Three-goal second period powers New York Rangers past Blue Jackets

It took just 63 seconds for the wheels to fall off.

After forward Eric Robinson scored to give the Blue Jackets a 2-1 lead in the second period of Saturday night's game, the New York Rangers pounced. Forty-three seconds later, Chris Kreider made it 2-2, and 36 seconds after that, Artemi Panarin scored his second goal of the night to give the Rangers the lead.

Another 27 seconds later, Jacob Trouba brought the lead to 4-2 and forced Jackets coach Brad Larsen to call a timeout in an attempt to get his team back in order. But Columbus never regained momentum and lost 5-3 — the second straight loss for the Jackets (7-5-0) and the first time they've lost back-to-back games this season.

"For me, we were fine up until that point," Larsen said. "Got the lead, I thought we were in good shape. For one minute there, we just went to sleep and it cost us the game. Then we were just chasing it. We lost a lot of wind out of our sails there. It got pretty ugly there for a while."

The last time the Jackets gave up three goals as quickly as they did in the second period Saturday night was on Feb. 18, 2019, when the Tampa Bay Lightning scored three goals in one minute, 15 seconds. Saturday's breakdown against the Rangers (8-3-3) happened 12 seconds faster.

"We’ve gotta do a better job of trying to kill (their momentum)," defenseman Zach Werenski said. "They score two more quick ones and the next thing you know, it’s 4-2. We’re kind of chasing the game at that point and they’re playing with a lead. Whenever teams in this league are playing with a lead, it’s tough to come from behind."

Though the Jackets had some scoring chances after giving up the lead, they were unable to convert and chip into the Rangers' lead. It took until there were under seven minutes left to play for Alexandre Texier to make it 5-3, and by that point, it was too little, too late for Columbus to mount a comeback.

"You’ve gotta gather yourself," Larsen said. "You’ve gotta calm the mind down when the storm hits there a bit and we weren’t able to do that tonight."

Defensive breakdowns doom Blue Jackets

Werenski, Larsen and Boone Jenner all pointed to defensive zone coverage lapses as the key factor that allowed the Rangers to score three goals in such quick succession.

On the tying goal, Kreider was all alone at the bottom of the right circle in front of goaltender Elvis Merzlikins and tipped home a pass from Trouba that the Jackets couldn't break up.

The go-ahead goal, Panarin's second of the night, came with all five Columbus skaters deep in the defensive zone and Panarin with plenty of time and space in the slot to pick his spot.

"We were kind of scrambling a little bit, weren’t really playing our game," Werenski said. "We were kind of leaving the slot open. Panarin scores one from there, untouched, just standing there with the puck. Trouba’s (on the) back door. Just kind of plays that we don’t really make usually. We had some breakdowns and they made us pay for it."

Blue Jackets can't convert on scoring chances

In the dying seconds of the game, with Merzlikins pulled for an extra attacker, Werenski's stick broke on a shot from the point. He looked to the rafters in displeasure, summing up the Jackets' offensive performance in the loss.

Though Columbus finished with 36 shots on goal, it scored just three goals and had 12 shots blocked and 15 attempts miss the net. According to Natural Stat Trick, the Jackets had 3.58 expected goals in all situations.

"I had a few I missed the net on," Werenski said. "Other guys (shot) high and wide or (Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin) made some big saves. It’s one of those things where we have to bear down on those chances and make sure they count. Me especially, I haven’t scored in a while. I had some chances tonight to help our team and I didn’t hit the net."

After the Rangers' flurry of goals in the second period, the Jackets had chances to swing the momentum back in their favor and keep the game close. Time after time, though, Shesterkin made the save or the puck sailed just wide of the net.

"There’s a couple chances where we could’ve got one, maybe stopped the bleeding, but we didn't," Larsen said. "Then we just chased it. I don’t know if it’s fatigue or what, but we weren’t sharp in a lot of areas."

Elvis Merzlikins unhappy with his performance: "I should be the difference maker"

Merzlikins made 36 saves on 41 shots but took his second loss of the season — and second loss against the Rangers. The Jackets kept their skaters the same for both Friday's game against Washington and Saturday's game against New York, but brought Merzlikins in as the goalie after giving Friday's start to Joonas Korpisalo.

As the one fresh player on the ice for Columbus, Merzlikins felt he should've performed better.

"The guys had a good game last night," Merzlikins said. "I feel that I was the cheater today. They played really well last night and I was the only guy who was fresh. They worked hard, it’s back-to-back.

"I should give more for the team. Like I said, I was the only one who was rested, who didn’t play, who had the fresh legs and fresh everything. I should be the difference maker in that moment."

Merzlikins said he hadn't yet watched the tape on the three goals the Rangers scored in the second period, so he wasn't sure if there's anything he could've done differently on any of the three shots. But that didn't stop him from feeling responsible nonetheless.

Jakub Voracek scores his first goal back in Columbus

For the first time in 3,902 days, Jakub Voracek scored a goal in a Blue Jackets sweater. The forward returned to Columbus, where he spent the first three seasons of his career from 2008-11, in a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers in in the offseason.

Voracek had 11 assists through the first 11 games of the season, but had yet to light the lamp himself. That changed in the first period, when he scored a power-play goal on an assist from Oliver Bjorkstrand to open the scoring. Voracek fired a wrist shot from the slot that found nothing but twine behind Shesterkin.

Three stars of the game

First star

Artemi Panarin, forward, New York Rangers

Panarin scored two goals and had six shots on goal in just under 20 minutes of ice time against his former team. Though the fans in attendance booed every time he touched the puck, Panarin's skill was on display for the Rangers in the win.

Second star

Chris Kreider, forward, New York Rangers

Kreider's two goals brought his goal total to 11 on the season, which is tied for third in the league. His second goal of the game was the eventual game-winner.

Third star

Adam Fox, defenseman, New York Rangers

Fox had two assists, giving him 12 on the season and 17 total points to lead all NHL defensemen in points. He also blocked three shots in a team-high ice time of 23:34.

bjohnson@dispatch.com

@baileyajohnson_

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: New York Rangers hand Columbus Blue Jackets second straight loss