Story by
Columbus Blue Jackets deliver in OT again: 5 takeaways from a thriller in Vegas
- Story by
- Columbus Blue Jackets deliver in OT again: 5 takeaways from a thriller in Vegas
Another night, another rabbit pulled out of a hat by the Blue Jackets in a 2-1 overtime victory late Thursday against the Vegas Golden Knights .
More: Kirill Marchenko, Zach Werenski, Elvis Merzlikins help Columbus Blue Jackets top Kings
Advertisement
Despite another game mostly spent defending, the Blue Jackets pushed a second straight game to overtime before notching their second straight OT win on a goal by Cole Sillinger 52 seconds into 3-on-3 play at T-Mobile Arena.
Blue Jackets center Cole Sillinger scores on Golden Knights goaltender Ilya Samsonov in overtime.
A goal late in the first period by Adam Fantilli plus stellar work from goalie Elvis Merzlikins and his defensive-minded teammates were all the Jack ets needed to force the game beyond regulation. From there, Sillinger cleaned up a juicy rebound in the low slot for the winning goal in his first game back after missing the previous three with an upper-body injury.
Here are five takeaways:
Blue Jackets defenseman Jake Christiansen falls to the ice as he and Golden Knights center Ivan Barbashev pursue the puck.
Columbus Blue Jackets learning to win with defense, goaltending
The Blue Jackets have become a frustrating team to play.
Advertisement
They lose a lot of faceoffs, their possession has nosedived without Sean Monahan and the Jackets spend far too much time defending inside their own blue line, which makes them seem like a pushover from a statistical analysis standpoint. Not so fast.
They're also highly skilled, don't need a ton of scoring chances to score key goals, and they've now got a hot goalie. The Jackets have also started blocking shots at a high rate, taking away shooting lanes, and their defensive stickwork has improved quite a bit. Add it all up and it leads to an effective counterpunching team that either prefers fighting off the ropes or has become good at it by necessity.
Either way, they're finding ways to win and keep pace in the tight Eastern Conference playoff race. The Jackets' win in Las Vegas moved them back into the East's second wild-card spot , one point ahead of the Boston Bruins .
Blue Jackets right wing Mathieu Olivier blocks a shot against the Golden Knights.
'Boring' hockey worked for Columbus Blue Jackets in Las Vegas
The Blue Jackets are capable of scoring goals in bunches , but that wasn't the plan designed by coach Dean Evason and his assistants. Their plan was a three-word directive.
Advertisement
Muck it up.
The game might've been played just off the flashy Vegas Strip, but there was nothing shiny about the Blue Jackets' playing style. They didn't succumb to a wide open, "fast break" brand of hockey that could've favored the high-powered Golden Knights, instead choosing to annoy Vegas players with well-timed poke checks and blocked shots that led to fruitless Vegas possessions.
"One of our keys was to try to be a frustrating group tonight," Evason said during his postgame press conference shown by FanDuel Sports Network. "That meant not opening things up and that meant not giving them any life and then making it a boring game. So, if that makes it look like it's a little bit of a 'slow start,' fine. We're OK with that. If we can stick around in games like this, in buildings like this and teams like this, then it says some good things."
Blue Jackets center Cole Sillinger celebrates after scoring the game-winner in Vegas.
Cole Sillinger had interesting return to the Columbus Blue Jackets' lineup
Sillinger missed the three previous games with an upper-body injury, so his return was a welcome sight for the Blue Jackets. The fourth-year center slotted back into the middle of a second line with James van Riemsdyk and Kent Johnson as wingers, but they struggled most of the game chasing the puck around without establishing much significant possession time.
Advertisement
That was mainly due to Sillinger winning just 4 of 17 faceoffs (24%), but he also made several unheralded plays in the third period to force OT before winning it by cleaning up Zach Werenski 's rebound after Johnson was stopped on a breakaway.
In all, Sillinger skated 15:54 on 21 shifts and finished with the winning goal on his only one of three attempts that hit the net. He also was assessed two giveaways and blocked two shots. Aside from his goal, Sillinger's biggest contribution was his presence for a lineup that returned to a standard setup with six defensemen and 12 forwards.
Having four full forward lines allowed Evason and assistant Mike Haviland to "roll" through their lines rather than picking spots to double shift select forwards on lines other than their own with seven defensemen and only 11 forwards. Ice times for all four lines were fairly even, which could've stored energy in the Blue Jackets' legs for their game Friday in Salt Lake City, Utah to finish a challenging road back-to-back set.
Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins makes a save between Golden Knights center Tomas Hertl (48) and left wing Pavel Dorofeyev (16).
Columbus Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins stonewalled Vegas Golden Knights
Merzlikins has become a lot more consistent and confident for the Blue Jackets between the pipes, which showed again with 25 saves on 26 shots against Vegas.
Advertisement
Wearing his Elvis Presley themed mask, the Jackets' enigmatic goalie recovered impressively from allowing an early goal by Tomas Hertl that gave the Golden Knights a 1-0 lead. Merzlikins, as he usually does against Vegas, shined in the shadows of the Vegas Strip.
He improved to 3-1-0 with a 2.01 goals-against average, .930 save percentage and one shutout in four career appearances against the Golden Knights. The shutout was the first of his NHL career and happened during Merzlikins' rookie year in 2019-20.
Daniil Tarasov is expected to start Friday in Utah, drawing another challenging road matchup to close out a back-to-back set.
Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli celebrates with teammates after scoring in the first period Thursday.
Adam Fantilli still shining in top role for Columbus Blue Jackets
Adam Fantilli was selected third overall in 2023 for the specific role of centering the Blue Jackets' top line for a long time. It took some time plus Sean Monahan's long-term wrist injury for that opportunity to arise, but Fantilli is meeting the challenge.
Advertisement
His tying goal late in the first period against the Golden Knights wasn't pretty, capping a scramble in the Vegas crease, but it was his 15thgoal of the season and seventh in 11 games since taking over mid-game for Monahan on Jan. 7 in Pittsburgh . Fantilli, who played his 100thNHL game, has contributed 7-5-12 with a +9 plus/minus rating as Monahan's replacement on a line featuring Dmitry Voronkov and Kirill Marchenko as wingers.
The second-year center has 15-14-29 in 51 games for the season, which is impressive considering an extended scoring slump starting out. Fantilli also won 9 of 17 draws against Vegas for a 53% success rate that included 7 of 13 (54%) against Golden Knights top center Jack Eichel.
Advertisement
Get more on the Columbus Blue Jackets with our Cannon Fodder podcast
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets deliver in OT again: 5 takeaways from a thriller in Vegas
