Sweet revenge: Blue Jackets rout Carolina Hurricanes in payback for New Year's nightmare
Elvis Merzlikins made 31 saves for a shutout and Yegor Chinakhov notched his first two-goal game to lead the way.
Brian Hedger
Payback was a six.
Nearly two weeks after the Carolina Hurricanes overcame a 4-0 deficit to win 7-4 on New Year’s Day at Nationwide Arena, the Blue Jackets got even Thursday night in Raleigh, North Carolina. Elvis Merzlikins dazzled with a 31-save shutout, rookie forward Yegor Chinakhov notched his first two-goal game and the Jackets made sure the Hurricanes had nothing to celebrate after their 6-0 romp at PNC Arena.
Carolina missed the net 17 times, wasting numerous scoring chances, but Merzlikins was spectacular against the ones they put on target. The Blue Jackets also possessed the puck a lot more than they did Jan. 1, building a 2-0 lead after two periods and blowing the game open in the third with three goals in a span of 67 seconds.
“Very happy to win tonight,” Chinakhov said via interpreter Anton Poltyrev. “We watched that (New Year's Day) game on the videos, of course ... watched all the mistakes we made. I think we prepared really well for this game and that showed today — and the result is on the scoreboard.”
Emil Bemstrom scored his first goal of the season and the Blue Jackets (17-17-1) got their other goals from Patrik Laine, Jack Roslovic and Cole Sillinger to bounce back from a 4-2 loss Tuesday to the Chicago Blackhawks.
Columbus was 5-11-1 since Thanksgiving and 0-3-2 in their last five games against the Hurricanes, who are second in the Metropolitan Division.
"I don’t want to overthink this,” said Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen, knowing another tough challenge against the Florida Panthers is next up Saturday in Sunrise, Florida. “It’s one game. I’m not going to think too far ahead on the lessons (learned), other than we played a really strong game and that’s how it should look on the effort side.”
Larsen said the Blue Jackets' “engagement level” was elevated from start to finish, helping them fend off a dominant offense.
What happened New Year’s Day helped fuel the fire.
“I think the thing that gave us the confidence was our bittersweet taste,” Sillinger said. “They came back on a 4-0 lead and stole one in our own building, so, yeah, we wanted to make sure that we got them back. It was 4-0 at the time, but let’s face it. It didn’t really feel that way at the time. Tonight, when we were up, it felt like we were playing a lot better, a lot more confident and just playing the right way. It was a good team win on the road.”
Blue Jackets' Merzlikins shines in return against Carolina Hurricanes
The last time Merzlikins faced shots in a game, they were fired by the Hurricanes on Jan. 1 and four got past him in Carolina’s five-goal third period. He entered that game in relief of injured rookie Daniil Tarasov, who’d allowed only two goals on a barrage of 33 shots in the first two periods, and it was a lot to ask.
Carolina dominated possession, shots, attempts and nearly every statistical measure except the score through the first half of the game — storming back from a 4-0 deficit to win with seven straight goals.
Merzlikins wasn’t sharp in that one, admitting he hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep coming off New Year’s eve, but he also dealt with some terrible luck. A puck that was flipped into the Jackets’ zone led directly to the tying goal, caroming sharply off a stanchion and bouncing right to Carolina’s Nino Niederrieter.
Merzlikins also had an awkward collision with teammate Jakub Voracek while trying to exit for an extra skater and missed the next game with a lower-body injury. He then had to wait while Joonas Korpisalo started three more games.
The time off allowed Merzlikins to reset himself mentally, which showed during his second shutout of the season.
Merzlikins became the first goaltender to shutout the Hurricanes this season, making several huge saves to prevent what appeared to be sure goals. That included a breathtaking back-to-back stops in the first against Sebastian Aho and Ethan Bear — who scored the winer in the New Year's debacle.
“It helps with your confidence,” Merzlikins said. “You feel better after a huge save like that. That was nice. Felt good. For me, the most important thing was to feel back the flow, feel the game (again). I didn’t play for 10 or 11 days, so it was important to come back and play with a free mind.”
The saves against Aho and Bear preserved a 1-0 lead after Bemstrom scored 8:43 into the game. Merzlikins stopped Aho’s wrist shot off a 3-on-1 rush with his left pad before quickly pushing over to his left to glove down Bear’s follow-up.
“The first thing I had in my mind was ‘uh oh,’” Merzlikins said of the rebound following Aho's shot. “It was (an) empty net and I saw the guy (coming) at full speed. I just tried to catch it and I (got) it.”
Merzlikins also stopped another shot off a weird bounce late in the game and defenseman Adam Boqvist saved his goalie's goose egg in the third by just barely sweeping a puck off the goal line after it snuck through Merzlikins' pads.
"I really didn’t see that," Merzlikins said. "He saved my (butt) there, and thanks to him I got a shutout tonight."
Depth scoring helps Blue Jackets topple Carolina Hurricanes
Bemstrom’s goal was his first of the season, Sillinger’s was his first in 11 games and Chinakhov’s first two-goal NHL game gave the Blue Jackets some badly-needed depth scoring.
If they want to stay afloat in a playoff chase, it’s something the Jackets need to see more often. The problem is that it’s a easier said than done, especially with so many of the their “depth” roles handled by inexperienced players.
Chinakhov, 21, has only played 26 games. Sillinger, 18, has played only 35 games and is the NHL’s youngest player. Bemstrom, 22, has played just 83 games plus five playoff tilts over three seasons. All three stood out as goal-scorers at lower levels and have the potential to provide a significant scoring boost.
“To win this league, it’s going to take all four lines and you’ve got to be deep,” said Sillinger, who made it 5-0 on a breakaway at 5:33 of the third period. “It’s good to get some goals from some of our younger guys, to build confidence.”
Sillinger's confidence boost might've caused a drop in confidence for Carolina rookie goalie Jack LaFontaine, who left the University of Minnesota on Sunday, mid-season, to join the Hurricanes on his first NHL contract.
LaFontaine made his NHL debut by replacing Andersen after Chinakhov's second goal. The first shot he faced as a professional was Sillinger's breakaway snipe that beat him under the blocker — a wrist shot clocked at 77 mph by the ESPN+ broadcast.
LaFontaine was also beaten by Roslovic on a breakaway for the game's final tally.
Chinakhov shows off shot, skill on goals against Carolina Hurricanes
Chinakhov looks a lot more comfortable lately, which should make opposing goaltenders nervous.
After winning the Kontinental Hockey League’s top rookie award last season with his dynamic shot, the Russian forward is now heating up as an NHL rookie. Chinakhov, whom the Blue Jackets selected 20th overall in 2020, has three goals in the past three games and four this season.
That number could grow quickly if he keeps finishing scoring chances like he did Thursday. Chinakhov’s first goal was off a breakaway that followed a series of big saves by Merzlikins in the second. He took a pass from Vladislav Gavrikov and beat goalie Frederik Andersen with a laser past the blocker to make it 2-0.
His second goal was even better, dancing the puck untouched down the slot to beat Andersen with a backhand toe-drag move to put the Blue Jackets up 4-0.
“Never done that before, never practiced that,” Chinakhov said through the interpreter. “It just happened. It looked like the goalie waited for a shot and I made the move and it just worked out that way.”
Laine’s one-timer starts Blue Jackets' barrage against Carolina Hurricanes
The Jackets’ top playmaking forward, Jakub Voracek, was placed on the team’s COVID protocols list Thursday. That meant somebody needed to fill his role as primary passer for Laine in the left faceoff circle.
Captain Boone Jenner did the honors, snapping a cross-ice feed over to Laine for a one-time blast at 4:26 of the third that beat Andersen cleanly. The goal pushed the Jackets’ lead to 3-0 and was soon followed by goals from Chinakhov and Sillinger.
It was Laine’s fifth goal of the season and second since returning from an extended absence to recover from an oblique strain and mourn his father's death in Finland. Laine’s accuracy was a bit off-kilter coming into the game, but his one-time blast was right on target.
Laine can score in bunches when he’s in top form and nothing makes a goal-scorer feel better than ripping pucks into the net.
“That’s how it usually works,” Laine said. “You might get a lucky bounce. You know, go off your shin pad or something, and suddenly you feel really good. But I’m not worried. My dad used to always tell me that as long as you’re getting chances, you shouldn’t be worried. So, I’m not worried as long as I’m getting chances.”
Zach Werenski to represent Blue Jackets in NHL All-Star game
The Blue Jackets will be represented by defenseman Zach Werenski at the NHL’s All-Star game Feb. 5 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, the second time he will participate in that event.
Werenski was one of 36 players selected by the league’s hockey operations department Thursday. He also participated in 2018, making his all-star debut in Tampa, Florida because Seth Jones was sick.
Werenski was chosen outright this time as one of the NHL's top defensemen.
He's currently third in the NHL in average ice time at 26:27 per game and is fourth on the Blue Jacket in scoring six goals, 15 assists and 21 points. Werenski didn't get on the scoresheet against Carolina, but logged 22:49 and contributed three shots on six attempts. He was also credited with three takeaways and two blocked shots.
The all-star "game" is a 3-on-3 tournament played in one day between teams formed out of the NHL's four divisions. Werenski will play for the Metropolitan Division, which includes Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin as captain.
Voracek has a chance to join Werenski if fans vote him in through the NHL's "Last Man In' competition, which began Thursday and ends 11:59 p.m. Monday.
bhedger@dispatch.com
@BrianHedger