Blue Jackets thump Oilers 6-1
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Following a heartbreaking overtime loss in Nashville on Saturday night the Columbus Blue Jackets returned to the ice at Nationwide Arena to kick off a three-game homestand against the defending Western Conference Champion Edmonton Oilers.
The Jackets wasted no time marking their mark on the contest needing just over two minutes to find the back of the net.
Winger Kirill Marchenko let go of a shot from the near side just above the faceoff circle that found the stick of center Sean Monahan and deflected past Edmonton goaltender Stuart Skinner for the game's first goal. Marchenko’s assist makes him the first Jackets player to reach 10 points on the young campaign.
Midway through the period, the Jackets doubled the lead as Adam Fantilli collected a pass from Cole Sillinger and fired it home from the slot, swelling the lead to 2-0.
Four minutes later Fantilli returned the favor, finding Sillinger with a long pass to the blueline just in front of the Oilers bench. Sillinger navigated his shot through traffic and into the net extending the lead to three goals.
Both teams traded opportunities through the opening portion of the second period. It was clear that Edmonton has worked on ways to deny Columbus chances and entry into the offensive zone. The Jackets finally broke through with 12:55 remaining in the period. Mathieu Olivier was in the right place at the right time as he bounced on a rebound opportunity created by James van Riemsdyk and Sean Kuraly in front of goal and stuffed it into the net to grow the advantage to 4-0 for the hosts.
Olivier's goal is his fourth in eight games, he scored five goals total in the 2023-2024 campaign for Columbus.
The final period opened with both teams looking to find their footing. The Blue Jackets looking to continue to hit the gas, while Edmonton sought to salvage what it could from a disappointing appearance. Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl nearly got the visitors on the board with 13 minutes remaining in the game. His give-and-go with a teammate saw the Oilers playmaker get the puck but his shot hit Merzlikins left post and deflected toward the boards.
With 4:45 remaining in the period Columbus struck for its fifth goal. Adam Fantilli connected with Mikael Pyyhtia who put his one-time shot into the goal to extend the lead to 5-0, tallying the first goal of his NHL career. Moments later Sean Monahan added another goal and swelled the lead to an impressive 6-0.
ELVIS IS BACK IN THE BUILDING
CBJ goaltender Elvis Merzlikins returned to the net for the first time since October 15th and looked sharp, turning aside many dangerous chances from Edmonton. He finished the day with 31 saves and allowing just one goal. Should he continue this strong run of form, its not unreasonable to think that some tough decisions from head coach Dean Evason might be forthcoming as both Merzlikins and backup Danill Tarasov have been playing well in recent games.
TAKE IT TO THE LEBANC
Since coming over on waivers from San Jose Kevin Lebanc has proven his worth and is a contributor for the Blue Jackets. His aggressive forechecking and his help on the backcheck won't show up on the scoresheet but he easily passes the eye test and shows that players like he and Zach Aston-Reese have a well deserved place on this hockey club.
UP NEXT
Columbus welcomes the New York Islanders to Nationwide Arena on Wednesday, October 30. The puck drops at 7:00 PM