Boone or bust: Jenner's late goal lifts Blue Jackets over Capitals in exciting return

WASHINGTON — The Blue Jackets had been in similar spots too often.

A close game. A crushing goal allowed late, with the opposing net empty. Another loss in what’s become a death spiral of humbling defeats seemed all but certain for the Jackets on Tuesday night at Capital One Arena.

Tom Wilson’s tying goal pulled the Washington Capitals even at 4-4 with 2:26 left in the third period, netted with the help of an errant clearing attempt, and once again the Jackets received a late gut punch.

This time was different, though, because they had enough will left to land a finishing shot of their own on a winning goal by Boone Jenner that silenced the building with just 44.4 seconds left on the clock.

“You just have to keep playing,” Jenner said after his team-high 19th goal decided it. “There’s no point in sitting back. Maybe we’ve done that in the past. We felt we were playing a good game throughout the whole game. No reason to hang your head after (Wilson's goal). It’s going to happen. I don’t think it bothered us at all. We just kept going out there and playing.”

The Jackets also notched a fourth victory in their past five road games and third victory in their past four games overall to start a five-game trip following a week off for the NHL’s All-Star break.

Patrik Laine stayed hot for the Blue Jackets (21-22-1), netting two goals for the third straight game and adding an assist for three points to lead all scorers. Max Domi and Gustav Nyquist each finished with a pair of assists, including Nyquist setting up Jenner’s winning tally.

Adam Boqvist and Jenner finished with a goal and assist each, goalie Elvis Merzlikins made 29 saves on 33 shots for the win and rookie forward Trey Fix-Wolansky scored in his NHL debut with his parents watching from the stands.

Washington’s fourth line did most of the damage for the Capitals (25-14-9), who got a goal from Garnet Hathaway in the first and took a 2-0 lead early in the second on a goal by Nic Dowd — whose shot from close range hit Merzlikins and ricocheted off the skate of Blue Jackets forward Oliver Bjorkstrand into the net.

Columbus overcame the two-goal deficit in the second on goals by Laine on a power play and Boqvist two seconds after a power play, then tied it 3-3 with 3.7 seconds left on Laine’s second goal of the period.

Fix-Wolansky gave the Jackets a 4-3 lead at 2:40 of the third, which held up until Wilson tied it.

“The fact that the (power play) came through for us was massive for our group, and the third period was a war,” Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said. “We knew they were going to push. They get back in it, but Boone comes up with a big goal on a good play by Gus (Nyquist).”

Blue Jackets’ Patrik Laine scorching hot

This is the guy the Blue Jackets traded promising young No. 1 center Pierre-Luc Dubois to get from the Winnipeg Jets last season.

The one who scores goals in bunches. The one who strings together multiple games with multiple goals. The one whose booming one-timer from the left faceoff circle is a real headache for opposing penalty-killers.

Laine is still turning the puck over a bit too much, but his coaches can stomach those mistakes a lot easier when the 6-foot-5 winger is racking up goals. He’s now doing that for the first time as a Blue Jacket and it has helped them overcome defensive issues that sunk them while he was out with an oblique strain.

“It’s not rocket science,” Larsen said. “When they score, they feel better. It’s funny watching him in practice now, even after the layoff, the way he was shooting the puck (Monday afternoon). It’s coming off his stick cleaner. He’s picking his spots. It looks more natural. When you don’t score for a while, you squeeze it, you’re trying to get too fine and you’re missing the net, so frustration (grows).”

Laine went into last week’s break with a pair of two-goals games plus three straight multi-point outings. He chalked up four goals, two assists and six points in the span and returned just as hot, upping his scoring line to 6-2-8 in the past four games.

Laine's scoring totals for the season are now 12-12-24 in 24 games and it could've been 13 goals and 25 points had a sharp-angle shot at the Capitals' empty net not missed after clanging off both posts.

“I mean, everyone who likes to score goals and have a good shot, I’m sure they say the same thing,” Laine said. “When you see one go in, it just makes you more relaxed. And now, I’ve seen it go in (the net) a couple times, so it just helps to have the confidence to shoot the puck and maybe not look for passes all the time. But … I’ve just gotta keep going.”

Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen downplays recent Laine comments

Over the break, a report by a Finnish publication quoted Laine as saying that recent comments by Larsen that alluded to the Finnish winger’s career-worst struggles last year were “a little annoying.”

Did they also awaken the scoring beast that Laine was for the Winnipeg Jets during his first five-plus NHL seasons?

It might be coincidence, but it’s starting to look that way.

Laine’s point streak began shortly after Larsen issued his statements on a video conference with reporters in late January. The coach downplayed his previous thoughts following the game, saying descriptions of him being ‘not thrilled’ with Laine before his hot streak was “a little overkill,” but his basic message hasn't change.

“His game had slipped,” Larsen said. “He had a good start. He missed a bunch of time (with the oblique strain). We’ve talked through this a little bit. In talking with Patty and how we were going to approach this from the beginning of the season, we identified, ‘let’s work at it.’ He’s put in some extra work on things.”

Taking better care of the puck is one of them.

“The thing with him is knowing when to make the extra move,” Larsen said. “The turnover stuff ... that’s the stuff we’re working at. It’s hard when these skill guys are feeling it and they want to make that extra play, understanding the time and situation and score of the game we’re playing. Those (are) the things that we’re working at. Patty cares. He’s trying hard, he’s trying to work through it and he’s going the right way.”

Blue Jackets’ Patrik Laine providing more than a great shot

Jenner’s goal was a great example of how Laine has become a point-per-game player.

After receiving a nice stretch pass from Zach Werenski while positioned in the neutral zone, he stickhandled to evade a defender and slid a backhand pass to Jenner for a rush into the Washington zone.

Jenner fired off a hard wrister from the high slot, got the puck back from Nyquist off his own rebound and beat goalie Ilya Samsonov with a forehand-backhand move. Laine’s pass was instrumental to the play, even though he deflected credit by saying he was “just out there.”

Laine started the season with 10 points in nine games before the oblique injury sidelined him two-plus months. Only three of those points were off goals, while the other seven were assists. His pass attempts may drop now that he’s scoring goals in bunches again, but that doesn’t mean they’ll stop entirely.

“It’s not always the goals that matter, but it’s obviously great to get ’em, and in that way help the team to win,” Laine said. “But like I’ve said before, if it’s not going in, there are so many ways to help the team.”

NHL dream becomes reality for Blue Jackets’ Trey Fix-Wolansky

The way the game ended stole the spotlight, but Fix-Wolansky's first taste of the NHL was right up there for top Blue Jackets story.

He was pulled from practice Monday with the Cleveland Monsters, after the Blue Jackets called him up, then packed his bags in a hurry and headed up I-71. After a quick twirl in the Jackets’ practice at the Ice Haus, Fix-Wolansky was on a charter flight to Washington for his NHL debut in a game against Alex Ovechkin — one of his childhood idols.

Ovechkin, who played after missing the All-Star festivities with COVID-19, is still on Fix-Wolansky's bedroom wall in poster form at his parents’ home in Edmonton. In a flash, he was skating around the same rink as Ovechkin, while parents Dallas and Cheryn watched from the stands.

Fix-Wolansky has also come back from ACL knee reconstruction, is undersized at 5-foot-7 and was picked in the seventh round of the 2018 NHL draft.

Scoring his first NHL goal to put the Blue Jackets up 4-3 in the third was a perfect way to celebrate an emotional journey. Fix-Wolansky's parents soaked it in, including his mom crying tears of joy after the goal.

“I wouldn’t want to share it with any other people,” Fix-Wolansky said of his parents. “They sacrificed so much for me growing up and, you know, early morning practices my dad was the coach. So, he was up right with me and right at the rink with me, so he’s the one that helped me fall in love with hockey and I’ve kind of got to owe it to my parents for being here right now.”

Fix-Wolansky's big break happened after Emil Bemstrom tested positive for COVID-19 upon returning from the Jacket’s week off. There is no guarantee the rookie forward will stick around long enough to play next Tuesday in Calgary, but there will be even more family watching in person at Scotiabank Saddledome.

“Growing up as a kid, you always dream of making your NHL debut and today it’s happening,” Fix-Wolansky said, beaming after the morning skate. “It feels pretty surreal and I’m just very excited to make the jump to the NHL and get the opportunity.”

Blue Jackets’ power play strong against Washington Capitals

After a great start, the Blue Jackets went ice cold on power plays for a long stretch during the first half.

Injuries and illness played a role, especially Laine’s absence, but that cold stretch played a big role in the Jackets falling out of playoff contention. The Jackets began to feel better on power plays before the break, as Laine settled back into a rhythm , and they came out of the gates Tuesday with all cylinders firing.

Both of Laine’s goals capped power plays in the second period, including one of his patented one-time slappers, and Boqvist’s tally was just two seconds after a power play ended. The 2-for-3 performance was the Jackets’ first multiple power-play goal game since Nov. 27 in St. Louis and fourth of the season.

Laine’s goal-scoring is a big help for the top unit in more than just the obvious way.

“He starts putting them in (from) there, now we’re opened up, which might open Bjorkstrand in the middle or some other things,” Larsen said. “We all know our power play is going to produce more and hopefully it’s a springboard for the games coming up.”

Jack Roslovic tries out penalty-killing role for Blue Jackets

Sean Kuraly was called for minor penalties in the first and second periods, which put one of the Jackets’ top penalty-killing forwards in the box. It also forced the coaching staff to experiment with a new look while also missing injured forwards Alexandre Texier and Eric Robinson.

Jack Roslovic, a skilled center, was sent into the game to help kill the two Capitals power plays and acquitted himself well. During the second one, Roslovic broke up a play at his own blue line, created a shorthanded rush and gave the puck to Nyquist for a play that led to the Jackets’ first power play and Laine’s first goal.

“It’s an opportunity to play some more hockey,” Larsen said of Roslovic, whose ice time has dwindled this season. “He’s a smart player with good hand-eye coordination, good feet … and it’s funny, you see the intensity when you tell a guy he’s up against a really good power play. I thought he did a really good job for not doing it in the time he’s been here.”

Brendan Gaunce debuts for Blue Jackets

Fix-Wolansky wasn’t the only Blue Jacket making a debut performance against the Capitals.

Brendan Gaunce made his Jackets debut by playing his first NHL game since Nov. 27, 2019 in Ottawa, when he played his lone game for the Boston Bruins and assisted on the winning goal by Zdeno Chara in the third period.

Gaunce, 27, was selected 26th overall in 2012 by the Vancouver Canucks, who dressed him for 117 games over three-plus seasons. The 6-foot-3, 214-pound forward then signed with the Bruins and spent all but one game of the 2019-20 season in the American Hockey League with the Providence Bruins.

Gaunce played last season for the Vaxjo Lakers in the Swedish Hockey League, totaling five goals and seven assists in 18 games before signing a two-way deal with the Blue Jackets last summer.

After a solid showing in training camp, Gaunce headed back to the AHL to play for the Cleveland Monsters and put up a scoring line of 16-12-28 in 39 games before being recalled to join the Jackets on Monday after three players were moved to injured reserve.

bhedger@dispatch.com

@BrianHedger

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Boone Jenner lifts Blue Jackets to win with late goal against Capitals