The first game back from the All Star Break was a rude awakening for the Columbus Blue Jackets, as the visitors fell 5-1 to the Edmonton Oilers. The game opened with total Edmonton control, but it wasn’t until an explosive second period that the scoreboard showed the home team’s advantage. In the middle stanza, the floodgates burst open with four Oiler goals (and one last in the 3rd for good measure).
It was not a good night for the Blue Jackets. It was a good night for one of hockey’s future stars.
The Great: Connor McDavid
The hype is very real, and the 1st overall pick came away with the highlight of the night. Connor McDavid’s goal was outrageous, and looks like something you’d expect from an OHL star. Except he’s doing it against NHL d-men.
Connor McDavid… Wow. pic.twitter.com/Zeyz3wT2Tv
— Rogers NHL LIVE (@RogersNHLLive) February 3, 2016
Mercy. Not the best play by Johnson or Falk. And yet I don’t know how much a different Columbus player would have mattered.
Because, you see, about midway through the 3rd period? McDavid cleanly stripped the puck from Seth Jones in the Oilers’ d-zone, and created a breakaway for himself. Had McDavid’s backhand gone in, it would have been the goal of the game (which is saying something).
This was McDavid’s first game back since November 3rd. He finished with 3 points, including a primary assist on a late-game powerplay goal (one he personally set up with incredible puck control behind the net to feed Eberle). He also had 4 shots on goal, showed off his insane hands, looked like the fastest skater in the game, and was more dangerous than anybody on the ice. If this is McDavid with rust, I think the Oilers are in for a fun ride to close their year.
And to be perfectly honest: Great McDavid is good for all hockey fans in at least two big ways. The first: a new, supremely skilled talent to astound us 82 games a year. That’s just plain fun. The other: a chance that Edmonton won’t win so many draft lotteries in the near-term future.
The Not So Good: The CBJ Start
Aside from the Calvert goal, the Blue Jackets were absolutely dominated in the first one and a half periods Tuesday night. It wasn’t just McDavid, and it wasn’t only the early Oiler powerplay. It was a barrage of shots for the home team, with Natural Stat Trick reporting a 62% FF% for the Oilers in the first frame (via NatStatTrick).
Rookie goalie Joonas Korpisalo kept up his end of the bargain in the first, finishing with 18 saves on 18 shots. Unfortunately, that was the last obviously positive thing for Columbus. By the time the Jackets’ skaters finally showed up, the game was well out of hand and the four goal second period was already underway.
Tweet of the Game
Just your typical three-point effort after missing 37 games for Connor McDavid.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) February 3, 2016
The Good News
This game is over! We needn’t think about it ever again!
The Blue Jackets are back at it Thursday night in Vancouver.
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