Calgary 2, Columbus 0
When: 7:00 PM ET, Wednesday, November 23, 2016
Where: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
Referees:
Steve Kozari, Pierre Lambert
Linesmen:
Steve Barton, Brad Kovachik
Attendance:
13140
By The Sports Xchange
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Columbus Blue Jackets weren't shut out all season until Chad Johnson and the Calgary Flames came to town Wednesday.
Johnson made 34 saves, and the Flames earned a 2-0 win over the Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.
Johnson made nine saves in the third period, including four in the final 1:20 of play. He stopped Nick Foligno, Boone Jenner and Zach Werenski (twice) to secure his second shutout of the season.
He managed to keep the Blue Jackets' goal-celebration cannon quiet.
"They came pretty hard there," Johnson said of the late surge, "so we knew they were going to throw everything at the net. There were times we were on our heels, but we still stuck together and battled as a group.
"We capitalized on the chances we had and grinded it out. It was good that we got the win."
Troy Brouwer's second-period goal was all the support Johnson needed. Brouwer finished the night with one goal, three shots on goal and four blocked shots. The goal was his first in 10 games.
The Flames won despite getting outshot 34-20.
"We were on the outside all night long," Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella said, "and Chad saw every shot. I thought our first period was good. But from then, it went downhill. They out-chanced us.
"Give them some credit though, too. They checked very well. They stick-checked us all night long."
Micheal Ferland doubled the lead with a power-play goal in the third period for the final margin.
Calgary (9-12-1) earned its fourth win in six games, winning for the second time in the first three games on a season-high, six-game road trip. Columbus (10-5-3) lost its second in a row immediately after a four-game winning streak.
Sergei Bobrovsky made 18 saves for the Blue Jackets.
The Flames transitioned through the neutral zone much faster than the uncharacteristically slower Blue Jackets.
"It was a tough one tonight," Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno said. "We just didn't execute as well as I think we could have. I don't think we penetrated and really tried to get to the net.
"That's how we have to play for us to have success. I don't think we did that consistently enough tonight."
The Blue Jackets were unable to create any sustained pressure on the Flames in the offensive zone, with Calgary forcing turnovers throughout the game.
Calgary played a heavy-checking game that the Blue Jackets couldn't break through in the first period, although Columbus managed a 10-4 shot advantage.
While the Flames did little offensively in the first period, they gained momentum in the second frame after killing off a four-minute minor penalty assessed to Matthew Tkachuk for high-sticking Seth Jones.
That proved to be the turning point of the game.
After Brouwer picked off a clearing attempt by Jones, he fed Kris Versteeg coming into the zone. Versteeg stick-handled around Jones and dished an off-balance, backhand pass through the crease. Brouwer was on the doorstep to tap it home, giving the Flames a 1-0 lead at 6:35 of the second period.
"Brouwer made a great play," Versteeg said, "and I think (Matt) Stajan made a good one to stay onside. I just tried to make a play and get it over to Brouwer. Fortunately, it went in."
Versteeg was in his first game back in the lineup after missing nine games because of a groin injury. He had an assist, one shot and two blocked shots in 14:28 of ice time.
"It felt pretty good," he said. "As the game kept going, I felt more and more comfortable."
Ferland doubled the advantage at 6:25 of the third period. As the Blue Jackets were attempting to clear the zone, Dennis Wideman managed to keep the puck in play along the blue line, setting up Ferland.
NOTES: Flames LW Matthew Tkachuk and Blue Jackets D Zach Werenski faced each other for the first time Wednesday in their NHL careers. They previously played together on the U.S. National Team Development Program in 2013-14 ... Flames head coach Glen Gulutzan and Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella previously coached together in Vancouver in 2013-14 ... Columbus recalled LW Markus Hannikainen from the AHL's Cleveland Monsters ... Blue Jackets scratched D Dalton Prout, D Scott Harrington and LW Matt Calvert (upper-body) ... Flames scratched D Jyrki Jokipakka and C Hunter Shinkaruk.
Top Game Performances
Calgary |
|
Columbus |
Troy Brouwer 1 |
Points |
N/A |
Troy Brouwer 1 |
Goals |
N/A |
Kris Versteeg 1 |
Assists |
N/A |
Micheal Ferland 1 |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
Chad Johnson 1.000 |
Save Percentage |
Sergei Bobrovsky .900 |
Chad Johnson 34 |
Saves |
Sergei Bobrovsky 18 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
Calgary
|
20 |
2 |
1-3 |
4-4 |
8 |
23 |
Columbus
|
34 |
0 |
0-4 |
2-3 |
6 |
25 |
Upcoming Games
-
Columbus will play their next game on the road against Tampa Bay. The Blue Jackets have a W/L % of .545 after a win and .571 after a loss.
-
Calgary will play their next game on the road against Boston. The Flames have a W/L % of .375 after a win and .429 after a loss.