This was a fair and even fight for the puck and first preseason goal, in regard of both the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets and the hosting Pittsburgh Penguins. This was proven by the full first period, which ended with 10 shots on goal for the Penguins and 8 for the Blue Jackets, but none the less remained a 0-0 game.
Period 2 would see more action. Powerplay 1 would go to the Blue Jackets and right off the faceoff, Jack Roslovic would turn a reverse, then slide it smoothly to teammate James Neal who was right by the goal post. From there it was easy for him to push it over the line, having no Penguin in sight to block him. The goal would be scored at 3:25. The 1-0 lead wouldn't last long however, as John Lizotte would find the tie at 13:13. It's important to note that Pavel Cajan started out in net, then roughly halfway through the game, both teams would swap out goalies. Our team would pull Pavel Cajan and give Nolan Lalonde a chance to shine. Moments after this change a trip penalty would be handed down to the Penguins, against Yegor Chinakhov. Another Powerplay would come for the Blue Jackets and with a pass from Kirill Marchenko to Nick Blankenburg, we'd see another goal for the Blue Jackets at 7:33. This goal didn't come without some discomfort though, as Chinakhov would leave the ice and go the bench immediately following the call which gained the Blue Jackets a second Powerplay, making this second goal and lead possible. This 2-1 lead would hold until the close of this second period.
Rolling on into the middle afternoon and Period 3 of the first of two Columbus Blue Jackets and Pittsburgh Penguins matchup, and almost straight into a reasonable hockey fight, which turned ugly quick. Blue Jackets Ben Harpur and Penguins Jamie Devane got into blows after a whistle. The refs stood by and expected a classic tit for tat kind of fight, it didn't end that way, however. During this fight Harpur lost his helmet and Devane punched him hard, this resulted in Harpur falling to the ice in a heap, bleeding. The video feed for the NHL App actually went to the team logos after this, not showing what happened thereafter. I know from the announcers Harpur left the ice with aid of both Jack Roslovic and Yegor Chinakhov, along with the fact it took him some time to do so. He didn't stop at the bench but was instead followed by Columbus Blue Jackets staff to the locker room. Thanks to Jeff Svoboda I know both men received fighting major penalties, which offset. Before you hate on Devane too much, Jeff Svoboda did mention in the Tweet below that he was "remorseful" for the hit. In my mind, he likely expected him to dodge the swing, but that just didn't happen.
Jeff Svoboda Tweet on 9/25/22: "Harpur was going back and forth with a Penguins player earlier in the game near the benches. Not sure if it was Devane, but it's not a huge surprise to see Harpur drop the gloves.
Credit to Devane, who was immediately concerned for Harpur after the scary end of that tilt."
On another call to follow, the Penguins would gain another Powerplay, but the Blue Jackets would do an amazing job on Defense. The score would remain 2-1, Blue Jackets, as they would maintain their lead. After this, a rush toward the Blue Jackets net would come, along with a likely cringing and loudly cheering Penguins fan base. No Defenseman could get between two Penguins players and Blue Jackets Goaltender Nolen Lalande., and yet Lalande would have tunnel vision on that puck and stop the shot, all on his own! As if that wasn't rattling enough to the Penguins confidence, Lalande would also deny them their rebound, before capturing the puck and stopping play. I think Nolen Lalande needs a Monster's jersey after that stop alone! After some amazing Defense, this gam looked locked up for the Blue Jackets, but you all know that's never the case for us! With just over 51 seconds left in the final Period, Penguin player Corey Andonovski would shoot it past Lalande. 2-2 at the horn and you know what that means 5th Line, extra hockey!
Jason Zucker would put another goal away for the Pittsburgh Penguins early into Overtime. This was a tricky shot to stop, especially as Lalande faces shot after shot. The Blue Jackets just couldn't clear, simple as that. With that in mind, there was so much promise in the first preseason game for this group of Blue Jackets.
Final Game Thoughts:
First and foremost, let's talk about Nick Blankenburg. This man was all over the ice, all game, this afternoon. He was blocking, he was shooting and in one instance he also scored. In addition to this I'd love in my heart to see how Nick Blankenburg would play with Zach Werenski. However, today he played a bit with Jake Bean and it a veery good fit in my eyes.
Pavel Cajan held his own in net, for all roughly 30 minutes he played, he only let 1 goal past him. Not too bad, especially after a rough go yesterday in the public scrimmage.
Nolen Lalande also faced the fire and, in the end, got burned a bit. He did so great and then what would've been a shared win with Pavel Cajan just went up in smoke. You hate to see finals like this where a team does so well, just to lose it in a matter of seconds. His stop on that break away, with no Defense before him, was incredible though and likely his crowning glory today.
Jack Roslovic, amazing as ever with an assist today, no surprise there! Yegor Chinakhov, no points but did pull the trip which gave the Blue Jackets a Powerplay which resulted in the Period 2, Nick Blankenburg goal. Kirill Marchenko, an assist for him today as well. Many say he'll make the roster this season and I can't find reason to dispute that theory myself. As I said, all good things today, the team just couldn't quite close it out. The good thing is, we only have to wait a few hours for round 2!
Tonight at 7:00 PM the tables will turn as the Columbus Blue Jackets now host the Pittsburgh Penguins. This game will showcase names like Patrik Laine, Gus Nyquist, Justin Danforth, Jakub Voracek, Kent Johnson, Zach Werenski, Erik Gudbranson, Andrew Peek, Adam Boqvist, Jake Christinsen, Jet Greaves, Elvis Merzlikins and this new and coming Blue Jackets named Johnny Gaudreau. By the way, that's just some of the big names tonight, not all of them! I'll have a full recap of Game 2 later tonight, until then 5th Line...
Go CBJ!
Comments
Post a Comment