The Blue Jackets downed St. Louis on Monday night in a preseason contest at Nationwide Arena, taking a 5-3 victory over the visiting Blues in preseason game No. 5 of eight this year.
Game in a Paragraph
Columbus got off to a hot start, taking a 3-0 lead in the first period and extending it to 4-0 early in the middle frame. St. Louis got two back in the second to make it a game going to the third and added another power-play goal early in the final period, but Columbus was able to batten down the hatches and cement the win from there.
CBJ Standouts
- Justin Danforth got his second goal of the preseason.
- Columbus also got tallies from Boone Jenner, Kirill Marchenko, Cole Sillinger and Johnny Gaudreau (empty net).
- Jet Greaves turned aside 37 of 40 shots against.
- Ivan Provorov and Damon Severson each had two assists.
Quick Recap
Columbus put together a 3-0 lead thanks to a workmanlike first period, with Jenner starting the scoring when he took a drop feed from Alexandre Texier and beat goalie Joel Hofer from a sharp angle at the 5:32 mark. At 14:51 Marchenko extended the lead after the Jackets forced a turnover, as he took a feed from Patrik Laine and tried to give it back, but that pass was blocked and went back to Marchenko for the stuff home. Danforth then took advantage of a turnover caused by Dmitri Voronkov, beating Hofer clean with a wrister from the left dot at 17:24.
The Blue Jackets needed just 4:49 of the second to make it 4-0, scoring moments after a power play when Severson found Sillinger open in front for a quick shot past Hofer. But for the second game in a row, CBJ penalties reared their head to allow the opposition to get back in the game. Jakub Vrana scored at the end of a long shift in the CBJ zone at 11:20 to get St. Louis on the board, then Sammy Blais stuffed one past Greaves from in front on the power play at 13:56 to make it 4-2.
Another power-play goal by the Blues, this one 2:50 into the third, cut the CBJ lead to one at 4-3. Vrana got his second of the night, one-timing a puck from the right circle past Greaves. Columbus was able to play some solid defense from there and Gaudreau tallied into the empty net to set the final score with 1:20 to go.
Notable
St. Louis had a 40-38 edge in shots on goal. … Ten CBJ players finished with points. … St. Louis was 2 for 4 on the power play, while Columbus was 0-2.
Roster Report
Here is a link to the roster the Blue Jackets used for the game. It was the preseason debut for forward Mathieu Olivier and defenseman Tim Berni, while 18 of the 20 CBJ players on the roster have NHL experience.
Up Next
The Blue Jackets return to Nationwide Arena for games both Wednesday and Thursday. The Jackets welcome Buffalo to town on Wednesday and host Washington on Thursday before concluding the preseason Saturday at the Capitals.
