PREVIEW: Blue Jackets hope to build momentum in Buffalo

When the Blue Jackets took the ice against Toronto last night, all three players that wore leadership letters in home games to start the season were on the shelf.

Captain Boone Jenner and alternates Zach Werenski and Sean Kuraly are all out with injuries along with Patrik Laine and Adam Boqvist. That’s a lot of talent and experience gone, and Erik Gudbranson, Johnny Gaudreau and Justin Danforth filled in with the “A” on their sweaters.

But 20 minutes into the game, down 2-1, head coach Pascal Vincent wasn’t too happy. Whether the Blue Jackets were missing their leaders or simply being outplayed by one of the league’s better teams, Vincent went into the locker room during the first intermission and made it clear that his team was not playing to its potential.

“We were honest,” Vincent said. “We didn’t necessarily like the first period, and that’s what we talked about. They know when they’re playing the right way. It was just, I don’t want any excuses because of the players that aren’t playing. No excuses. We want to compete.

“We got better as the game went on, and I thought in the third, we were playing our style and the intensity that we need. It got better in the second period, and then in the third, we were a good team.”

By the end, the scoreboard proved it. The Blue Jackets battled back from deficits of 1-0, 3-1, 4-2 and 5-4 to force overtime on Adam Fantilli’s late goal, then Johnny Gaudreau’s extra-time winner capped a 6-5 victory.

Twelve different CBJ players scored points, six different Jackets had goals, and all 20 players had to do their part after goalie Elvis Merzlikins fell ill and had to be replaced by Spencer Martin. In other words, as Vincent put it, it was a team effort.

“It felt great,” Fantilli said of the comeback victory. “I know we have it in this locker room, and it felt amazing to see one go the right way.”

Considering how many close games the Jackets have lost this year, being able to come back in the third period and get a win made this one a victory to relish … for less than 24 hours before tonight’s game vs. Buffalo.

“It feels good,” Gudbranson said. “We’ve been in the opposite position going into the third and finding a way to lose them recently, and sort of all year. So to have it the other way around and come back against a really good hockey team, beat them in overtime, it is really nice.

“It’s gonna feel good for a very short amount of time. We have to do it again tomorrow.”

Know The Foe: Buffalo Sabres

Head coach: Don Granato (Fourth season)

Team stats: Goals per game: 2.97 (22nd) | Scoring defense: 3.44 (27th) | PP: 13.3 percent (26th) | PK: 78.3 percent (22nd)

The narrative: A long rebuilding process has led to the Sabres acquiring a bevy of talented, young players on all sides of the puck, and Buffalo came within one point last season of making its first Stanley Cup Playoffs appearance since 2010-11. Unfortunately, so far, the team hasn’t been able to recapture the form it had in the second half of last season, as the defense continues to give up too many goals while the offense has seen its production drop from its average of 3.57 goals per game last year.

Team leaders: The emergence of Casey Mittelstadt has been a welcome sight for the Sabres, as the 2017 first-round pick has followed last year’s breakout season with a team-best line of 9-21-30. Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, the top pick in the 2018 draft, is tied for first among NHL blueliners with 10 goals among his 29 points, while Jeff Skinner (14 goals) and John-Jason Peterka (12 tallies) are tied with 25 points. Tage Thompson has been injured at times and hasn’t quite lived up to last year’s 47-goal campaign, posting 9-10-19 in 26 games.

In net, rookie Devon Levi was thought to be a potential white knight coming in after a standout career at Northeastern University and a strong finish last year, but he’s had an up-and-down season with a 7-5-2 record, 3.31 GAA and .889 save percentage. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is 6-8-2 with a 3.21 GAA and .892 save percentage.

What's new: The Sabres just haven't been able to get any traction in a season that was supposed to have such promise, as Buffalo is yet to win three straight games at any point this season. Still one of the youngest teams in the league, Buffalo is 5-9-2 in its last 16 games and given up 61 goals (3.81goals per game) in that span. The Sabres also could be without Thompson, as the big centerman missed the team’s last contest for personal reasons, while Granato will not coach because of illness; Rochester (AHL) coach Seth Appert will step in.

Trending: Columbus is 17-9-2 in the series since 2013-14, including a 9-4 drubbing of the Sabres on Dec. 19 in Buffalo in which the Jackets scored the second-most goals in team history.

Former CBJ: Eric Robinson has notched a goal and two assists in his first seven games with the squad after a midseason trade but has been a healthy scratch of late.

Roster Report

Projected Lineup (subject to change)

Johnny Gaudreau – Adam Fantilli – Justin Danforth
Yegor Chinakhov – Dmitri Voronkov – Kirill Marchenko
Kent Johnson – Cole Sillinger – Emil Bemstrom
Alexandre Texier – Brendan Gaunce – Jack Roslovic
Ivan Provorov – Damon Severson
Jake Bean – David Jiricek
Jake Christiansen – Erik Gudbranson
Daniil Tarasov
Spencer Martin

Scratches: Mathieu Olivier, Andrew Peeke, Elvis Merzlikins (illness)

Injured reserve: Sean Kuraly (abdominal, day to day); Zach Werenski (ankle, out four to six weeks as of Dec. 28); Nick Blankenburg (upper body, day to day); Patrik Laine (fractured clavicle, out six weeks as of Dec. 15); Boone Jenner (fractured jaw, out six weeks as of Dec. 9); Adam Boqvist (shoulder strain, out approximately four weeks as of Dec. 6)

Roster Report: Kuraly was placed on injured reserve today while Christiansen was recalled from Cleveland, and the defenseman will go in tonight for Andrew Peeke. Merzlikins did not travel with the team so Tarasov will start in Buffalo for the second time this year.

3 Stats to Know

• With his goal last night, rookie Adam Fantilli became the fourth fastest CBJ player to 10 goals in his career. It took him 37 contests, leaving him behind only Matt Calvert (21), Kirill Marchenko (24) and Oliver Bjorkstrand (32). He is also the third NHL rookie to get to double digits in goals this year following Chicago’s Connor Bedard and Minnesota’s Marco Rossi.
• Yegor Chinakhov has seven goals in the last nine games and has posted 9-5-14 in the last 15 games to tie for fifth in the NHL in goals since Nov. 27.
• Milestone watch: Jack Roslovic is two points from 200 for his NHL career (73-125-198, 401 GP). ... Johnny Gaudreau is one point from 100 for his Blue Jackets career (28-71-99, 117 GP). … Spencer Martin played in the 50th game of his NHL career last night (17-24-6, 50 GP).

Who’s Hot

Johnny Gaudreau’s three-point game (1-2-3) last night was his second in the last five games, and Johnny Hockey has a 3-7-10 line in the last seven contests. … Justin Danforth has scored two goals in the last three games and had an assist on Johnny Gaudreau’s winner last night. … With six goals and six assists in the last 13 games, Adam Fantilli is third among NHL rookies in goals (10) and points (22). … Dmitri Voronkov also is tied for sixth among NHL rookies in goals (seven) and tied for fifth in points (18). … Since being placed on a line together, the trio of Voronkov, Kirill Marchenko and Yegor Chinakhov has 15 goals in 13 games. … Cole Sillinger has scored in three of the last five games. … Kent Johnson has a 4-5-9 line in the last 10 contests. … The team’s rookie stat line of 18-31-49 is second in the NHL in both goals and points.

This Day in CBJ History

Dec. 30, 2021: Gustav Nyquist scores in the fifth round of the shootout and the Blue Jackets earn a 4-3 victory at Nashville. Boone Jenner, Patrik Laine and Alexandre Texier score for the Jackets.