Live Game Post: Minnesota Wild vs. Columbus Blue Jackets

In a rematch of the Unsustainabowl from New Year’s Eve, the Columbus Blue Jackets take on the Minnesota Wild. This post will be updated every so often throughout the game with stats, information, and news regarding the game.

The Wild come to Natonwide Arena as the top team in the Western Conference, sporting a 41-14-6 record heading into Thursday’s game. The Blue Jackets are not doing poorly either, sitting in second in the Metro Divison at 39-16-6, but are coming off a tough overtime 1-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday.

Columbus’ newest acquisitions, defenseman Kyle Quincey and forward Lauri Korpikoski, are expected to make their debuts tonight. On the other side, Minnesota alternate captain, defenseman Ryan Suter is expected to be in the lineup despite sitting out the third period of their Tuesday win against the Winnipeg Jets due to an injury.

This post is meant for Union and Blue contributors and readers to be able to interact with each other and discuss Unsustainabowl II so do that! No matter if you’re a Wild fan, a Jackets supporter, or an unbiased third-party, please remember to keep it friendly in the comments.

1st Period

The game starts off quick with both teams getting some chances on the offensive end. Neither able to capitalize however through the first five minutes. Both teams have recorded three shots.

Six and a half minutes through, Minnesota captain Mikko Koivu seems to get away with a hold, much to the chagrin of the home fans. Both teams are getting some really nice looks, including Quincey firing a hard high shot.

A scrum at the back of the net leads to the teams to jamming the puck under the net for a stoppage in play. Shortly after, the Jackets get called for their first penalty after defenseman David Savard dives and trips forward Jason Zucker who went crashing into the board. He gets helped off the ice, nursing his arm.

Almost immediately after Savard gets back on the ice, defenseman Christian Folin gets called for holding (even though he also high sticked) Bjork to put the Jackets on a PP of their own.

Columbus is unable to get a goal on the power play despite some nice shots on goal, testing Dubnyk. The Jackets get some more pressure on the Wild’s defense following the advantage but Minnesota stays solid to keep it tied.

Foligno gets a great chance and puts on a pretty spin move with a subsequent shot but a pad save stops the puck. After the miss, Wennberg gets called for a penalty to give Minnesota their second PP. Atkinson blocks a hard shot halfway through the power play, which breaks his stick but the Jackets continue on until a stoppage. Bob gets a nice save and the CBJ defense clears it out to kill the power play. A Staal elbow to the head of Seth Jones leads to the Jackets bench to chirp at the Wild until the end of the period.

Columbus outshoots the Wild 13-9 through the first period, but still no score.

2nd Period

The middle period begins and Minnesota’s Graovac gets called for a hooking penalty a minute and a half through. Saad had a chance but can’t get the shot past Dubnyk. Johnson also gets a shot after blocking a clear but the backhand shot is too high and bounces off the glass.

The Jackets don’t let the pressure go away, keeping the puck in forward positions but still not able to score. Boone gets cut under his left eye due to a missed high stick.

The Wild score the first goal of the game off their second shot of the period…OR DID THEY?! After the review, the refs say that the Wild kicked it in so the goal gets taken off the board. The rest of the period was a back and forth affair but still ends scoreless. Seth Jones has some time in the box he must serve starting the final period.

Dubnyk has 27 saves through two periods, while BOBROVSKY has 18.

3rd Period

The final period begins and the FOX Sports Ohio crew shows Korpisalo’s face with a cut on his eyebrow. Apparently, the backup goalie got hit from a ricocheted puck and had to get some stitches after not even stepping on the ice. Oh, Korpi…

The hard-hitting tie is finally broken when a Brandon Saad shot squeaks through Dubnyk’s grasp for a very slow-moving goal. The persistence of the Jackets on the offensive end finally paid off.

The Jackets get a power play after Niederreiter is sent to the box. CBJ can’t capitalize but they get another shot in the final few minutes that really screws Minnesota as they are a man down trying to net a tying goal. They can’t do so, leading to a Blue Jackets win!

With the win, the Blue Jackets sweep the season series and reach 40 wins. Third star is Minnesota’s Dubnyk, second star is lone scorer, Brandon Saad, and the first is…BOBROVSKY!

Good game, Wild! Thanks for coming and we’ll hopefully be seeing you in the Stanley Cup Finals in a few months again.