SUNRISE, FL - DECEMBER 13: Aleksander Barkov #16 looks on as goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky #72 of the Florida Panthers stops the shot by Gustav Nyquist #14 of the Columbus Blue Jackets at the FLA Live Arena on December 13, 2022 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)
The Columbus Blue Jackets lost a hard-fought game in Florida last night by a 4-0 margin to the Panthers. While the game might look like a blowout at first glance, the young Jackets put up the good fight for much of the night, basically playing the Panthers even through the first 40 minutes. But hot goaltending and some bad luck saw them down by a 3-0 margin – which prompted the coaching staff to start swapping the lines around. This was a mistake.
We’ll start off by saying that, a 4-0 loss is never a good thing. After winning their previous two starts over Calgary and Los Angeles, the Jackets headed to Florida high on confidence and with hopes of earning a 3-game winning streak for the first time this season. What better chance to do so, than against a Florida team playing shorthanded and missing several regulars? The Panthers had lost two in a row – their last game a 5-2 spanking by the Seattle Kraken on home ice.
This looked like a game the Blue Jackets might be able to steal, as they faced off against former CBJ netminder Sergei Bobrovsky, whose 88.4% save percentage heading into the game was amongst the worst in the league. A mostly even first period ended with the Panthers on top, with a goal from Brandon Montour. Mathieu Olivier misses his assignment here, and the Cats make the Jackets pay:
The second period was more of the same, the Jackets dug in and played hard, generating some flashes of offense and giving Bobrovsky plenty to think about. But goals by Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead heading into the second intermission. Still, it felt like the Jackets were in this thing.
They just needed to find the back of the net once, and get some momentum. We’ve seen that story play out many times with Bobrovsky over the years: team gets out in front for him, only to see a late collapse that costs him points. This felt like our night to return a favor he did for us so many times over the years.
But it was not meant to be. After two periods, the Jackets were right there. They were only out-shot by a 20-19 margin. They’d generated two power-plays and even though they didn’t convert, the energy was strong on the bench. In the third period, they mustered just three shots on goal, eventually giving up an empty netter to Sam Reinhart, sealing a 4-0 game.
What changed between the second and third period? In my opinion, this one is obvious.
In an attempt to generate more offense in the third period, Brad Larsen started mixing the lines up. Patrik Laine was back on the top line alongside Johnny Gaudreau and Boone Jenner. Kent Johnson was bumped up a line to skate alongside Jack Roslovic and Gustav Nyquist. Yegor Chinakhov found himself on the third line with Cole Sillinger and Kirill Marchenko.
The result? The Jackets had zero shots on goal for an 11:35 stretch of the third. In fact, they did not register their first 5-on-5 shot until the 19:35 mark of the period – after Florida had scored the empty netter to seal it. In a game where you’re down 3-0, that’s not a good recipe for success.
Putting Laine back on the top line was an awful mistake. Florida was essentially a one line team last night; their top line of Matthew Tkachuk, Alexsander Barkov, and Sam Reinhart were on the ice for all four goals. As the home team they had the advantage of making the last change, and they matched this line up against the top line of the Blue Jackets all throughout the third period.
Dec 13, 2022; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) celebrates his goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets with teammates on the ice during the second period at FLA Live Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
When Elvis Merzlikins was pulled and the Jackets had loaded up offensively, it was this line that was on the ice to defend the lead. The Jackets never stood a chance, completely unable to gain the blue line – let alone create any offense.
By the end of the game, Florida was down to just 10 forwards due to injury. If the Jackets had rolled four capable lines out on them, it seems like they would have been able to make the game a little bit closer. Would they have won? Probably not. But, at least they would have been given a puncher’s chance.
Dec 13, 2022; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers teammates celebrate after defeating the Columbus Blue Jackets at FLA Live Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
When he rolled out Laine and Gaudreau together, Lars made it easy for Florida to roll out their top line and top defense pairing. He let them off the hook by essentially rolling out two lines for most of the period. The team’s fourth line saw just four shifts – much of that ice time being shorthanded.
Cole Sillinger and Kirill Marchenko essentially saw just three shifts apiece – though Cole had one extra four second blurb mid-way through. One shift for each of these lines came AFTER the 4-0 goal. And then, the 5-on-5 shots came from the guys who were mostly stapled to the bench in the third.
SUNRISE, FL – DECEMBER 13: Head coach Brad Larsen of the Columbus Blue Jackets looks on during third period action against the Florida Panthers at the FLA Live Arena on December 13, 2022 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images) /
I’ve defended a lot of decisions with this group, but this one was a real head scratcher. The lines had developed some nice chemistry. While they hadn’t scored last night; in their previous two games they combined for 9 goals. It felt like they were right there, but a couple of posts and some timely saves made all the difference.
Changing them up and limiting the bench last night, was a huge mistake in my opinion.
