Columbus Blue Jackets down Carolina Hurricanes to end tough year with a bang
Another Blue Jackets season that went bust before the playoffs went out with a boom Tuesday night at Nationwide Arena.
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Rather than going into the offseason moping, the Jackets sent a crowd of 17, 289 home with a few good things to remember in a 6-3 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes.
Rookie Luca Del Bel Belluz scored his first career goal on the first shot of his NHL debut. Michigan standout Gavin Brindley made his NHL debut. Zach Werenski, another Michigan alum, had two goals, two assists and four points to tie the Blue Jackets’ franchise scoring record for a defenseman in one season — which his former partner, Seth Jones, set in 2017-18 with 57 points.
"Once I got two (points) in the first, and then went to three in the third, all the guys were kind of pushing me to get it," Werenski said. "(Assistant Steve McCarthy) kept pushing me over the boards, and then 'Provy' (Ivan Provorov) changed (out) on my last goal there. So, I owe it to a lot of guys, but it was pretty cool to finish that way. Just getting a win here in our last game before summer, I think it's huge for us."
It was also a memorable night for television play-by-play broadcaster Jeff Rimer, who went into retirement calling a victory to end his 20-year run in Columbus and almost 50 years covering NHL games. Rimer received a standing ovation midway through the third and the Blue Jackets were sent into their offseason hearing chants of “C-B-J!” ringing in their ears.
“The best moment was ... well there were a few, right?” Blue Jackets coach Pascal Vincent said. “Del Bel Belluz’s first shift. Scores a goal. Zach Werenski ties the record. But the message today was, ‘We’re going to compete as hard as we can, and we owe it to our fans. We owe it to the jersey we wear.”
The Blue Jackets (27-43-12) closed out the season last in the Metropolitan Division and last in the Eastern Conference with 66 points, a seven-point increase from last year’s injury-maligned 59-point debacle. Injuries decimated this one, too, but not until the final five weeks. The Jackets’ point total could’ve been higher with better health luck, not to mention better play while holding leads in third periods.
That didn’t happen in the finale, when the Jackets turned a 4-3 lead into a three-goal cushion against a postseason-bound Hurricanes team that rested most of its top players. Werenski, Del Bel Belluz, Johnny Gaudreau, James Malatesta and Alex Nylander accounted for the Jackets’ goals, while rookie goalie Jet Greaves (38 saves) earned his third win of the season between the pipes.
Teuvo Teravainen scored two goals to lead the Hurricanes (52-23-70), who played former Blue Jackets goalie Spencer Martin in net.
“We’ve been saying that next year is starting now, and we’re evaluating the character of our team, and the people, how they manage those moments,” Vincent said. “But winning that game in front of our fans in the last game of the season, that’s the cherry on the cake.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets topple Hurricanes to cap trying season
