The everybody contributes mantra didn’t just stop with scoring. At 5-on-5, the biggest difference in forward ice time ranged from Aston-Reese (11:07) to Yegor Chinakhov (8:52), while on defense Zach Werenski led the way with 14:16, but Jordan Harris’ 12:31 wasn’t far behind despite having the least ice time.
In other words, head coach Dean Evason just kept rolling his lines and pairs without seeing any noticeable dip in effectiveness.
“When you have depth like that and can play four lines and six D regualrly, just keep rolling, that’s exciting for us as a team,” Evason said.
2. The Blue Jackets saved their best for last on this night.
Columbus took a 2-0 lead in the first period on tallies from Aston-Reese and Werenski (power play), but Pittsburgh battled back to tie things just after the midway point of the game. Mathieu Olivier’s odd-man rush goal late in the second restored the CBJ lead, and Columbus went to the locker room up 3-2 after 40 minutes.
In recent years, that would have meant there was no guarantee that the Blue Jackets would come out on top. That’s especially true against a Pittsburgh team that has seemingly had the Jackets’ number, with an ability to seemingly escape any situation and leave the Blue Jackets on the losing side of things.
Add in the Pens’ desperation level amid a rough start to the season, and you could have forgiven CBJ fans if there was some nervousness when DMX played and the puck dropped to start the third.
But on this night, there was no reason to worry. The Blue Jackets controlled the final frame, not just scoring all three goals but posting a major edge in shots on goal (19-4). Pittsburgh had a little flurry late during a power play, but other than that, it was one-way traffic toward netminder Tristan Jarry.
“Obviously on the road we had some games where we had the lead and maybe blew it and gave up a little too much,” Cole Sillinger said postgame. “When we had the lead tonight, that’s something that we recognized and played with a little more clock awareness, playing smart hockey.”
Evason has preached that the Blue Jackets can create offense by playing sturdy defense, that staying on the right side of the puck will not only keep it out of the CBJ net but allow the Jackets to get on the attack.
The way Columbus played the final 20-plus minutes was proof of that.
“In the third period, we had plenty of opportunities to score, but we didn’t sacrifice anything else,” Evason said.
3. Elvis Merzlikins turned in an excellent performance in his 200th career game.
First off, credit where credit is due. Sticks taps are in order for Merzlikins, who became just the fifth CBJ goalie to reach that milestone following Sergei Bobrovsky, Marc Denis, Steve Mason and Joonas Korpisalo.
He celebrated in style Friday night, making stops on 21 of 23 shots against. More than that, though, he exorcised some demons against the Pens, against whom he entered with a career 1-6-0 record, 4.02 GAA and .895 save percentage.
“It’s never been easy to play against them,” Merzlikins said. “They are a great team. They are fast. They have really skilled players, and they’re physical as well – always in the crease, provocating and all that stuff. But I like that stuff.”
While the save total wasn’t astronomical, he was at his best throughout the night, playing calm, composed and with confidence. There were stretches of the game where the Penguins had the puck for extended sequences, but Merzlikins was up to the challenge.
His biggest stop came in the final seconds of the second period, as Anthony Beauvillier fished a rebound out of a mess of bodies in front and seemingly had an open net to shoot at.
