RECAP: Blue Jackets 5, Sabres 4 (OT)

Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella has been called a lot of names in his storied career - some printable, many not - but Forrest Gump probably hasn't been one of them.
That is, until his press conference following the Blue Jackets' up-and-down, back-and-forth 5-4 overtime victory over the Buffalo Sabres at Nationwide Arena on Saturday that was secured on Artemi Panarin's second goal of the game 31 seconds into the extra session.
Tortorella was ruminating over the way the Blue Jackets (6-4-0) have been so unpredictable lately. They fell behind the St. Louis Blue 2-0 on Thursday before rallying for a 7-4 win.
Saturday, the Blue Jackets scored three times in the second period - two in record-setting fashion by Cam Atkinson - for a 4-2 advantage before the Sabres (6-4-1) tied it at 4.

Thus, the quote from the fictional movie character.
"We've got a good group here. I really like the team," Tortorella said. "I think we're beginning to show more personality but you never know. It's a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get shift to shift at certain times."

Now, some of the words Tortorella used to describe his team's third period were un-Gump like.
"We turned it around in the second period and just played a god-awful third period," he said. "We played a soft third period. That's what frustrated me."
Having a standout player like Panarin can erase many problems. His two goals give him five for the season, tied for second on the team with Josh Anderson, one behind Atkinson.
Panarin's overtime goal came after Pierre-Luc Dubois stole the puck from Rasmus Ristolainen and took a few strides out of the left corner before passing to Panarin low in the left circle for the one-timer shot.

"[Seth Jones] made a nice play to make it a 50/50 battle," Dubois said. "Maybe I got a lucky bounce on the side. I saw where Bread was before I got on the battle. I put it in his area, he's usually there too."
Dubois had a goal and two assists, and Joonas Korpisalo made 34 saves for the Blue Jackets.
Korpisalo has won all four starts, allowing four goals three times, but once again was stellar when he needed to be. The one victory he didn't give up four goals, the Blue Jackets defeated the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 in the season opener on a Panarin overtime goal.
"We got a little complacent in third, but we found a way to stay in it," Jones said. "Korpi made some big saves down the stretch as always.
"When he makes the big saves, it makes us want to play better. He's constantly bailing us out the last two games. All four of those goals aren't all his fault."
Said Dubois, "You look at his stats, I don't think they really reflect what he's done for us. He's kept us in games, some amazing saves. He hasn't allowed a bad goal, I think."
Jeff Skinner and Jason Pominville each had a goal and an assist, Kyle Okposo and Casey Mittelstadt scored, Jack Eichel had two assists and Linus Ullmark made 32 saves for the Sabres.
Okposo made it 1-0 at 1:38 of the first period. Dubois tied it 1-1 at 8:37 of the first. The goal was made possible by Atkinson tagging up as Panarin gained the blue line. Panarin kept the puck and passed to Dubois in the right circle. His shot went the far netting.
Skinner made it 2-1 at 14:11 of the first and Panarin tied it 2-2 at 1:34 of the second.
Atkinson gave Columbus a 3-2 lead at 16:42 of the second, completing a give-and-go with Riley Nash. Atkinson made it 4-2 at 17:13 on the rush down the left wing for two goals 31 seconds apart.

He set the Blue Jackets record for fastest two goals by one player, breaking the mark set by Nick Foligno (51 seconds against the Calgary Flames on March 22, 2013).
"It's always good to get the crowd going, we feed off that," Atkinson said. "Once we got one they were kind of buzzing. It was nice to get the other one pretty quickly and kept them involved."
"That second period wasn't us," Pominville said. "We were too far apart. We weren't supporting each other like we normally do and we're ahead of the play."
Pominville made it 4-3 at 2:32 of third, and Mittelstadt scored on the power play at 4:30 to tie it 4-4.
By the numbers
The Blue Jackets are 6-2-0 in the past eight games vs. the Sabres, including winning four straight at home. … Atkinson has two goals in the two games his 3-month-old son Declan has been to Nationwide Arena. The other was Oct. 18 vs. the Philadelphia Flyers. … Atkinson has five points (two goals, three assists) the past three games. … Zach Werenski has six points (one goal, five assists) in a five-game point streak. … Panarin has six points (two goals, four assists) in the past two games.
Opposing view: About Panarin
"We probably should have done a better job against him but he's an elite player. He'll find ways to make plays. He definitely did tonight." -- Sabres forward Jason Pominville
"He's one of the best players in the game. He showed that. He's got a good shot, obviously." -- Sabres goaltender Linus Ullmark
Up next
Detroit Red Wings, Tuesday at Nationwide Arena (7 p.m. ET; Fox Sports Ohio, Fox Sports app, 97.1 The Fan)