Blues prospect Adam Musil scored in his third consecutive game, defenseman Jake Walman scored on the power play to keep pace with his team-lead in points with six (two goals, four assists) and Tage Thompson added the game-winning goal with less than five minutes remaining in the third period to lift the Blues to a 3-2 win against the Blue Jackets.
Thompson, who also has six points in the tournament (two goals, four assists), was earning praise from his coaches.
"Thompson was the best player on the ice again," said Blues development coach Barret Jackman. "He played strong, made some great plays, and he played the penalty kill today with (Tanner) Kaspick. Those two were a very strong skating and tenacious penalty-kill unit."
Columbus had scored 10 goals through two games entering Monday's contest, but Blues backup goaltender Stephen Dhillon held Columbus to just two goals on 33 shots.
Jackman said two players that stood out in Monday's game were Musil and defenseman Niko Mikkola - the team's fifth-round pick in 2015.
"Musil is a very strong, detail-oriented player. He puts everything on the line," Jackman said. "He's shown some attention around the net and scored some dirty goals, too. The fact that he's contributing at the tournament is a pretty good sign that his hard work is paying off with some points."
"Mikkola had an outstanding game," Jackman added. "He was playing heavy and also using his skating to make some great reads."
The Blues, who improved to 2-1 in the tournament, will wrap up play in Traverse City on Tuesday. Their opponent will be determined after the completion of Monday's games.
