The Columbus Blue Jackets went into Saturday night’s game against the Anaheim Ducks looking for momentum going into the Christmas break. They fought back from an early hole but gave up a late goal to lose.
Pavel Mintyukov scored the winning goal with 3:29 left in regulation to lift the Ducks to a 4-3 win over the Blue Jackets. The Ducks made up for their 8-3 loss to the Dallas Stars the night before. Mikael Granlund had a goal and an assist
The story of this game for the Blue Jackets will ultimately be the health of Zach Werenski.
Game Recap
The first period started as poorly as the Blue Jackets could ever imagine. Just three minutes into the game, they were trailing 2-0.
First, it was Granlund who opened the scoring at 2:14. Just 46 seconds later, Jacob Trouba scored from distance to make it 2-0.
From then on, the Blue Jackets found their footing and made a game of it. They scored an important power-play goal from Dmitri Voronkov to cut it to 2-1. That’s how the first ended.
The two teams exchanged goals in the second. Mason Marchment deflected a Damon Severson shot past goaltender Lukas Dostal to make it 2-2. Marchment scored in his Blue Jackets’ debut 24 hours after he was traded from the Seattle Kraken.
Lukas Dostal shook off being pulled Friday to defeat the Blue Jackets Saturday. (Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images)
Then the Blue Jackets made a key mistake behind the net. Dante Fabbro’s turnover was converted into a Ducks’ 3-2 lead when Mason McTavish scored from the slot.
The Blue Jackets played an even third at the start looking for the tying goal. They got it from Werenski. His shot beat Distal high to make it 3-3 with under eight minutes to go.
That lead wouldn’t last though. The Ducks got pressure in the Blue Jackets’ zone for an extended time. This led to Granlund finding Mintyukov for the 4-3 lead.
The key moment of the game happened soon thereafter. Werenski blocked a shot and had to crawl to the bench. In the process, the Blue Jackets got called for too many men as he was still on the ice when a change was made. This allowed the Ducks to milk the clock and win the game.
Meanwhile, Werenski needed help to get to the locker room. After the whistle for too many men, he stayed down in front of the bench door. It was a tough scene to watch. We’ll await official word from the team on the extent of this potential serious injury.
Dostal made 23 saves to get the win. Elvis Merzlikins made 24 saves including some key saves in the middle of the game to allow the Blue Jackets a chance to come back.
The Blue Jackets will now head to Los Angeles for a game Monday night against the Kings. The Ducks will get Sunday off and host the Seattle Kraken on Monday.
