Blue Jackets Defeat Hurricanes For First 3-Game Winning Streak Since 2022

If the Columbus Blue Jackets hoped to gain their first three-game winning streak in over two seasons, they were going to have to do it against one of the best teams in the NHL. Thanks to some late-game heroics, they did just that.

Kirill Marchenko scored with the goaltender pulled to force overtime. Then Sean Monahan scored the only goal of the shootout to lift the Blue Jackets to an improbable 5-4 win over the Carolina Hurricanes Saturday night.

The big story of this game eventually became the health of Hurricanes’ goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov.

Game Recap

The Blue Jackets got started just 2:04 into the game thanks to an unlikely hero. Defenseman Dante Fabbro created a 2-on-1 rush and then took the shot to beat Kochetkov. He admitted postgame that he had never scored a goal like that before.

Former Blue Jacket Jack Roslovic then tied the game at one just over four minutes later. That was already his 12th goal of the season. Sebastian Aho had the only helper. Kirill Marchenko scored his first of two on the night midway through the first to make it 2-1.

The Hurricanes then started to take the game over. Despite allowing a Dmitri Voronkov goal, they connected three times in the second period with goals from Aho, Jalen Chatfield and Jackson Blake. Penalty trouble ultimately caught up to the Blue Jackets.

Then things started picking up in the third. Aho clipped Marchenko with a high stick. Although the Hurricanes killed all four minutes, the Blue Jackets got enough momentum to eventually tie the game.

Marchenko’s second of the night made it 4-4. He was open in the circle and made no mistake.

Regulation solved nothing. Neither did overtime. But that’s when Kochetkov was hit in the head by Sean Walker while trying to defend Zach Werenski. Kocketkov had to leave the game. Spencer Martin came in cold and got the game to a shootout.

Monahan scored the only goal of the shootout while Elvis Merzlikins stopped all three Hurricanes shooters to secure the victory. Postgame, there was no immediate update on Kochetkov’s status.

The Blue Jackets’ earned their first three-game winning streak since March 11-16, 2022 when they defeated the Wild, Golden Knights and Senators, a span of 988 days or 32 months.

Merzlikins stopped 32/36 to earn the win. Kocketkov stopped 27/31 before leaving the game.

The Blue Jackets next play Wednesday night at home against Montreal. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes will host the Dallas Stars on Monday night.