On Saturday night, Oliver Bjorkstrand scored twice to lead the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 4-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils, snapping a three-game losing streak.
Boone Jenner and Igor Chinakhov also scored for the Blue Jackets, who bounced back from Thursday’s loss in New Jersey and secured their sixth consecutive home win against the Devils.
Jakub Voracek and Adam Boqvist each contributed two assists, and Joonas Korpisalo made 27 saves for his first win since Nov. 22 and his first home victory since April 6 of last season.
“It was a huge win for us,” Voracek said. “We made it much tougher than we had to, but we found a way. It’s a crucial time of the year. We have to get some wins.”
Nico Hischier, Jimmy Vesey, and Marian Studenic scored for New Jersey, while Mackenzie Blackwood stopped 30 shots.
“A lot of guys played a lot of different positions with a lot of different players, but I thought we played the game the right way,” Devils coach Lindy Ruff said. “We gave ourselves a chance to win a hockey game, even down to the bitter end.”
Bjorkstrand broke a 3-3 tie exactly five minutes into the third period with his second goal of the night, a wrist shot from the right circle.
Voracek got his 24th assist on the play. He and Bjorkstrand now lead the Blue Jackets with 25 points each.
“He’s a really good playmaker,” Bjorkstrand said. Every time he has the puck, you know it can be coming toward you. You have to be aware and find open ice. He likes to pass it more than shoot it.”
Bjorkstrand opened the scoring for Columbus with a power-play goal at 2:01 of the first period, and the Blue Jackets extended their lead to 2-0 at 4:03 when Jenner’s centering pass from behind the net deflected off a Devils player and into the net.
Hischier cut the lead in half at 14:41 with a shot from the slot, marking his fourth goal in his last three games. New Jersey equalized when Vesey scored over Korpisalo’s glove with 19.6 seconds left in the first for his first goal since returning from COVID-19 protocol.
Columbus regained the lead when a hard-charging Sean Kuraly set up Chinakhov from behind the net at 9:31 of the second, but the Devils tied it again when Studenic hammered home a pass into the crease from Jesper Boqvist at 13:32.
“We kept getting the lead, which is a good sign,” Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said. “Some momentum swings didn’t last nearly as long as other games. When you are not winning a lot, you get tentative. That’s a dangerous way to play. They stuck with it tonight. That’s a wonderful thing to see.”
A THOUSAND TIMES, YES
Voracek was honored in a pregame ceremony for becoming the 361st player (358th skater) in NHL history to play in 1,000 career games. Selected seventh overall by the Blue Jackets in the 2007 NHL draft, Voracek played his first three seasons for Columbus before spending 10 with the Philadelphia Flyers. He returned to the Blue Jackets this season.
COVID-19 UPDATE
Devils forward Nathan Bastian and Jesper Bratt were placed in COVID-19 protocol and missed the game. They join Yegor Sharangovich, Pavel Zacha, Andreas Johnsson, Mason Geertsen, and Dougie Hamilton (who also has a broken jaw) in the protocol. The Devils added forward A.J. Greer and defenseman Colton White to their roster. Columbus defenseman Zach Werenski returned from COVID-19 protocol after missing two games, while forward Alexandre Texier was placed in protocol on Friday and did not play.
POWER OUTAGE
Columbus’ power-play goal was its first since Dec. 7 and 14th of the season, tying them for 27th in the league.
OH, BROTHER
Jesper and Adam Boqvist each had points in their third NHL game against one another. Adam had secondary assists on goals by Jenner and Bjorkstrand, while his older brother Jesper had the primary assist on Studenic’s goal.
UP NEXT
- New Jersey hosts Tampa Bay on Monday.
- Columbus hosts Chicago on Tuesday.
