Blue Jackets would not go down without a fight

Game 4 in the 1st Round of the Stanley Cup playoff for the Pittsburgh Penguins wasn’t supposed to be an opportunity to sweep a team that had 108 points in the regular season. It wasn’t meant to be the last gasp of air for the Columbus Blue Jackets. They are coming off their best regular season in franchise history. It wasn’t supposed to the most lopsided matchup in the first round, but it is. The biggest thing about this series so far is what is has become that no one had ever predicted

But here is the thing about sports and why we love them, no one really has a clue what is going to happen. No one predicted this series shaping this way and going into game four no one should also predict that this thing is over.

Did we see Marc-Andre Fleury in net leading this team? No way, I remember double taking when he came down the tunnel in game 1.

Did anyone see Bobrovsky being so bad in the series? How about Jake Guentzel being so good? The Pens defense playing so well and the Columbus forward are playing so poorly?

You get the point here. So in game four, we all think we have an idea what would happen, but the game that would unfold on the ice is a complete unknown.

What we do know for this one is that in net again would be Fleury for the Penguins and for the Jacket it would be Bobrovsky looking for win # 1

Also, the Jackets were without ace rookie Zack Werenski after he was injured and out for the playoffs.

Starting off the game, it all looked to be going Columbus’s way. Pittsburgh was simply not sharp in the early part of this game. Shots were not getting through, and the Blue Jackets were controlling tempo.

One thing about this Penguins team though is that they have the tendency to flip a switch and when they do things change quickly.

They would need to shift momentum as Jack Johnson, Josh Anderson, and Markus Nutivaara scored to stake the Blue Jackets to a 3-0 lead.

Johnson and Anderson scored in the 1st period, and Nutivaara 4:48 into the second to get the Pens in that 3-0 hole.

Johnson’s goal after Columbus won a draw in the offensive zone. It was a set play off the draw that got the first opportunity for the Jackets, but that was denied.

Johnson took a pass from the point from David Savard, and his wrist shot from the point just deflected off a Pens players and past Fleury.

Goal two from Anderson one a great individual effort. He just took the puck wide on the Pittsburgh defense and drove the net.

As he came down the wing, it looked like Fleury has it measured, but the shot somehow slipped under the pads and into the net for the 2-0 lead.

For the 3-0 lead, Nutivaara led the rush into the Pens zone. He would shot initially and then follow the puck pinballing around the Pens zone.

Eventually, the puck would find his stick wide open in front, and he would bury the rebound past Fleury to make it 3-0.

It was Nutivaara’s first playoff goal in his first career playoff game.

Pittsburgh though in a theme of the night would not go away quietly.

Patric Hornqvist would bang home a goal on the power play to get the Penguins on the board.

Justin Schultz just shuffled the puck to the net and on the way there it deflected off a Blue Jackets stick.

That deflection threw off Bobrovsky just a bit, and Hornqvist, was able to pounce and get the puck into the goal to cut the lead to 3-1.

Pittsburgh would make it 3-2 on Ron Hainsey’s first playoff goal in his long career.

Hainey wheeled out from the corner and just threw the biscuit to the goal. Somehow it found its way past Bobrovsky,

A real bad goal for the Jackets and you felt the momentum swinging

Three minutes left in the period and after the Hainsey goal, the Penguins smelled the Blue Jackets wilting and pushed the intensity.

They didn’t score to tie but looked to establish pace into the third.

Starting the third Pittsburgh seemed poised to take over, but Columbus banged home a goal 27 seconds.

William Karlsson got his 1st of the playoffs for a huge Columbus momentum goal.

He initially came down the wing with speed and shot a puck that Cole made a great play to deflect.

But before the Penguins could clear Karlsson peeled around the net and gathered the puck. He then tucked home a backhand past the fallen Fleury to regain a two-goal lead.

Tom Kuhnhackl would have a possessed shift to once again give the Penguins life.

After initially making a few moves and getting into scoring positions but not getting a goal Kuhnhackl would get rewarded off a rebound.

Cullen made a nice play in front to get the puck over to Kuhnhackl who was able to deposit into the open cage. 4-3 Jackets.

Boone Jenner’s goal gave the Blue Jackets 5 on the night and eventually proved to be the game-winner.

It was again a puck just flipped to the net that spelled trouble. The puck ping-ponged around the zone, it came free to Brandon Saad to Fleury’s left.

His shot was denied, but the rebound came free to Jenner on the doorstep, and it just tapped it in.

Guentzel tallied one shorthanded to make it 5-4 put it was too little too late.  Pittsburgh would now look to finish the series out Thursday on home ice.

STATS

THOUGHTS

Columbus players were taking liberties on Pens player all night. This was the formula we thought the Blue Jackets might take in this series for success. If it works long term, we will wait and see. It for sure looked like it got the Pens out of their game at times.

A poor effort by the Pens, again these are going to happen and if it’s going to occur in a series its best to have a 3-0 lead when it goes down. Fully expect the Penguins to come with a much better effort in the next tilt.

The Pittsburgh defense got exposed tonight. The commitment was just not there for them tonight, and it was evident. Too many second chances and not closing out cost the Pens.

Lots of people talked about Bobrovsky getting some confidence, but I just didn’t see it. The Blue Jackets had it all go well for them. The Penguins played a bad game,  yet they still were in it until the end. Columbus can’t feel good about that.

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