The CBJ Writer

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, it's always a game when the Penguins and Blue Jackets meet. Tonight's first period was a solid back-and-forth, but roughly seven minutes into the first period, the Blue Jackets would go on the defensive as the Penguins would get their first powerplay. We've only had a few short-handed goals this season, so they're meant to be celebrated when they happen, so cheers to Mathieu Oliver, who scored at 7:47. On Oliver's fifth goal this season, Cole Sillinger also picks up a sixteenth assist this season! The Penguins were convinced and challenged this goal for goaltender interference, but they would lose this challenge. On the powerplay, as a result, the Blue Jackets wouldn't score, but Elvis Merzlikins and the Blue Jackets would ensure the Penguins wouldn't score this period either.  The 1-0 home lead would slip away after a thirteenth goal this season from Penguins' Drew O'Conner at 13:29. Then, the hope...

No matter the location, Pittsburgh or Columbus, a matchup between the Penguins and Blue Jackets is always one for the books. This week we add two more entries into the book of this heated rivalry, and the last two of the 2023-24 NHL Season. The proof this is always a serious game? Period one would end as it began with a tie...0-0! Yes, it's true; the goaltending and defense were so impressive in this period for both teams that neither offense could break through. That would change greatly in period two, though.  If anything has been reliable this road trip, it's the Blue Jackets scoring first, and tonight, it would be Mathieu Oliver. With his goal at 5:29, he's now found the back of an NHL Net four times. The primary assist is Damon Severson, while the secondary assist is number sixteen for Cole Sillinger. Of course, the Penguins would push back, and after giving them a chance on the powerplay, Evgeni Malkin would score at 9:50, giving him an even twenty goals this season. ...

With the Columbus Blue Jackets having just two games left on their current five-game road trip, playing another team at about their level was a breath of fresh air. James Malatesta, wearing number 67, joins the NHL ranks for the first time, so congratulations to him before we get underway with the recap!  As has been the case with the last two losses, the visiting Blue Jackets would find themselves on the board first for a third game in a row. At 11:45, on the powerplay no less, Captain Boone Jenner would score his twenty-second goal this season. Johnny Gaudreau adds his forty-second assist while Zach Werenski reaches forty! Amazingly, this would be the only goal of period one, and the Blue Jackets would carry that single-goal lead into period two.  Obviously, the Coyotes wouldn't back down. Matias Maccelli scored at 14:55, and Josh Doan scored his first NHL Goal, playing in his first NHL Game, at 16:33. This would also give his home team their first lead tonight. That lead wo...

Just like last night, the Blue Jackets came out and scored the first goal of this road game in Vegas. At 4:32, Erik Gudbranson scored his fifth goal of the season against one of the best goalies in the league, Adin Hill. With the primary assist, Zach Werenski has not only his thirty-ninth assist this season but is officially the second-most in Columbus Blue Jackets history! Congratulations to him! In addition, Kirill Marcheko adds his sixteenth assist. The Blue Jackets would guard their net and head into period two with a 1-0 lead, but there's no way the defending Stanley Cup Champions are going down without a fight, and fight they did.  With twenty-two shots on goal in period two alone, it should be no surprise that two of those shots resulted in goals for the Golden Knights. The first goal, at 3:29, was number fifteen this season for Ivan Barbashev. The second goal, at 4:57, was number twenty-three this season for Jack Eichel. With just three shots on goal this period, there was ...

The Blue Jackets would draw the first goal tonight in Colorado at 4:28. This goal would be number seven this season for Damon Severson. Johnny Gaudreau adds his forty-first assist this season, while Boon Jenner adds number twelve. At 11:00, Cale Makar would tie the game for his Avalance at home with his eighteenth goal this season. For the remaining nine minutes, this period would remain scoreless, and so we'd take a 1-1 tie into period two.  With roughly triple the shots on goal and two goals in period two, the home team would rule this twenty minutes. Ross Colton would score at 5:43, giving himself fifteen goals this season. Then, at 7:07, the thirty-eighth goal this season for Mikko Rantanen would give his Avalanche a 3-1 lead. The Blue Jackets wouldn't score this period and find themselves down two goals going into the final third period of regulation.  At 6:01, Nathan MacKinnon would continue pushing his team toward a game-win with his forty-third goal this season. This w...

Period one would belong to the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets. Zach Werensski would start the scoring with his fifth goal this season at 5:56! This goal would be all his own; no assists. This would be followed by a goal from Alexander Texier, who came out of the box and immediately scored his eleventh goal this season at 13:43! Zach Werenski would go 1-1-2 already with the primary assist on Texier's goal, while Damon Severson would pick up the secondary and his fifteenth assist this season. With the Blue Jackets Defense keeping the Red Wings from their net all period, the Blue Jackets would carry a two-goal lead going into the next twenty minutes of play.  As expected, the Red Wings came out ready to score and succeed. Lucas Raymond scored at 2:57, and then his teammate Moritz Seider followed up with his own goal at 4:23. The Blue Jackets would stop bleeding goals after their second, but the damage would be done as the Red Wings would bounce back and tie this game at 2-2 post forty...

Winnipeg is a heavy-hitting team this season, so we'd need the luck of the Irish and then some to give them a game tonight. Sadly, that didn't happen. The Blue Jackets would hold the visiting Jets to a single goal from Kyle Conner at 1:26 in period one. However, their 1-0 lead would grow by four goals in period two with goals from Nikolaj Ehlen at 1:10, Tyler Toffoli at 9:45, Logan Stanley at 12:00, and Vladislav Namestnikov at 15:24. The Blue Jackets would come out pushing in period three and prevent the shutout thanks to Brendan Gaunce's second goal this season! Newly recalled defenseman Jake Christiansen would have the primary assist, giving him two in the NHL this season, while Mathieu Olivier comes up the secondary, giving him five this season. At 17:34, Tyler Toffoli would cap off his Jets 6-1 commanding win over the home Blue Jackets.  The Blue Jackets will now pack up and hit the road, stopping in Michigan, any Ohio team's favorite place to play. The puck will d...

The San Jose Sharks have had a trying season like the Columbus Blue Jackets, so either team would be happy to pick up a win and two points this evening in Columbus. That said, the Blue Jackets would look to defend their home ice, and at 17:41, Captain Boone Jenner would start that trend with his twenty-first goal this season! Johnny Gaudreau snatches up his thirty-eighth assist while Damon Severson adds his fourteenth.  The Blue Jackets expanded their lead to two goals at 0:49 into period two with a seventh goal from former Penguin Alex Nylander! Yes, eleven games and seven goals—it's incredible! Ivan Provorov's twenty-fourth assist on this Nylander goal was the only assist on this goal. Fabian Zetterland's eighteenth goal this season expired the Blue Jackets' hope of shutting out the Sharks at 11:48, but Johnny Gaudreau would give the Blue Jackets back their two-goal lead at 15:03 with his eleventh goal this season! Alex Nylander has a 1-1-2 night with the primary assi...

I'm back, 5th Line! Thank you to those who wished me well as I battled the flu. I planned to write on Tuesday, but beyond Tarasov's good performance in net after relieving Merzlikins, there was little worth recapping in that game. We watched Merzlikins retake the net tonight and look like himself! Best of all, only one goal would come through the first two periods of play, and that goal would belong to the Blue Jackets' Captain, Boone Jenner! The goal at 0:15 makes him the first in the franchise to cross the twenty-goal threshold in the 2023-24 NHL Season! Johnny Gaudreau reaches thirty-six assists with this goal, and Adam Boquist hits nine. Sadly, the injury bug would continue to plague the Jackets as they'd lose the man with the secondary assist on the night's only goal. The hit would come to Adam Boqvist in period one, and before period two even started, it'd be announced that he'd miss the rest of the game. The home team would remain strong in period two...

First, a happy 100th NHL Game to Mathieu Olivier and a happy 200th NHL Game to Cole Sillinger!  Period one tonight belongs to the home team, the Pittsburgh Penguins, who took a commanding 2-0 lead after twenty minutes. The two goals came from Jesse Puljujarvi at 13:33 and Evgeni Malkin at 18:57. Period two saw our Blue Jackets rebound from an offenseless opening period with a goal from Johnny Gaudreau at 4:31. His tenth goal this season helped him bounce into the double-digit club in this stat category. Jack Roslovic keeps his assist count rolling with his seventeenth, while Zach Werenski gets his thirty-fourth this season and 200th Blue Jackets assist; what a moment for the Alternate Captain Defenseman! Less than a minute later, another defenseman would have a season moment as Andrew Peeke scored his first goal this season at 5:28. Jake Bean picks up the primary assist, giving him eight this season, while Alexander Texier keeps rolling and adds his thirteenth with the secondary. U...

It's a bummer to have Elvis Night without Elvis Merzlikins, especially when playing against the Vegas Golden Knights! That said, his day-to-day upper-body injury is a far cry from Kent Johnson, who will have shoulder surgy soon and remain out for the rest off this NHL and AHL season. I want to wish them both the best before recapping this game.  Tonight would begin with some cannon bangs against the 2023 Stanley Cup Champion Golden Knights. Justin Danforth would score his tenth goal this season at 6:16. It would be a primary assist for Sean Kuraly, who matches his number with seven assists this season. In addition, Zach Werenski continues to rack up points with his thirty-third assist this season on Danforth's goal. Another cannon bang would come at 13:11 for Alex Nylander as he scored his second goal since joining our team five games ago. He now has four points 2-2-4! Alexander Texier enjoys his eleventh assist this season with the primary, while Ivan Provorov adds twenty-two ...

Tonight would be a road game, but you wouldn't know it with how the Blue Jackets showed up to play. It would take only 0:33 for the visitors to put the first goal on the board! This goal would belong to Alexander Texier alone and be his ninth this season. At 14:05, captain Boone Jenner would double the Blue Jackets lead with goal number nineteen this season. In addition, Zach Werenski would add his thirty-first assist, and Jack Roslovic would add his fifteenth assist this season. Philipp Kurashev would find a way to get a puck past Elvis Merzlikins at 17:32, but the Blue Jackets would maintain a one-goal lead after the first period.  The second period would see the Blue Jackets double their goals of the first while keeping the Blackhawks at bay. With his second goal this season at 3:09, it was a happy moment for Mathieu Oliver as he'd helped the Blue Jackets advance to a 3-1 lead. Zach Werenski would also pick up a second assist tonight, his thirty-second this season, giving hi...