Final Score: Devils 1 – Blue Jackets 2
Game Summary
A sloppy game for the Jackets but they managed to squeak out a win beating the Devils 2-1. The first period was great the Jackets managed 14 shots which tied their total from the last game against New Jersey. The second and third periods were a different story as they managed just six and five shots respectively.
Brandon Dubinsky and Alexander Wennberg were back after missing six games each. Dubinsky was excellent making his impact felt early. His line with Cam Atkinson and Matt Calvert were great, getting quite a few good chances in the first. He also brought an added boost to the penalty kill which was busy again tonight.
The Jackets took five penalties in this game. As mentioned on the broadcast that was the 13th time this season the Jackets have taken at least five penalties in game. That leads the league. Dalton Prout was the main culprit taking three high-sticking penalties. John Tortorella made it very clear he was not happy with Prout and benched him for the rest of the game after the third penalty.
The penalty kill deserves a ton of credit they killed off all five penalties, and are now up to 11th in the league.
Calvert played a big part in this one. He played 2:21 on the PK and 17:19 in the game. The 17:19 was a season high. Calvert scored the game winning goal in typical Calvert fashion. He got in the crease and banged home a rebound. He also had a strong possession game with a 56.52% Corsi.
With Prout on the bench there was a lot of mixing and matching on the defence. The pair that stood out was David Savard and Kevin Connauton. The first time they were on the ice together they had a ton of zone time and helped set up the Calvert goal. Connauton lead the team with a 65.29% Corsi.
The Blue Jackets got really lucky late in the game when the Devils thought they scored to tie the game. The Blue Jackets were on a delayed penalty, Gregory Campbell touched the puck but the refs didn’t blow the whistle. The Devils quickly got the puck back and scored. After the refs discussed it they determined that the play should have been called dead, therefore the goal was disallowed. It was the correct call but I totally understand upset Devils fans. While the play should have been blown dead it wasn’t and that’s where Devils fans have beef. I don’t remember a ref calling back a play because of intent to blow the whistle. A very weird situation all around.
Stat of the Night
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