Three Stars and Game in One Picture: CBJ @ DAL

*taps the mic* Hey? Is this thing on? I know it’s been a while, I was starting to think I was dead myself. Thankfully I am very much alive, or I wouldn’t have been able to be a part of the small (yet quite vocal) swatch of Jackets fans that were treated to a pretty exciting hockey game against the Stars last night at the American Airline Center. I was supremely nervous coming into this one, not just because I was going to a blue guy in a sea of green but because of Dallas’ last home tilt against the Minnesota Wild. The Stars destroyed them 7-1 and made nearly every goal look easy, and with a Jackets team that was winning games on the back of Sergei Bobrovsky the chance for another laugher was (to me) high against a decent Western foe.

However, the Jackets got off to exactly the start they wanted, grabbing two goals in the first period (with another powerplay tally!) and making strong pushes into the Stars’ zone, winning battles, making good passes, the whole lot. Near the end of the period though, you started to see the Stars wake up from their slumber and that horrible sinking feeling began to bubble up in my throat. After a beauty of a shot from, of all people, Connauton and a fantastic rush at the end of the 3^rd from Letestu and Wennberg the brutal second and third period possession numbers stay mere stats and not a story of a comeback. Phew!

3^rd Star: Ryan Johansen

Johansen’s powerplay goal was a spectacular shot over a diving Lindback and he was all over the puck during his 21 minutes of ice time. While he only registered the one shot on his first period goal, Joey was making passes and trying his damndest to create offense. His touch pass to Connauton nabbed him a second point on the night and a place I think justified as the game’s third star.

2^nd Star: Antoine Rrrrrrrrooooooooussel

I mean, hey, he got a goal, right? To his credit when you put yourself in front of the net good things happen, and Ryan Garbutt’s haphazard shot deflected perfectly off of Roussel’s person past Bobrovsky. Since the Stars were a frustrated team thanks to Bob, someone on the Stars had to get in here, didn’t they? I think a better choice would have been Nick Foligno who quietly had another typical fantastic game netting 3 assists.

1^st Star: Sergei Bobrovsky

This guy is pretty good, eh? In typical Bob form, Sergei stood taller than the Iron Curtain and locked down a pretty threatening Stars offense that had chances galore thanks to some pretty undisciplined Blue Jackets defensemen. The two goals he did let in were flukes as far as I’m concerned, especially the second goal that that eyes, radar and a flight computer to bounce off of Roussel and find the space underneath Sergei’s blocker. The Jackets might have leaned too heavily on Bob’s talents, but that’s why we have him, eh?

Game in One Picture:

Stud: Penalty Kill

For as disappointing as the discipline was the penalty kill rose to the occasion each time throughout the game. Granted, the two or three kills in a row took their tolls eventually as even strength goals but the PK still crushed those hopes. There was a pretty vocal Stars fan behind me all night that had plenty of colorful, choice words for every decision the Stars made in the Jackets’ zone. Whether the Jackets’ play or the Stars’ inability to decide on a pass was the cause of the 0/5 night I can’t quite say; in the end the zeroes are what matter, though.

Dud: Discipline

I mean come on! Tyutin! Wisniewksi! Savard! You three should know better! Shame on you! The Jackets’ struggles were glaring each time a CBJ defenseman had to interfere or hook to protect the slot or make up for a bad pinch or jump. The Stars are a fast team and if you go by the penalty summary they might have been too much for the Jackets’ defensive corps. Thankfully they got their pants pulled up for the penalty kill and kept the Stars special teams off the scoreboard.

I can’t stress how excited I still am after being able to see a win at my first NHL game as an enemy fan. The Jackets played hard for 40 minutes and thankfully for a Russian Protectron named Sergei they were able to get out of Dallas with 2 points and at least a split on the road trip. Next up on their schedule are the fearsome Toronto Maple Leafs, who might actually put some effort into a hockey game after getting their coach fired.

Haha! Nah.

Carry the Flag!