Whether the Blue Jackets go on to beat the Capitals in this seven-game series or not, they took a step on Thursday that no Blue Jackets team has ever taken in the franchise’s 17-year history. They went to bed with the lead in an actual, honest-to-goodness playoff series.
The Blue Jackets already made history, and the Capitals still need answers
The Jackets destroyed Washington down the stretch in Game 1. The Capitals have an Artemi Panarin problem and maybe a goaltending problem, too, though that’s less certain.
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
That Columbus has never won a series before has little bearing on this one. What does have a bearing on this series is for the first time, this Blue Jackets core has given itself a reason to think it can hang with an Eastern Conference heavyweight and even beat it. Bad goaltending and a mid-series injury to star defenseman Zach Werenski kept the Jackets from getting off the ground against Pittsburgh last year, but now they’re off and running.
That’s what Artemi Panarin’s goal at 6:02 of overtime on Thursday means. And more practically, it means Columbus has stolen home-ice advantage from the Metropolitan Division champions. For this team, the driver’s seat is a new vantage point.
Columbus hung around for a while, then took over the game.
When Columbus’ Josh Anderson got himself thrown out of the game for boarding in the first period, Evgeny Kuznetsov scored twice on the ensuing power play, a five-minute major. That allowed the Capitals to play from ahead for a while, and for most of the night, they controlled the play. In the first two periods, they attempted 45 shots to the Blue Jackets’ 33, with their extended power-play time a key factor in their possession dominance.
The Jackets cut the lead, 2-1, on an Alexander Wennberg tip-in early in the second, but Washington still controlled possession like a team in command. Something changed in the third period, where the Blue Jackets reigned in total shot attempts (25-14), shots on goal (9-5), and actual pucks put into the net (2-1, with both Columbus goals erasing one-goal Washington leads). The Blue Jackets were buzzing, and after about 10 minutes of banging on the door, Seth Jones scored the last of those tying goals from just inside the right dot. The teams played an even final four minutes of regulation before Panarin’s theatrics.
Panarin was the best player on the ice and a deserving hero.
He had two assists to go with the winner, making a three-point night in 23:13 of ice time. Players can score points by being in the right places at the right times, and they can score points by being one-man wrecking crews who drive possession and create chances. On Thursday, Panarin was the latter. He was the most dangerous man on the ice.
Panarin played 17 of his 23 minutes at even strength. When he was on the ice, the Blue Jackets almost always had the puck. Of the 19 scoring chances registered while Panarin played even-strength minutes, 13 of them were opportunities for Columbus. The Jackets fired 26 shots in those minutes, compared to 15 from Washington. The only goal in those situations was Panarin’s in overtime, a fitting capper to a game he defined.
Despite having the last line change at home, Washington never figured out a good matchup for Panarin. He put up great possession numbers against both Nicklas Backstrom’s and Kuznetsov’s lines, and he had a particularly delicious feast whenever he was out against defensemen Matt Niskanen and Dmitry Orlov, which was often. Columbus coach John Tortorella was pretty consistent in sending out Panarin with linemates Cam Atkinson and Pierre-Luc Dubois and defensemen Jones and Werenski, and that group was stellar.
The Capitals don’t need to panic, but they still don’t have a good answer for the most important question facing them these playoffs.
Who’s their goalie? (And is he good enough?)
Coach Barry Trotz made the understandable decision to start backup Philipp Grubauer instead of longtime stalwart Braden Holtby. It made sense, because Grubauer has played a lot better than Holtby this season. But Holtby’s still been Washington’s guy for a long time, and he’s won a lot of big games even if his teams have fallen short in playoff after playoff.
Grubauer’s made some spot appearances in the playoffs before, including a start in 2015, and he’s been solid all season. But he wasn’t great on Thursday.
He let in four of 23 shots on goal for a grisly .852 save percentage. Panarin’s game-winner was a softie from a bad angle, while the other goals against the 26-year-old German ranged from “maybe stoppable” to “no chance.”
Grubauer might be fine, but Washington’s net-minding situation felt uncertain before Thursday. It doesn’t feel any more certain after.
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