Max Jones’ breakaway goal helps Ducks win over Blue Jackets
Max Jones scored the tiebreaking goal on a breakaway with 2:37 remaining, and the Ducks beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-4 on Friday night in a matchup of teams near the bottom of the NHL standings.
Jones got the puck at center ice and then beat Michael Hutchinson to the stickside for his seventh goal of the season.
Scott Harrington scored twice for the Ducks (23-36-10), who snapped a two-game losing streak. Troy Terry and Ryan Strome each had a goal and an assist, Trevor Zegras and Max Comtois also scored and Simon Benoit had two assists for Anaheim. Lukas Dostal saved 38 shots.
Patrik Laine had a goal and an assist for Columbus (21-40-7), which has lost two straight games and became the first team eliminated from the postseason. Nick Blankenburg, Boone Jenner and Cole Sillinger also scored, and Hutchinson made 31 saves and also had an assist.
Ducks goaltender Lukas Dostal, who had 38 saves, makes a save against Blue Jackets’ Liam Foudy (19) during the second half.
(Jae C. Hong/Associated Press)
Harrington and Strome added empty nets at the last minute to seal the victory for the Ducks.
The Blue Jackets have 49 points, the lowest in the NHL, while the Ducks have the fourth-lowest at 56.
Terry reached the 20-goal mark for the second straight season and gave the Ducks a 4–3 lead at 2:25 of the third period when he redirected Colton White’s pass past Hutchinson.
Laine matched it at 6:43 on the power play when he put in his own rebound after Dostal saved a base on the opening shot from the slot.
leading the way
Zegras and Jenner, who lead their respective teams in goals, each found the net during the first half.
Zegras opened the scoring at 3:19 when he received a pass from Strome and scored on an open net after Hutchinson thought Strome was going to shoot. It was Zegras’ 22nd of the season and also gave him 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in the last 10 games.
Jenner tied it at 2 with 31 seconds remaining in the first period when she passed the top corner from inside the right faceoff circle for her 23rd.
Sillinger’s drought ends
Sillinger scored for the first time in 46 games during a power play at 16:35 of the second period to tie it at 3. The Blue Jackets center deflected a Kent Johnson pass from the right faceoff circle for his first goal since on November 17 against Montreal.
Sillinger, the youngest player in the NHL last season, had 16 goals and 31 points as a rookie. He has only three goals and 10 points this season.
Until next time
Blue Jackets: At the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday.
Ducks: Host the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday.