Blue Jackets Allow Two Short-Handed Goals in 6-2 Loss To Coyotes

By Coby Maeir on March 27, 2024 at 12:56 am
Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (90) makes the save on Arizona Coyotes right wing Josh Doan (91) in the second period at Mullett Arena.
© Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports
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The Blue Jackets' strong first-period effort went to waste as they lost 6-2 to the Arizona Coyotes at Mullett Arena on Tuesday in the team's fifth-straight loss. 

  1 2 3 F
BLUE JACKETS 1 1 0 2
ARZ COYOTES 0 2 4 6

1st Period

Mathieu Olivier and Liam O'Brien fought at 1:57 in what would be one of two fights in the game.

Boone Jenner opened the scoring at 11:45 on the power play with his 22nd goal of the season from the left slot off a nice high-low pass from Johnny Gaudreau. 

Jack McBain had a great chance to tie the game from the right doorstep at 15:43, but he was denied by Elvis Merzlikins.

Columbus led 1-0 after 20 minutes and took a 16-11 advantage in shots on goal into the second period. 

2nd Period

Matias Maccelli tied the game on the power play at 14:55 with a left-circle shot past a diving Merzlikins. 

Josh Doan scored his first career NHL goal in his debut at 16:33 after taking the puck away from Zach Werenski and batting the puck out of mid-air and in.  

Following the goal, Erik Gudbranson and Josh Brown dropped the gloves at 17:12.

Werenski tied the game on the power play with his sixth goal of the season at 19:21 with a left-circle wrist shot off the post and past Karel Vejmelka. 

The clubs were tied at two after 40 minutes with Arizona taking a 23-20 advantage in shots on goal into the third period.

3rd Period

Doan scored his second of the game to give Arizona a 3-2 lead at 11:32 with a net-front deflection on Maccelli's shot. 

Nick Bjugstad doubled Arizona's lead at 14:49 from the left doorstep thanks to a give-and-go sequence with Nick Schmaltz.

Schmaltz scored a short-handed goal down the right-wing side at 16:02 to put the Coyotes up three goals.

James Malatesta got on the scoresheet in his NHL debut by fighting Michael Carcone at 18:39.

Dylan Guenther scored a short-handed breakaway at 19:49 to add to Arizona's lead.

With the 6-2 loss, the Blue Jackets fell to 23-37-12.

Stats

  • Shots on Goal: CBJ 26-35 ARZ
  • Face-off %: CBJ 65-35 ARZ
  • Power play: CBJ 2/4-1/2 ARZ
  • Giveaways: CBJ 7-8 ARZ
  • Takeaways: CBJ 5-6 ARZ
  • Blocked shots: CBJ 15-12 ARZ
  • Hits: CBJ 27-21 ARZ
  • 5-on-5 stats (via naturalstattrick.com):
    • Expected Goals (xG): CBJ 2.01-3.38 ARZ
    • Shot Attempts (CF): CBJ 40-62 ARZ
    • Shots on Goal (SF): CBJ 18-28 ARZ
    • Scoring Chances (SCF): CBJ 18-33 ARZ
    • High-Danger Chances (HDCF): CBJ 6-17 ARZ

Injury Update

  • Adam Boqvist is out with an upper-body injury sustained on Thursday against the Ottawa Senators. There is no timetable for his return. 
  • Sean Kuraly is week-to-week with a lower-body injury sustained on Tuesday against the Montreal Canadiens.
  • Yegor Chinakhov is day-to-day with an upper-body injury he suffered during Tuesday's against the Canadiens. 
  • Justin Danforth suffered a concussion on Mar. 7. There is no timetable for his return.
  • 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 March 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.
  • Alex Nylander is day-to-day with an upper-body injury suffered on Mar. 23 against Vegas.

Next Up

The Blue Jackets conclude their road trip in Pittsburgh against the Penguins on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.

They'll face the Penguins again at Nationwide Arena on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.

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