Columbus Blue Jackets @ Buffalo Sabers: 12/19/23 Game Recap

All I want for Christmas is to write about an epic road win, and Santa Stinger came!  

It may be winter, but the Blue Jackets lit up the Buffalo Sabers home ice tonight. After an early goal on Daniil Tarasov just 0:30 into the first period by Sabers' Rasmus Dahlin, the Blue Jackets engine would turn full speed and not slow down. Johnny Gaudreau would start the scoring landslide at 10:35, gaining his sixth goal this season and giving Adam Fantilli his tenth assist this season. Entering the double digits in his assist category was just the beginning for Adam Fantilli this period, as the next goal would belong to him, giving him nine total this rookie season. This goal would come at 14:40 and give Johnny Gaudreau his number in assists (thirteen) and allow Ivan Proverov to hit sixteen. The lead would then expand by a Kirill Marchenko goal that was a true beauty between the legs. Honestly, the amount of skill this goal took and came from such a young player is astounding. The goal would come at 19:43 and be his eleventh so far this season. I say this for a very exciting reason, but you'll have to wait for period two for that history! Johnny Gaudreau would make it three points in 19:43 with the primary assist, while Zach Werenski adds the secondary to his leading total, now up to twenty-three. At this point, the Blue Jackets would go from down a goal just 0:30 into this game to up two goals after twenty minutes. 

7:37 into period two, Kirill Marchenko would have his second goal of the evening and be on hat trick watch. Of course, this marks his twelfth goal this season. Yegor Chinakov keeps his point streek going into a fifth game with the primary assist on this second Marchenko goal. In addition, we'd see Andrew Peek add his fourth assist. Then comes the magic we've all been waiting for: a Kirill Marchenko HAT TRICK! His third goal would come at 7:55, and with the time of 8:07 between goal one and goal three, he'd make Blue Jackets history with the fastest hat trick in team history! It's also a natural hat trick, making it all the more impressive that none of his goals came with the aid of a power play advantage. What a moment for him! This goal would give Yegor Chinakov and Ivan Proverov another assist each, giving Chinakov six since returning from injury and the Cleveland Monsters and Proverov seventeen. At 8:52, Erik Gudbranson would continue building the goal total with his third of the season. Alexander Texier and Sean Kuraly would both get on the score sheet with their fourth and fifth assists this season. Sean Kuraly would then take that momentum and get the Blue Jackets' seventh goal in two periods of hockey at 12:27. This would be the sixth goal of Kuraly's, Alexander Texier's fifth assist, and Brendan Gaunce's first as he was just called up from the AHL Monsters yesterday! The Sabers would add a second goal thanks to Kyle Okposo at 18:54, but the Blue Jackets would still command this game with a 7-2 lead after forty minutes. 

A beautiful penalty kill would open the final regulation period for the Blue Jackets, but their second quickly after wouldn't yield the same result. A goal from Tage Thompson at 2:37 would take the Blue Jackets lead down to four goals. Then, another goal for the Sabeers at 7:51 by Dylan Cozens would shrink it to three. Unlike earlier games this season, though, the Blue Jackets would take control with several goals. First, Cole Sillinger would acquire goal two of his season at 8:30. Zach Werenski continues his dominance in the assist category, gaining his twenty-fourth on this Sillinger goal. Also, Kent Johnson would have the secondary assist, giving him seven so far this season. The luck would continue for the third time tonight as Kent Johnson would go from assist to goal at 10:59. It's number four for Kent Johnson this season, while Cole Sillinger adds his ninth assist with the primary while Emil Bemstrom adds his fourth. This was and would end at 9-4 WIN for the Blue Jackets. 

It's amazing to see this team win so heavily on the road. They've struggled a lot in period three, and when their opponent started to come back, they pushed back ten times as hard to seal the win. This team can win; they are capable, and it's encouraging to see them not just win but make history, too. Yes, Kirill Marchanko now holds the title for the fastest hat trick. That said, Johnny Gaudreau, Adam Fantilli, Ivan Proverov, Kirill Marchanko, Zach Werenski, Kent Johnson, Yegor Chinakov, Alexander Texier, Cole Sillinger, and Sean Kuraly created history as a group because there has never been a game in which ten Blue Jackets scored two points or more each! WHAT A NIGHT! There can only be Three Stars of the Game, but to me, there were Twenty-Three Stars of the Game tonight. This, tonight. is the definition of a team win.

Tonight is exactly the win they need to carry over into the next game because even though it will be on home ice, the Washington Capitals bring the fire (an Alex Ovechkin) everywhere they play. The game will kick off Thursday at 7:00 p.m. 

LET'S BEAT THE CAPS! 

GO CBJ!