The Columbus Blue Jackets had their home opener on Monday night in front of a sellout of 18,627 at Nationwide Arena. Although they played well at points, their special teams ultimately failed them.
Dawson Mercer scored two goals including an empty netter that turned out to be the game winning goal. Jake Allen and Jacob Markstrom combined to stop 31 of 33 to lift the New Jersey Devils to a 3-2 win over the Blue Jackets.
The Blue Jackets will look back at missed opportunities in this game.
Game Recap
The Blue Jackets stormed out of the gate. They dominated the first period in possession and shots. They got six minutes of power-play time in the first 12 minutes of the game and came away with nothing.
Despite Dougie Hamilton’s double minor for high-sticking and Brett Pesce’s hooking minor, Allen held the Blue Jackets off the scoreboard. He stopped all 16 first-period shots.
With Adam Fantilli in the box, Timo Meier opened the scoring with just one second left on the power play. He whipped a shot from the circle that beat Jet Greaves.
The Devils and Blue Jackets exchanged goals in the second period. Kirill Marchenko scored his fourth goal in two games by stripping Jack Hughes of the puck and converting on a breakaway.
Less than three minutes later and with Cole Sillinger in the box, Mercer scored his first of the night with just four second left on the man advantage. The Blue Jackets had a 3-on-1 rush that was stopped before the Devils came the other away. Arseny Gritsyuk found Mercer for the 2-1 lead.
Dawson Mercer paced the Devils with two goals on Monday night. (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Allen had to leave the game after the second period due to cramping. Markstrom came in and only allowed a late Dmitri Voronkov goal with just 21 seconds left.
The Blue Jackets are 1-2-0 on the season and have allowed just one 5-on-5 non-empty net goal in that time. Meanwhile, they’ve now allowed seven power-play goals in 14 chances.
The difference in the game? The Blue Jackets went 0 for 5 on their power play and 0 for 2 on their penalty kill. This is despite the Blue Jackets holding Jack Hughes to no shots on goal and Nico Hischier to one shot. Recall last season Hughes had 13 shots on goal in one game.
The Blue Jackets will have Tuesday off and return to practice Wednesday morning in advance of their game against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday. After a three-game road trip that saw them go 2-1, the Devils will have their home opener on Thursday night when they host the defending champion Florida Panthers.
