The Columbus Blue Jackets were bested by the Ottawa Senators Saturday night in their season series finale. The Jackets play again Sunday evening at 5 p.m. EST against the New Jersey Devils.
Saad Notches 20th Goal of the Season
The Columbus Blue Jackets came up short in Ottawa Saturday night but the Jackets took an early lead in the first period thanks to Brandon Saad‘s 20th goal of the year. The young defense duo of Zach Werenski and Seth Jones assisted on the goal, tallying their respective 29th and 25th assist of the season.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Korpisalo Remains in Good Form
The Senators would come back to tie the game 13 minutes into the period when Viktor Stalberg put one in the back of the net. The puck took a wicked hop around goalie Joonas Korpisalo, who lost sight of it momentarily. Stalberg was there to put the puck away immediately, getting his first goal as a Senator. The game would remain tied until Erik Karlsson slotted his 11th goal of the year to give the Sens a one goal lead. Despite trailing, Korpisalo made a number of key saves in the third to keep the game within reach for the Jackets. Although he did not get the win, his recent run of play has further cemented his place as the primary backup behind Sergei Bobrovsky.
Controversial Decision Leads to Senator Goal
The Jackets had their chances to tie. With three minutes left in the third after Senators’ Tommy Wingels was called for interference, giving the Jackets the man advantage. In a bold and polarizing decision, Columbus head coach John Tortorella pulled Korpisalo out of goal with a minute and a half left on the power play in order to put six skaters on the ice against Ottawa’s four. However, the Senators swiftly won the next faceoff, allowing Zach Smith to put away the empty netter. Sam Gagner would respond by scoring on the power play a minute later, making the score 3-2. The goal was Gagner’s first since December 23rd.
The Columbus Blue Jackets won’t have long to think about this loss. Columbus makes the trip back across the border to take on the New Jersey Devils Sunday evening.