CHICAGO ― After competing with two of the NHL's best teams in their previous three games , the Blue Jackets passed a different test Saturday.
More: Former Columbus Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno 'enjoying' Chicago Blackhawks rebuild
Facing the Chicago Blackhawks at United Center, one of the Jackets' peers among the league's "rebuilders" group, the challenge was to treat it like an elite matchup like facing the New York Rangers or Carolina Hurricanes .
"I think you see the maturity of your team growing when you face a team like the New York Rangers ... but I want to see the maturity in our team," Blue Jackets coach Pascal Vincent said at the Jackets' morning skate in Chicago. "I really liked the way we prepared against the Rangers, how they were ready to play those games, and I want to see the same thing (against the Blackhawks)."
Vincent got exactly what he wanted through the first two periods of a 5-2 victory over the Blackhawks, including a 4-1 lead starting the third.
"It's a good win for us on the road, a good start," Vincent said. "I thought we got better in the second period. We were a little bit more physical. It's a good game for us."
It wasn't flawless.
The Jackets' intensity in puck battles waned late in the second and carried into the third — possibly due to playing their third of five games in a seven-day span. Crisp passes that went tape-to-tape in the first 30-plus minutes were bobbled or off target in the third. Possession time dropped, too, especially in the offensive zone.
It began to look how it had when the Blue Jackets (20-30-10) coughed up 13 leads in the third periods of 12 losses this season, but they finished off their lead against a team that's severely outmatched outside of rookie phenom Connor Bedard and a couple Blackhawks veterans. Chicago cut it to 4-2 on a goal by Ryan Donato at 6:18 of the third, but that was as close as the Blackhawks got.
Elvis Merzlikins (26 saves) made several key stops in the third and Johnny Gaudreau scored into an empty net with 2:25 left to seal the victory. Alexandre Texier , Boone Jenner , Mathieu Olivier and Cole Sillinger scored the first four for the Blue Jackets, who go back to facing playoff caliber competition this week.
"They made a push in the third, which is to be expected being down a couple goals," defenseman Zach Werenski said. "But coming on the road in a tough stretch for us, five in seven, I actually liked our game tonight. It wasn't perfect by any means, but I think our whole team played well."
Here are five takeaways:
There are plenty of tough nights ahead for Sillinger, who's still only 20 while grinding through his third NHL season.
Like all young centers, he'll get more lessons that most NHL players face on their way to becoming seasoned veterans. There will also be nights in the future like the one he had Saturday, when Sillinger was one of the game's most dominant players for two periods.
Sillinger's goal in the second gave the Blue Jackets a 4-1 cushion off a feed from Alex Nylander , and he could've had a couple more on his three shots in the first. It was also Sillinger's line with Texier and Nylander that hounded the Blackhawks on the game's opening shift, forcing an egregious turnover by Jones that Texier turned into the game's first goal. They continued to pressure the Blackhawks for two periods before slipping in the third, but Sillinger's line, overall, was one of the Jackets' top two groups.
Sillinger also pushed his goal streak to a career-high three games and is now piecing together what it takes to become an impact two-way center.
"It takes time for the young players," Vincent said. "We have that way of thinking the second year is harder for the players, but what happens is we have no expectations for those first-year players, and they have somewhat of a decent season. (Then) we think they're going to make a huge step, but they don't become that much of a better player over three-to-four months in the summer. For Sillinger, his confidence is growing. He's becoming a solid 200-foot player."
Sillinger's goal was his 11ththis season, and his final stat line was filled with productivity. He attempted seven shots, put four on goal to tie Bedard for highest in the game in that category, and also won 9 of 14 draws (64%).
"I like the way we were playing," Sillinger said of his line. "I like the way we were creating chances and supporting each other. I don't like our third, but just take the positives out of this (game) and keep building ... as a line and as a team."
The latest gripes among disgruntled Blue Jackets fans are directed at Vincent's decision to bench Yegor Chinakhov for the final 23:30 of a 4-2 loss Thursday to the Carolina Hurricanes .
Specifically, those taking issue with it felt that a double standard was in effect after veteran defenseman Erik Gudbranson committed a costly turnover on the deciding goal in a 4-1 loss to the New York Rangers on Wednesday.
Vincent was asked about his logic with those coaching decisions at the Jackets' morning skate in Chicago, and he took issue with those claiming there's a double standard. Gudbranson might not have received an in-game consequence for his mistake, but multiple veterans have dealt with being benched or scratched this season ― starting in the season's third game with defenseman Damon Severson getting benched in a loss to the Detroit Red Wings .
Vincent has also benched Gaudreau and scratched Patrik Laine , so benching Chinakhov shouldn't have been a surprise. It ran deeper than just one costly turnover.
"Mistakes are made every game," Vincent said. "Turnovers happen. The other team gets paid, as well. There's just a history behind it (with Chinakhov). We show some (video) clips, and it's, 'We don't want to see that tonight,' and it happens. That's when consequences happen."
Vincent has maintained since the start of the season that it's necessary to use his biggest in-game coaching tool, ice time, to instill standards for the Blue Jackets.
"We're going to keep our guys accountable until the end and that's what we do," he said. "We're driving the culture here. We're growing as a team, and if the job doesn't get done, then you're not going to play."
Vincent views the Blue Jackets' all-Russian forward group as a double-edged sword.
On the one hand, there's a tantalizing collection of size, speed, skill and overall talent using Chinakhov at left wing , rookie Dmitri Voronkov at center and Kirill Marchenko on the right side. That's why they stayed together as the Jackets' second line against the Blackhawks.
The flip side is when they get caught attempting too many "East-West" plays, especially in the neutral and defensive zones. That's when costly turnovers happen, and Vincent's blood pressure rises.
"I'm cautious about that line," Vincent said. "If they start playing like the Harlem Globetrotters, I don't want to see that. That's not how the NHL is being played, so (reduced ice time) was part of the game (Thursday). Didn't like it, didn't play (them) and we move on."
Vincent wasn't thrilled with their performance in Chicago, either.
"I think they're better than that," Vincent said. "They were better (than Thursday), but I think they have another gear. My expectation for them is really high. I think they can be dominant. I trust them defensively, but I think they have another gear offensively.
A series of trades the past few years have given the Blue Jackets and Blackhawk a lot of familiarity with each other.
The Blackhawks have Foligno and Jones, who were franchise pillars in Columbus before deals took them elsewhere, and the Blue Jackets have Adam Boqvist and Nylander as former Blackhawks. Texier also has a connection to Chicago, which hosted the 2017 NHL draft where the Jackets drafted him 45thoverall.
Sillinger has a draft-related Blackhawks connection, too, after Columbus selected him 12thoverall in 2021 with a pick acquired in the deal that sent Jones to Chicago just before that draft began. Then there's Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard, who was hoping to catch up over dinner with Blue Jackets forward Kent Johnson prior to the latter sustaining an upper-body injury Wednesday in New York.
It's a lot.
It was also not surprising to learn that Jones and Zach Werenski , former Blue Jackets defense partners, ate dinner together Friday before going to their separate corners for the game.
"Being (defense) partners with how much success we had as a team in Columbus, to both being in the same (rebuilding) situation on different teams now is a little bit different," Werenski said. "Obviously, it's not a situation either of us wanted to be in, but the only thing you can do is work to help your team get to the next step."
Jenner, who tipped home his 19thgoal, said it's still strange to compete against former teammates he'd grown close with in Columbus – especially Foligno.
"I can't say that it's ever not going to be weird," he said. "It's always going to be weird, but it's fun to see him doing good. (Foligno) is not the easiest guy to play against. He's one you want on your side, but that's part of the job is competing against him."
Merzlikins is playing like a viable No. 1 goaltender for the Blue Jackets, who are getting consistent results from their top netminder for the first time in nearly two years.
After picking up the goaltending win against the Blackhawks with 26 saves on 28 shots, Merzlikins improved to 4-3-0 in his last eight appearances with a 2.72 goals-against average and .914 save percentage. That stretch includes a rough relief appearance in Anaheim when he allowed two goals on the only two shots he faced while briefly replacing Daniil Tarasov.
Overlooking that outing, Merzlikins has a 2.43 GAA and .922 save percentage in his last seven starts.
What's changed?
"Lately, I think we are playing great hockey," he said. "I don't think there is any pressure on us at all right now. We are just literally enjoying the game, fighting and battling, and doing our job well. The last few games, we are not even looking where they are in the standings, up or in the bottom. We are just trying to play our game and we are playing well."
The same applies to his individual performance.
"I'm just trying to have fun," Merzlikins said. "Last year, I did not have fun. I'm just trying to have fun as much as I can."
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets sweep season series against Blackhawks: 5 takeaways
