The CBJ Writer

Let's recap! Tonight started with a firework trade; Gus Nyquist is now playing for the Minnesota Wild. However, the remaining team wouldn't let that phase them tonight as they prepared to face the Buffalo Sabers in Buffalo. For how good the Sabers are, currently 4th in their Atlantic Division and fighting for a playoff spot, this game tonight didn't go to their plan. The Blue Jackets are meeting the challenge to improve and leave their fans to hope for next season, a fact we saw play out well tonight. Goal 1 would put the Blue Jackets up 1-0. The goal would come at 2:53 by Kent Johnson. He scored this first goal on a Blue Jackets Power Play, which marks his thirteenth goal this season. Assists on this goal would go to Nick Blankenburt, his sixth this season. The Sabers would bounce back quickly, gaining a goal at 3:11 from T. Thompson. The game would be even at 1-1 until Eric Robinson scored an unassisted goal at 13:41, giving him six now this season. This 2-1 Blue Jackets ...

I didn't see this coming. Gus Nyquist was a trade rumor for so long, but after his injury, many fans and myself expected us to sign him to a 1-year deal like we did Joonas Korpisalo last season after he had surgery on both his hips. Tonight, less than an hour before the puck drop in Buffalo, New York, we now know that won't be the case.  Source: Jeff Svoboda @JacketsInsider on Twitter 2/28/23  " NEWS: The Blue Jackets have acquired a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Gustav Nyquist. The pick originally belonged to the Boston Bruins. #CBJ " This move was a surprise because we've seen Vladislav Gavrikhov, and as of today, Joonas Korpisalo held out of games pending a likely trade. With Nyquist out on IR due to a shoulder injury a few weeks ago, this trade came without waning. That said, I'm not surprised the Minnesota Wild made an offer for him. They are currently 4th in their Central Division with a record of 32-21-6....

Period 1 would belong to the Coyotes, but not until T. Boyd found the net at 14:14. The Coyotes would extend their lead to 2-0 after a goal from N. Schmaltz at 16:28. The main highlight of this period would be the Blue Jackets giving the Coyotes a chance at the Powerplay; however, they would be denied. The 2-0 Coyotes lead would take us into Period 2, where the Blue Jackets would find their rhythm.   The second the puck dropped in Period 2, we'd see Blue Jackets Erik Gudbranson and Coyotes Josh Brown would go at it, throwing blow after blow until the refs broke them up. At 13:23, Captain Boone Jenner would prevent the shutout with his seventeenth goal of the season. For anyone on the 5th Line wondering, he does have the most right now and has extended his lead over Johnny Gaudreau and Patrik Laine by two. Nick Blankenburg would have the primary assist on this Jenner goal, his fifth during this 2022-23 NHL season. The secondary assist would come from another defenseman, Andrew ...

It didn't seem enough to start this blog with the line "you cannot make this stuff up," so I put it in the title! This was a fantastic game, so we're recapping it after just a two-sentence intro!    Leam Foudy, a Columbus Blue Jackets who's been waiting a very long time for his first regular-season goal, finally had his moment tonight in Dallas. Goal one of this game would be his at 17:41! Jack Roslivic would get his twenty-sixth assist on this goal, while Emil Bemstrom would get his ninth. This period would end with that goal being the only one so far, giving the Blue Jackets a 1-0 lead.  This second period is when it gets interesting! The Dallas Stars would technically have three goals in this second period; however, only one would count. The first goal would be removed from the board due to the scoring player being "offsides." The second goal for the Stars would count and come from T. Dellandrerea at 6:29, taking us to a 1-1 tie. The third goal for th...

The first period of this game would be a clinic on good defense for both teams. It would take until the final seconds for a goal to be scored. It would, unfortunately, be in the Winnipeg Jets favor, however. K. Connor would score at 19:58, giving his team a 1-0 advantage heading into Period 2. This would also be a Powerplay goal for the Jets.  A former Jets player would even the odds in this Period 2, however, as Patrik Laine would score goal fifteen of his season. The goal would come at 10:00, giving Adam Boqvist his twelfth assist this season and his third point in just two games. The secondary assist would go to Johnny Gaudreau, who keeps skating along; this is his thirty-seventh of the season. Amazingly, this would be the only goal of this period, giving us a 1-1 tie and an exciting third period to go. After more back-and-forth hockey, with many chances and no goals, Kent Johnson would break through! His twelfth goal this season would come at 9:40. Given the top goal scorers on...

The spark the Columbus Blue Jackets found in Toronto when they beat the Maple Leafs 4-3 on Saturday definitely carried over into tonight. The New Jersey Devils are no small task, at home or on the road, but for every goal the Devils had tonight, the Blue Jackets would counter with one of their own. Period 1 would start with a Devils goal at 10:46, as Y. Sharangovich would score the game's opening goal, zooming a puck past everyone. Johnny Gaudreau would match the Devils' goal at 19:58m scoring his fifteenth since joining the Blue Jackets this offseason. Patrik Laine would add assist number eighteen to his season's total, while Adam Boqvist would add his third. With 20 minutes in the books for this game, our score would be tied at 1-1. Just 0:07 into Period 2, J. Bratt would score the Devils' second goal of this game. Truly, the puck dropped, and with everyone far apart for the period to start, it was a quick one-on-one for Merzlikins. Painful to see, but it wouldn't...

After a 2-0 lead was set in stone by the Maple Leafs, with a goal from N. Nylander at 2:39 and a goal from M. Bunting at 10:40 tonight in Toronto, many of us likely had some PTSD from last night. For those who need a reminder, the Maple Leafs held a 1-0 lead in Period 1 and eventually shut us out 3-0 in our own arena. The story tonight wouldn't end this way, however. At 4:21, Captain Boone Jenner would get the Blue Jackets on the board and give Kirill Marchenko his first NHL Assist! For those keeping count, this is Jenner's fifteenth goal of this NHL Season, too. Kirill Marchenko would then flip the script, scoring a goal of his own at 15:01. Captain Boone Jenner would have his thirteenth assist on this goal, while Johnny Gaudreau would take the secondary assist. Not only does this take his assist total to thirty-six this season, but it also puts him at an even fifty points this season! Less than a minute later, Sean Kuraly would join the double-digit goal club this season. Num...