Final Score: Flyers 2 – Blue Jackets 1
Game Summary
For the second consecutive game the Blue Jackets came out very flat offensively. They put up two shots in the first period and just 20 in the game. Getting 50 shots a game was obviously not going to be sustained but the Jackets have averaged 34.4 shots a game this season. They have 39 total in their last two.
They have been taking fewer chances the last couple of games, a clear effort to not give up odd man rushes and quick strike attacks. It that respect it’s been working, the Jackets held the Flyers to just three high danger chances at 5 on 5, tied for the second fewest allowed by the team this season. They were able to stymie the Flyers offense, unfortunately they also stymied their own offense. The Jackets generated just four high danger chances themselves, only the fifth time they have managed fewer than five high end chances.
The Jackets offense was a complete mess. No one could get anything going, with the exception of Artemi Panarin.
Panarin was the one player, as he's been all season, making things happen. He was setting up chances; the Jackets just couldn’t finish them. Panarin was doing it all by himself. It was very fitting that his goal was unassisted. Panarin makes a great play to get that goal. He sneaks out of the box, and steals the puck right out from under Flyers defencemen Andrew MacDonald. He gets in on a 2-on-1 looks off the pass, gets Petr Mrazek to bite ever so slightly and beats him short side.
This game exposed a lot of the Jackets issues and things they need to address this trade deadline. Panarin needs help. One player can only take you so far. Someone else on this team needs to start scoring or someone else needs to be brought in who can, both would be preferable. The Jackets have relied a ton on Sergei Bobrovsky and this game they gave him defensive support, but you are not going to win many games when you only score one goal, no matter how good your defence/goalie are.
Part of the problem has been the Jackets lack of depth up front. Their fourth line from this game of Lukas Sedlak, Nathan Gerbe, and Zac Dalpe all played under eight minutes, with Dalpe and Sedlak playing under five. When the Jackets have been good, a strength of their team has been depth. They haven’t always had the high end offensive players, Panarin notwithstanding, so they had to rely on having four sound lines with competent players up and down the line-up. Injuries are a factor but they don’t have that right now. That is an area that needs to be addressed at the deadline.
As for the rest if the game, the Jackets need to be more disciplined. The penalty kill was great for the first four Flyers power plays. They limited the Flyers to just four shots while getting four of their own. Unfortunately you can only play with fire for so long before you get burned. Brandon Dubinsky took a tripping penalty midway through the third. The Flyers have one of the better power plays in the league, if you give them enough chances eventually they are going to convert. That is exactly what happened on that fifth power play attempt the Flyers wasted little time, scoring just six second into the advantage and that ended up as the game winner.
Stat of the Night
Stats courtesy of
Natural Stat Trick and
Hockey-Reference.
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