew within one goal. J.T. Compher tipped home Byram's shot from the point to set up a wild finish. Then, with 52 seconds remaining, Byram scored his second of the game to tie the game at 4-4 and send it to overtime.
In the overtime period, Voracek lost the puck but drew two defenders as he reclaimed it. This opened up space for Bean, who beat Johansson low glove side to earn the Blue Jackets two points.
BEANS #CBJ pic.twitter.com/746l9pN3Qn
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) November 4, 2021
Injury Update
Patrik Laine left the bench in the third period and did not return to the game.
Next Up
The Blue Jackets will head home ahead of Saturday's rematch against the Avalanche. This one will occur at Nationwide Arena, with puck drop slated for 7:00 p.m. EST.
