Where would the Blue Jackets be without Kirill Marchenko?
In hockey, a question like that is frowned upon by players and especially coaches. Singling out one player for a whole team’s success isn’t part of this sport’s culture, but it’s fair to ask of the Blue Jackets (10-7-2) after 19 games.
Nearing the quarter mark, Marchenko leads them in scoring at 22 points on eight goals and 14 assists, which is six points more than Dmitri Voronkov and seven more than Zach Werenski as the next highest scorers.
Marchenko has also scored deciding goals in all three of the Jackets’ shootout wins, including his latest in a 4-3 shootout win Nov. 17 at Nationwide Arena to save a victory in another game where a late lead disappeared.
Marchenko also has a 12-game points streak going that’s the longest active streak in the NHL and is now tied for second-longest in franchise history with Cam Atkinson’s heater in 2018-19. Heading into a back-to-back finale Nov. 18 at the Winnipeg Jets, he’s one shy of tying Ryan Johansen’s 13-game streak in 2014-15 as the longest in Blue Jackets history.
Last season, Marchenko became an up-and-coming young NHL star with a career-high 31-43-74 scoring line in 79 games, scoring at almost a point-per-game pace.
This season, he’s showing the chops of an elite scorer, coming up huge again with two primary assists against the Canadiens to set up goals for Adam Fantilli and Dmitri Voronkov. The first of those assists, on Fantilli’s goal in the second, extended Marchenko’s assist streak to a career-high six straight games to top his previous high of five set earlier this season.
“Every single night, he’s been awesome,” Fantilli said. “I’m having a lot of fun playing with him. I think we can work off each other really well. … but he’s been phenomenal this year. It’s really great to see. It’s great for our team and it’s great for the city.”
The Blue Jackets now have 22 points and sit fifth in the Metropolitan Division, two points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for third in a jam-packed division race. Where would they be without “Marchy’s” magic?
It’s a fair question to ask. Here are three more takeaways:
They don’t sound too concerned about it yet, but the Blue Jackets have shown a propensity to sit back on their heels too much while leading games in the third period.
Allowing another two-goal lead to disappear in the third against Montreal, they were forced to survive an overtime the Canadiens dominated with a 6-0 edge in shots before winning on shootout goals by Kent Johnson and Marchenko.
That’s no way to go through an NHL season, Bluto.
The tying goal scored by Canadiens’ defenseman Lane Hutson with 1:19 left in regulation was the third 5-on-6 goal the Blue Jackets have allowed, which has them tied with the Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins and Islanders for second-most in the league, one behind Montreal’s four.
Fortunately for the Jackets, they won two of those three games in shootouts Oct. 25 in Pittsburgh and this game against the Canadiens, both on Marchenko shootout goals, while losing the other one to the Islanders. It’s a concerning early trend, but it is still early.
The scouting section of Nationwide Arena’s press box has been a crowded space for most of the Blue Jackets’ first nine home games for one primary reason.
There’s at least dabbling interest around the NHL in Yegor Chinakhov, a forward with top six skills who’d skated exclusively with the Jackets’ fourth line until this game. Chinakhov hasn’t been happy with his ice time under Evason going back to last season, has requested a trade for a change of scenery and for now that situation remains a simmering pot on the back burner.
The scouting section was busy again, though. Ten scouts from nine different teams were assigned credentials to attend, including two from the Anaheim Ducks. It was a rough night for Chinakhov and his entire line. He and Johnson finished with -2 plus/minus ratings, while Monahan was -3 as their center.
Every NHL team can look at its schedule this season, all compressed by the league’s February break for the Winter Olympics, and find some crazy turnarounds and weird travel itineraries.
The Blue Jackets, however, might have a claim as the most aggrieved team in the league. Yes, they fly first class with charter flights but tell that to a human body after playing an exhausting hockey game before a long, late night flight to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Now, throw in a 7:30 p.m. start against Montreal, 30 minutes later than usual, plus a border crossing in Winnipeg and little rest before facing the Jets, a playoff contender that’s had two days between games.
If the Blue Jackets look like they’re skating through quicksand in Winnipeg, that’s why.
They faced a similar situation in back-to-back games against the St. Louis Blues and New York Islanders on Nov. 1-2, barely fending off the Blues at Nationwide Arena before playing the Isles on roughly 20 hours rest in a game they lost on two late goals in the last 67 seconds of the third.
The Jackets also split a daunting back-to-back Nov. 10-11 at the Edmonton Oilers and Seattle Kraken, coughing up a three-goal lead in the third in Edmonton before flying West to Seattle for a 2-1 shootout win over the Kraken.
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social