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Just when the Blue Jackets appeared to be out of magic in their surprising playoff chase, the NHL made a devastating goal Monday night disappear.
Rather than reeling from a crushing defeat on a goal scored by the New York Islanders with 8.9 seconds left in the third period, the Jackets returned to Columbus rejuvenated after a wild finish led to a 4-3 shootout victory at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.
More: Columbus Blue Jackets will add Sean Monahan, Erik Gudbranson to playoff push
What happened to the Islanders is something that typically happens to the Blue Jackets (32-29-9), whose misery was spared after Kyle Palmieri’s late goal to break a 3-3 tie was disallowed after a goaltender interference ruling that withstood an NHL review by the league’s situation room in Toronto.
The game stayed tied, an exciting 3-on-3 overtime followed, and then a shootout gave the Blue Jackets a crucial second point on Adam Fantilli’s goal in the second round.
Abracadabra, here are three takeaways:
A regulation win would’ve been the best outcome for the Blue Jackets in a tight race for the final postseason spot in the NHL’s Eastern Conference, but beggars can’t be choosers. The Jackets just needed a win of any variety to break the spell of a frustrating six-game losing streak, and got it done despite the Islanders also earning a point with the shootout loss.
The Islanders are now tied at 74 points with the New York Rangers, one ahead of the Blue Jackets and one behind the Montreal Canadiens for the East’s second wild card. Had the Isles won on Palmieri’s overturned goal, Columbus would trail the Islanders and Canadiens by four points for the second wild card and Rangers by three points for ninth place in the East. The Detroit Red Wings also would’ve passed the Blue Jackets after their victory Monday night in Utah.
The Blue Jackets don’t play again until a tough back-to-back that starts Friday against the Vancouver Canucks at Nationwide Arena and finishes Saturday in Ottawa.
Waiting for the NHL situation room to make its ruling on Palmieri’s overturned goal had to feel like an eternity for the Blue Jackets, who could’ve dropped their ninth of 10 games since downing the Red Wings on March 1 at Ohio Stadium.
So, was it or wasn’t it the right call?
It depends on who you ask, but the NHL always gets final say and ruled that Blue Jackets goalie Elvis Merzlikins was interfered with enough to disallow the goal. Replays show Palmieri and Merzlikins bumping into each other at the top of the crease about a second before a shot from the blue line heads back toward them, which Palmieri deflected past an unprepared Merzlikins.
It would've been Palmieri's second goal of the game, after giving the Islanders a 2-0 lead late in the first period.
Here is the ruling by the NHL situation room:
“Video review supported the Referees’ call on the ice thatNew York’s Kyle Palmieri impaired Elvis Merzlikins’ ability to play his position in the crease prior to the goal. The decision was made in accordance with Rule 69.1 which states, in part, that ‘Goals should be disallowed only if: (1) an attacking player, either by his positioning or by contact, impairs the goalkeeper’s ability to move freely within his crease or defend his goal.’”
Earlier in the game, the Blue Jackets lost a coaching challenge for possible goaltender interference on Islanders power forward Anders Lee on a goal that put New York up, 3-2, late in the second period. Despite Lee’s stick hitting Merzlikins in the mask during that goal, the NHL ruled there was no interference.
Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason said the rulings show the difficulty in contesting a referee’s judgement call.
“I guess what it says is that we’ve got to be very careful that the call on the ice is probably where it’s going to go,” Evason said. “You have to have such great, like, super clear evidence or (have it be) lopsided the other way to overturn it. Both were called on the ice and that’s how they stayed, so we’ll be mindful of that next time.”
Sean Monahan said it took a couple shifts to adjust to the pace of the NHL this late in the season, but otherwise he didn’t show any lingering effects from surgery to correct a wrist injury that happened Jan. 7 in Pittsburgh.
The veteran center returned to the Blue Jackets’ top line and finished with two assists to boost his scoring line for the season to 14 goals, 29 assists and 43 points in 42 games. Monahan also showed his wrist is fine to take faceoffs, winning 11 of 24 draws (46%).
The Blue Jackets also got standout performances from goalie Elvis Merzlikins and defenseman Zach Werenski.
Merzlikins earned his first assist of the season on Boone Jenner's short-handed goal to tie it 2-2 in the second, but his biggest contributions were making numerous key stops on his way to 31 saves. That included a desperate, diving denial 1:48 into OT to rob Islanders defenseman Ryan Pulock.
Werenski, meanwhile, set a career-high by skating the highest ice time in the league this season at 33:44 on 26 shifts. That included 16:06 between the third period and OT that, broken down individually, was 13:07 out of 20 minutes in the third and 3:02 of the five minute 3-on-3 OT.
Good thing the Blue Jackets have a day off Tuesday.
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at [email protected] and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets keep playoff hopes alive: 3 takeaways
Continue reading...
Rather than reeling from a crushing defeat on a goal scored by the New York Islanders with 8.9 seconds left in the third period, the Jackets returned to Columbus rejuvenated after a wild finish led to a 4-3 shootout victory at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.
More: Columbus Blue Jackets will add Sean Monahan, Erik Gudbranson to playoff push
What happened to the Islanders is something that typically happens to the Blue Jackets (32-29-9), whose misery was spared after Kyle Palmieri’s late goal to break a 3-3 tie was disallowed after a goaltender interference ruling that withstood an NHL review by the league’s situation room in Toronto.
The game stayed tied, an exciting 3-on-3 overtime followed, and then a shootout gave the Blue Jackets a crucial second point on Adam Fantilli’s goal in the second round.
Abracadabra, here are three takeaways:
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Columbus Blue Jackets’ shootout win over New York Islanders solidifies their position in Eastern Conference playoff race
A regulation win would’ve been the best outcome for the Blue Jackets in a tight race for the final postseason spot in the NHL’s Eastern Conference, but beggars can’t be choosers. The Jackets just needed a win of any variety to break the spell of a frustrating six-game losing streak, and got it done despite the Islanders also earning a point with the shootout loss.
The Islanders are now tied at 74 points with the New York Rangers, one ahead of the Blue Jackets and one behind the Montreal Canadiens for the East’s second wild card. Had the Isles won on Palmieri’s overturned goal, Columbus would trail the Islanders and Canadiens by four points for the second wild card and Rangers by three points for ninth place in the East. The Detroit Red Wings also would’ve passed the Blue Jackets after their victory Monday night in Utah.
The Blue Jackets don’t play again until a tough back-to-back that starts Friday against the Vancouver Canucks at Nationwide Arena and finishes Saturday in Ottawa.
You must be registered for see images attach
Columbus Blue Jackets happy to go 1-1 on goaltender interference reviews against New York Islanders
Waiting for the NHL situation room to make its ruling on Palmieri’s overturned goal had to feel like an eternity for the Blue Jackets, who could’ve dropped their ninth of 10 games since downing the Red Wings on March 1 at Ohio Stadium.
So, was it or wasn’t it the right call?
It depends on who you ask, but the NHL always gets final say and ruled that Blue Jackets goalie Elvis Merzlikins was interfered with enough to disallow the goal. Replays show Palmieri and Merzlikins bumping into each other at the top of the crease about a second before a shot from the blue line heads back toward them, which Palmieri deflected past an unprepared Merzlikins.
It would've been Palmieri's second goal of the game, after giving the Islanders a 2-0 lead late in the first period.
You must be registered for see images attach
Here is the ruling by the NHL situation room:
“Video review supported the Referees’ call on the ice thatNew York’s Kyle Palmieri impaired Elvis Merzlikins’ ability to play his position in the crease prior to the goal. The decision was made in accordance with Rule 69.1 which states, in part, that ‘Goals should be disallowed only if: (1) an attacking player, either by his positioning or by contact, impairs the goalkeeper’s ability to move freely within his crease or defend his goal.’”
Earlier in the game, the Blue Jackets lost a coaching challenge for possible goaltender interference on Islanders power forward Anders Lee on a goal that put New York up, 3-2, late in the second period. Despite Lee’s stick hitting Merzlikins in the mask during that goal, the NHL ruled there was no interference.
Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason said the rulings show the difficulty in contesting a referee’s judgement call.
“I guess what it says is that we’ve got to be very careful that the call on the ice is probably where it’s going to go,” Evason said. “You have to have such great, like, super clear evidence or (have it be) lopsided the other way to overturn it. Both were called on the ice and that’s how they stayed, so we’ll be mindful of that next time.”
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Sean Monahan, Zach Werenski and Elvis Merzlikins impress in Columbus Blue Jackets’ shootout win over New York Islanders
Sean Monahan said it took a couple shifts to adjust to the pace of the NHL this late in the season, but otherwise he didn’t show any lingering effects from surgery to correct a wrist injury that happened Jan. 7 in Pittsburgh.
The veteran center returned to the Blue Jackets’ top line and finished with two assists to boost his scoring line for the season to 14 goals, 29 assists and 43 points in 42 games. Monahan also showed his wrist is fine to take faceoffs, winning 11 of 24 draws (46%).
The Blue Jackets also got standout performances from goalie Elvis Merzlikins and defenseman Zach Werenski.
You must be registered for see images attach
Merzlikins earned his first assist of the season on Boone Jenner's short-handed goal to tie it 2-2 in the second, but his biggest contributions were making numerous key stops on his way to 31 saves. That included a desperate, diving denial 1:48 into OT to rob Islanders defenseman Ryan Pulock.
Werenski, meanwhile, set a career-high by skating the highest ice time in the league this season at 33:44 on 26 shifts. That included 16:06 between the third period and OT that, broken down individually, was 13:07 out of 20 minutes in the third and 3:02 of the five minute 3-on-3 OT.
Good thing the Blue Jackets have a day off Tuesday.
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at [email protected] and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets keep playoff hopes alive: 3 takeaways
Continue reading...
