Ottawa Senators @ Columbus Blue Jackets: 12/1/23 Game Recap

Yes, 5th Line; I can't believe it's December either. Tonight's game promised excitement due to Joonas Korpisalo returning to Nationwide Arena for the first time since he was traded last season. So, a huge welcome back to him. That said, Korpi's return was far from the biggest excitement tonight. Let's recap some high-scoring hockey!  

Elvis Merzlikins would be under attack early, stopping many pucks. The Senators would get two past him early into this first period, though. The first would happen at 8:43 and come from the stick of Claude Giroux. The second, coming at 11:08, would be scored by Brady Tkachuk. Being down two goals isn't a great start for the Blue Jackets. The good news? It wouldn't last long. Scoring his fifth goal this season, Patrik Laine would get the first Blue Jackets goal past former Blue Jacket Joonas Korpisalo. This goal would come at 14:53, taking Johnny Gaudreau up to nine assists and Zach Werenski to sixteen. With Dmitir Voronkov's fifth goal of the seas, the Blue Jackets would come back fully in this game at 15:36. This goal would also be Voronkov's alone, with no assists. With a fresh twenty minutes ahead, this first would end with a 2-2 draw.  

Tonight would be a night of fifth goals this season, and period two would see the third instance of this at 5:16 with a goal from Adam Fantilli. Ivan Proverov takes his assist total to thirteen on this Fantilli goal, while Justin Danforth hits his fifth with the secondary assist. Boone Jenner would expand the Blue Jackets first lead from 3-2 to 4-2 after his goal at 8:54. This is the captain's twelfth this season; Zach Werenski adds another assist tonight, giving him a total of seventeen. With the secondary assist on this Jenner goal, Johnny Gaudreau also adds another to his night's total and enters double digits with ten this season. The Blue Jackets wouldn't just succeed on offense but also on defense in this period, as the Senators would not score, allowing the Blue Jackets to take their 4-2 lead into the final regulation period.  

Through some arguments, slashes, penalties, and great shorts, the Blue Jackets would continue their push for two points and a home win. After a twenty-minute battle, I'm proud to say that's precisely what they did! The home team comes from down 2-0 to win 4-2! Nights like this have to give you faith as a fan; this team can and will figure out how to win. 

With an epic 41 saves on all 43 Senator's shots on his net, Elvis Merzlikins skates away from this game with an outstanding .953% Oh, yeah, that's the Elvis we know!  

Their next chance to gain another two points and the W will be Sunday. The Blue Jackets will travel to face the Bruins in Boston. This will be a fun game and an epic road test for our Columbus team. Not only are the Bruins still the top team in their division, but we handed them a rare loss this past Monday. So, we'll be looking to keep winning against them while they do everything possible to get revenge. Oh, I cannot wait! That game will start at 7:00 p.m.

GO CBJ! 




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