Blue Jackets dominate from start to finish in win over Blues

The Blue Jackets got off to a dominant start at the annual
NHL Prospect Tournament in Traverse City, Mich.,
posting a 7-1 win over the St. Louis Blues.

Quote of the Game

Head coach Trent Vogelhuber: "Obviously the front office and scouts did a good job with the last few drafts. We just want to take as much thought and nervousness out of their minds so they can play fast, right? They're talented players, they play their best when they're just reacting, so that's what we're trying to emphasize for this group. And they did it today. I thought we had the puck most of the game and controlled it well. They made good reads and just reacted. When talented players just play, they're pretty good, so it was fun."

CBJ Standouts

• 2022 third-round pick Jordan Dumais led the Blue Jackets with two goals in the game.
• 2021 first-round pick Kent Johnson, the team captain, finished with a goal and two assists.
• CBJ signee Jet Greaves had a fantastic game in net, finishing with 22 saves.

Quick Recap

The Blue Jackets wasted little time getting going with three goals in the opening eight minutes and change. Dumais took a pass across the crease from Stanislav Svozil and fired past goalie Colten Ellis just 1:29 into the game, then broke in on a transition play off a feeed from Johnson and finished with a snipe over the glove of Ellis to make it 2-0 at the 4:36 mark. Columbus then made it 3-0 just 8:29 into the game when Samuel Knazko finished a strong shift for the team by firing off the far post and in through a screen.
The scoring barrage continued in the second as the Blue Jackets made it 5-0 in the opening few minutes. Liam Hawel needed just 2:59 to score in transition, then Johnson got on the board with a shot from the right circle at 4:03. St. Louis got on the board with a goal from Landon Sim, but Luca Del Bel Belluz countered at 9:37 when he skated all the way across the zone from right to left then tucked a shot under the bar.

There wasn't much action in the third period as the Jackets put away the win, but Kirill Marchenko did tally late in the game, taking a floating pass from Johnson in front of the net and scoring.

Jeff's Quick Takeaways

1. What a nice start for Dumais, who seems to be the kind of kid who has the requisite amount of confidence to make it in this game for someone who checks in (generously) at 5-9. He said after the game he knows he can be such a difference maker on offense, and it's confidence he earned by posting 109 points in the QMJHL a season ago. I wouldn't be surprised if he tops that total this year given another year of maturation plus the fact he'll be ready to go after going through CBJ training camp. My sense is the Blue Jackets think they have something special in this kid after grabbing him in the third round of this summer's draft, and it will be really fun to follow his progression.
   2. You don't often think about the goalie in a 7-1 win, but the player I might have been most impressed with was Greaves. There weren't a ton of grade-A opportunities for the Blues, who never really recovered from the early barrage of goals, but Greaves command of the game was still quite impressive. He was at his best when the Blues had their lone power play near the end of the second period, making a number of big stops to keep St. Louis at bay. Greaves seems to have grown by leaps and bounds from where he was a year ago, and I'm starting to think this is a guy who has the talent and poise to be a real contributor at the NHL level.
   3. Final scores don't always reflect the reality of how a game was played, but this one really did. The Blue Jackets were the aggressors from the very beginning and fully deserved the six-goal victory. Just about everyone did their part up and down the lineup, and it ended up being a pretty easy day for Vogelhuber, who got to roll his lines from start to finish. The Jackets have made a lot of draft picks the past few seasons and it is paying off in a setting like this, as Columbus has talent from top to bottom here in Traverse City. After going unbeaten here a year go, it looks like the Jackets might be able to do it again.

Notable

Both teams were 0-for-1 on the power play. … Del Bel Belluz finished with a goal and an assist. … Ellis was replaced after the sixth CBJ goal and finished with 14 saves, while Will Cranley stopped nine of 10 shots against. … Ben Boyd finished with seven penalty minutes including a fighting major after dropping the gloves against Griffin Luce. … Columbus has won six straight games in Traverse City dating back to 2019.

Roster Report

The Blue Jackets scratched forward Samuel Huo (free agent invite) and defenseman Cole Clayton (Cleveland Monsters signee) for the game.

Up Next

Columbus takes on Detroit tomorrow at 3 p.m. in game two of the NHL Prospect Tournament.