Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen has closely managed the ice time of rookie forwards Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko, hoping to give them a taste of the NHL without letting them bite off more than they can chew.
But the offensive upside of both players is undeniable, and they both stepped up at crucial times Wednesday.
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Marchenko scored an unassisted goal midway through the third period to force overtime, and Johnson ended it at 2:29 of overtime — the first OT goal of his career — to send the Blue Jackets to a 3-2 win over Edmonton in Rogers Place.
“It’s one of the best feelings, scoring an OT winner,” Johnson said. “That’s a huge win for us.
“We’re been pretty good in OT (this season). I definitely think I’m getting more comfortable in these tight ones in the third.”
It marked the third straight game in which the Blue Jackets have overcome a deficit to either win or earn a point (2-0-1). This is Columbus’ first three-game point streak since a four-game streak in mid-November.
“We’re down again and we come back,” Larsen said. “Hopefully, these guys will start to believe in themselves and know that they’re in any game and just continue to check, play hard … all the things that are required to win games.”
GAME. SET. MATCH.
KJ'S THE OT HERO!! pic.twitter.com/pZeYeXNIb7
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) January 26, 2023
One of the reasons Marchenko and Johnson saw elevated ice time is the Blue Jackets lost veteran winger Gus Nyquist to an upper-body injury late in the first period. But it feels like Larsen is gaining trust in each of them.
Marchenko scored his 11th goal of the season in only his 25th NHL game off a powerful move at 11:26 of the third. He gathered the puck in the left corner of the rink and skated it under duress below the goal line, to the front and around the other side of the net.
When Marchenko cleared the post to the left of Edmonton goaltender Stuart Skinner, he spun around and tried to jam it through his pads, then gathered the rebound and swept it home past his left pad. The score was tied 2-2.
Marchenko was recalled from AHL Cleveland on Dec. 5, but he’s fourth in the NHL among rookie goal scorers, trailing only Seattle’s Matty Beniers (17), Dallas’ Wyatt Johnston (13) and Ottawa’s Shane Pinto (12).
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“(Marchenko) can score in different ways,” Larsen said. “He’s not just a rush guy. He’s not just a sit-at-the-dot and one-time-it guy. He’s strong on pucks. That move he made, that’s a power-forward move to get from below the goalie to the other side of the goalie and stay on it. That’s hard to do.
“It’s his first year (in the NHL). I know he’s played with men (in Russia), but he’s finding different ways to score, and that’s good to see.”
11 tallies for Kiri11 pic.twitter.com/L5WNNVlz7R
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) January 26, 2023
The Blue Jackets, including Larsen, were clearly energized by Marchenko’s goal. On the second shift of OT, the coach sent out three rookies — Marchenko, Johnson and defenseman Nick Blankenburg — at three-on-three play.
“You could tell there was some good energy in our group,” Larsen said.
Johnson’s second shift of the OT is when he ended it.
Blue Jackets winger Johnny Gaudreau established the offensive zone and dropped the puck to Johnson when he crossed the blue line. Johnson skated hard to his left and picked up helpful interference from Gaudreau, who was drilled by Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins as he skated in front of the play.
Johnson’s wrister sailed past Skinner as Gaudreau lay on the ice. He sprung up quickly to join the celebration.
“It’s huge,” Blue Jackets defenseman Erik Gudbranson said. “Whether you’re young or old, the fact that we stuck with (the Oilers) right to the end to tie it up and put it away in overtime. Credit to (Marchenko and Johnson). That’s huge taking it to the net to make those plays.”
The Blue Jackets took a 1-0 lead on a Boone Jenner deflection of a Adam Boqvist shot at 12:25 of the first period. That’s three straight games with a goal for Jenner, the Blue Jackets captain.
That lead stood until the second, when Edmonton scored at 10:17 (Derek Ryan) and 16:16 (Zach Hyman) to take the lead.
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The Blue Jackets got another stellar outing from goaltender Joonas Korpisalo, who stopped 34 of 36 shots, including a tremendous left-pad save to deny Oilers winger Leon Draisaitl from the doorstep.
Oilers superstar Connor McDavid had an assist, three shots on goal and won just three of nine faceoffs. Draisaitl had two shots on goal and a minus-2 rating.
Johnson, 20, has now had two major moments in Rogers Place. Last summer, he scored an OT game winner for Canada to clinch the World Junior Championship with a gold-medal win over Finland.
(Photo of Kent Johnson celebrating his game-winning goal: Perry Nelson / USA Today)