Columbus Blue Jackets Orchestrate Another Crazy Comeback

The Columbus Blue Jackets come back from down 4-1 for the second straight game, this time for a win.

It was an incredible evening in Nationwide Arena for the Columbus Blue Jackets and their fans. For the second straight game the boys in blue rally from a 3 goal deficit to force overtime, but this time they finished the job.

The Detroit Red Wings built an early 3-1 lead in the first period although the score didn’t reflect the play on the ice. The Jackets controlled the puck and pace of play and were unlucky to hit some post.

Detroit extended the lead just 30 seconds into the second to make it a 4-1. It was the same deficit the Jackets faced three days earlier in Vancouver where they came back to force overtime. The Jackets were still playing better than Detroit and had confidence that they could come back.

It started with another Cam Atkinson power play goal in the second period. The assist went to Seth Jones and Artemi Panarin marking the 5th straight Columbus Blue Jacket goal that those two assisted on.

The second period saw at least five more grade A scoring chances including three post and a crossbar being dinged. The Columbus Blue Jackets dominated and the score could have, and should have been, much closer than 4-2. The dominance can be seen in the shot totals from the period where Columbus outshot Detroit 20-3!

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Third Period Magic

The comeback continued when Sonny Milano stole a goal for Zach Werenski who beat Jimmy Howard from the left circle. The puck was trickling past Howard and was heading in but Milano tapped it in to take away the goal from Z.

That goal put the Jackets down 4-3 with 10 minutes left in the game. The push for the fourth goal was on. The opportunity came late in the period when Detroit’s Danny DeKeyser was called for holding, giving the Jackets the man advantage for the fifth time in the game.

The Jackets lost the faceoff and regrouped in their own end. Seth Jones brought the puck up the center of the ice as Artemi Panarin built up speed behind him. Jones dropped the puck off and Panarin did the rest.

The Breadman flew by Dylan Larkin at the blue line and then split the defenseman. He put a shot on Howard that rebounded off to Panarin’s right where he found the puck and an open net and buried the game tying goal. It was a thing of beauty to behold and it sent Nationwide Arena into a frenzy.

That goal broke the franchise record for points in a season, a record held by Rick Nash at 79. More importantly, it gave the Jackets the chance to win the game in overtime.

The Kid in OT

The Jackets had to kill a penalty in the first minute of overtime but after it was all Columbus Blue Jackets. The CBJ had a few scoring chances and with just a little more than two minutes left PLD finished the game.

A no look snip from the slot beat Jimmy Howard at 2:55 to finish off an impressive, improbable comeback. Pierre-Luc Dubois‘ goal was his 20th, and most important goal of the season.

The overtime win put the Jackets just one point away from clinching a playoff berth. They will look to do so in what will be an unreal atmosphere, Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.