Blue Jackets fully controlled the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight for 55 minutes and then it all went down hill from there. In what look like a repeat of last year's melt down against Pittsburgh again the Jackets are struggling to handle being in the lead in the 3rd period.

“We’re learning how to win and this is a hard lesson, but we’re learning them. We took our foot off the gas in the third period. We could have shut the game down by staying aggressive and staying on top of them. We started to play the clock far too early. The whole team competed, but we didn’t compete at the right time, when the game was on the line," stated Head Coach Ken Hitchcock after the game.

My take on this is if Jan Hejda is in the lineup, this doesn't happen! When you march out Rusty Klesla and Marc Methot to try to shut down Sidney Crosby's line, your asking for trouble. What Hejda does also is creates a calming effect on the team. In the last 5 minutes the Blue Jackets were in a panic and the Penguins smelled blood in the water. They took advantage and snatched 2 points from what should have been zero for the Penguins.


Hitchcock Press Conference



Rick Nash Comments



Derek Dorsett Comments



Pittsburgh Penguins Quotes



Pittsburgh Penguins Head Coach Dan Bylsma

Commenting on tonight’s game…

“There were areas of the game we did not play well. We knew that going into the third we had 20 minutes left to put an effort out there to see what happened. That’s how we approach wins and losses and periods. The guys went out and played a good third period and hung in there and stuck with it and found a way to pull out the win. It’s an important part of what is in that room.”





Pittsburgh Penguins Goalie Brent Johnson

Commenting on tonight’s game…

“We found a way. We tilted the ice in the third period. The chances were coming; we were missing the net by inches here and there. We kept going and going and we put the puck in the net and then Sid ( Crosby ) scored in the shootout.”



Commenting on the shootout…

“It was pretty easy, their first two shooters missed the net and then (Kristian) Huselius put it right in my glove. They won’t always be like that, but I will take it tonight.”



Pittsburgh Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby

Commenting on tonight’s game…

“We were fortunate to get some good bounces in the third, we worked hard for sure. But we can’t expect to play 20-25 minutes of the hockey game and win every night. You have to find ways to win sometimes and we did that tonight.”



Commenting on his shootout goal…

“I thought he (Steve Mason) saved me. It was kind of a fluky goal, the puck just kept going. I don’t know if he lost it or didn’t know where it was or whatever. I just tried a quick shot and I though he had it.”

Nationwide Arena (19,136)



Blue Jackets Team Notes

* Columbus played its first overtime game of the season tonight, the last team in the NHL to play an overtime game this season
* The Blue Jackets first period power play goal gave the club a power play goal in three-straight games
o Columbus has scored at least one power play goal in eight of 12 games this season
* The Jackets killed off all five of the Penguins power plays marking the seventh time in 12 games this season they have shutout the opponent’s power play
* Columbus is 1-4-1 in its past six games after opening the season 5-1-0



Blue Jackets Player Notes

* RW Rick Nash scored his seventh and eighth goals of the season for his second multi-goal of the season
o His first goal came on the power play, his first power play goal of the season
+ He has more shorthanded goals (2) than power play goals (1)
o He has registered a point in all but three games this season with 8-9-17 to his credit
o He has played in 20-or-more minutes in six-straight games
* C Antoine Vermette had a pair of assists on the night for his third multi-point game of the season
o He has points in six of the past seven games, collecting 2-7-9 in those games
o Since being acquired by the Blue Jackets on Mar. 4, 2009, he has 10-15-25 in 29 games with the club
* C Derick Brassard had an assist on Nash’s first goal, giving him points in back-to-back games ( 1-1-2)
o All but one of his points (an assist) have come on the power play
* C R.J. Umberger also assisted on Nash’s first goal, his fifth helper of the season
o After being held to 1-1-2 the previous six games, he has collected 0-4-4 the past five games
o Since the start of the 2008-09 season, he has registered 9-3-12 in 19 games against the Eastern Conference
o He has notched 8-11-19 in 26 career games against the Penguins
* D Mike Commodore, who missed the season’s first seven games due to injury (was a healthy scratch in one other game) has tallied assists in three of four games since his return
* RW Derek Dorsett scored his first goal of the season
* C Samuel Pahlsson assisted on Dorsett’s goal, his fourth of the season
o After being held scoreless the first five games of the season, he has assists in four of the past seven games

Fire The Cannon!

Eric Smith
Eric.Smith@HockeyBuzz.com

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