Blue Jackets F Sonny Milano Shows Offensive Drive in Debut
The Columbus Blue Jackets dropped another road game on Thursday night when they fell 4-3 to the New York Islanders in regulation. The result isn’t a surprise, which is a shame, but the highlight of the game no matter the score was prospect Sonny Milano‘s NHL debut.
Called up from the AHL’s Lake Erie Monsters on Wednesday, Milano took to the ice on the second line with Alexander Wennberg and Brandon Saad. In 13:26 TOI over 17 shifts (none of which was special teams play), Milano was 0-0-0 and -1 with one shot on goal, one missed shot, a give-away, two hits and no PIM. Those aren’t necessarily impressive statistics, but the story behind the numbers – combined with the fact that Milano was hit four times himself – shows that the kid was involved in the action and battling for the biscuit.
His lone shot on goal came late in the first period when he wristed a 35-footer directly into goalie Thomas Greiss‘ midsection. It wasn’t a high-probability shot, but aside from Brandon Dubinsky‘s goal earlier in the period, it was only the 2nd shot of the period registered by the Blue Jackets.
Although the team would eventually battle back and tie the game at 3 on goals by Boone Jenner (his team-leading 29th) and Brandon Saad (25), a lack of sustained offense combined with defensive miscues allowed the Islanders to pull ahead on Anders Lee‘s 14th goal of the season. Milano, despite admitting to battling nerves – and what 19-year-old wouldn’t be? – showed through his tenacious pursuit of the puck in the offensive zone that he can handle NHL-level play.
But offensive contributions from the Blue Jackets’ underclassmen isn’t all that the team is going to need to be successful next season and beyond. Sloppy play in the defensive zone continues to plague both youngsters and veterans alike. Milano looked a little unsure when pressed by the Islanders skaters in his own zone, although his presence on the ice for John Tavares‘ second goal of the night did not directly contribute to that tally.
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Sonny Milano, the Blue Jackets’ number 3 prospect, showed during his first NHL game Thursday night that he has the offensive chops to stick with the big-league club. A little more involvement in the defensive game will give him a much better shot at making the roster next fall.