Columbus Blue Jackets: Twisted By Hurricanes in Raleigh 4-2
The Columbus Blue Jackets fall to Metropolitan Division rivals Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 in their first game of the 2019 calendar year.
The Columbus Blue Jackets started this game off on the wrong foot. Let’s first get this out of the way. The Carolina Hurricanes have been one of the NHL’s newest and brightest teams with a very young roster, and some great veteran leadership.
Their flashy celebrations, new ownership, and their heritage Whalers nights, they’ve had the city of Raleigh excited for the first time since 2010. They are a much better team than their 6th in the Metropolitan division would suggest.
The Hurricanes started by scoring two straight goals past Bobrovsky very early in the first period which would foreshadow what was to come for the Jackets netminder. Micheal Ferland and Dougie Hamilton scored just over 2 minutes apparent from each other putting the Jackets into a quick 2-0 hole.
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The Jackets struggled to get any offensive pressure in the first period and hoped the second would bring them better fortune. It didn’t start out how they’d hoped as Bobrovsky once again gave up another goal. This time to today’s minor league call-up, Greg McKegg, which would be his first of the season. A theme in which the Jackets seem to continue to gift to many players.
Bobrovsky was subsequently pulled and relieved by Joonas Korpisalo who shut the door for the Blue Jackets during the second period. The Jackets from there rallied back and scored two of their own. Oliver Bjorkstrand put away his 6th goal of the season, and 25 seconds later Artemi Panarin added his 13th of the season. The Jackets, then only down by one, suddenly had life going into the second intermission.
The third period went by quickly with the Jackets having most of the possession and good pressure against former Blue Jacket Curtis McElhinney, who seems to have the Jackets number. The Jackets failed to put anything behind their former netminder, and with Korpisalo pulled the Hurricanes Jakob Slavin put in the final dagger to sink the Jackets in the opening game of the 2019 colander year.
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The Hurricanes have been the Jackets kryptonite in recent years, and for the Jackets there is only one more chance for revenge on the Ides of March. The Jackets now behind both the Capitals and Penguins in the Metropolitan Division, face the Florida Panthers in Sunrise tomorrow night.