The Columbus Blue Jackets’ 25th season in the NHL kicked off on the road, as they visited Bridgestone Arena and the Nashville Predators on Thursday (Oct. 9).
The Blue Jackets ended up falling to the Predators with a final score of 2-1. Let’s take a look at some of the key takeaways from the night.
Jet Greaves Gets the Nod
In a bit of a surprise move, head coach Dean Evason named Jet Greaves as the Blue Jackets’ starting netminder for their opening game.Â
Jet Greaves, Columbus Blue Jackets (Steve Roberts-Imagn Images)
Greaves gave up a goal against the run of play at 6:43 of the first period. A broken play on the rush saw the puck bounce to Michael Bunting who fired a shot past the 24-year-old goaltender. Ryan O’Reilly scored the game-winning goal in the third period, making it 2-1 for the Predators.Â
Despite picking up the loss, Greaves played very well. He saved 29 of 31 shots, stopping chances by players like Steven Stamkos and Filip Forsberg. While a .935 save percentage is not likely sustainable in the modern NHL, it’s clear that he has what it takes to be a legitimate NHL netminder at this stage in his career. If he continues to play at a high level, as he did last season as well, it’s very likely that he officially becomes the Blue Jackets’ starting goaltender for the long run.
Dmitri Voronkov Having Another Strong Start
Last season, the majority of Dmitri Voronkov’s goals were scored early in the season. He had a very strong start last fall, and now it seems like he’s going to do the same this time out. He scored the Blue Jackets’ first goal of the season at 16:01 in the first period, deflecting a Damon Severson shot from the point.Â
Entering his third season in the NHL, a strong start for Voronkov could help him catapult to the next level. With that being said, he’s going to need to be consistent throughout the entirety of the season for it to truly make a difference for the team this season. For now, though, a strong start is a good sign of things to come.Â
Marchenko Looks Hungry
Entering Thursday night, Mika Zibenejad of the New York Rangers and Quinton Byfield of the Los Angeles Kings led the NHL in shots on goal with seven. It didn’t take long for Kirill Marchenko to get close to them, as just five minutes into the second period, he had six. He was shooting nearly every time he touched the puck it seemed, and it was clear he was hungry to find the back of the net.Â
By the end of the night, Marchenko had registered eight shots. Even though he wasn’t able to score in the Blue Jackets’ loss, he was generating opportunities and did whatever he could to help his team. Coming off of a career-best 31-goal season, he seems destined to set a new career-high if he’s able to keep shooting at such a high rate.Â
Penalty Kill Starts Hot
The Blue Jackets’ penalty kill started off the night looking very strong. While O’Reilly’s game-winning goal for Nashville came with the Predators on a man advantage, their first three outings were very impressive as the Blue Jackets were able to kill off three penalties, including an abbreviated 5-on-3 opportunity for the home side.
Despite the penalty kill performing well for the majority of the game, it was also clear that discipline was an issue for the Blue Jackets to start the season. Giving any team four chances on the power play is a recipe for disaster, but doing so against an offense filled with talent like Stamkos, O’Reilly, and Forsberg is almost guaranteed to end badly.
Related: Blue Jackets Bring Excitement & Intrigue Into 25th Anniversary Season
Overall, the argument can be made that the Blue Jackets played a better, more complete game than the Predators despite walking away with a loss. There are certainly some positives to take away from their first outing of the season, but there are also a few things that Evason will need to address as soon as possible.Â
