The New Jersey Devils jumped the CBJ early in the first for three goals and never looked back.
Mathieu Olivier(14,15) and Kirill Marchenko(25) scored the goals for the Jackets, and Elvis Merzļikins could only stop 23 of the 28 Devils shots in a 5-3 loss in the Prudential Center on Tuesday night.
This game got ugly in a hurry. The Devils played a desperate game, knowing that a Columbus win would move them to within two points of third place in the Metro Division. The Jackets didn't respond until the second period, but by then, it was too late; the damage was done.
Mathieu Olivier was the team's leading scorer on Tuesday night, and when that happens, it usually means the snipers aren't sniping.
Gaudreau/Higgins Trial Update
There's been a new update in the Sean Higgins trial.
It was a tough game for Elvis Merzļikins, but he has to move on quickly because the mighty Golden Knights of Vegas are coming to town on Thursday, and that game will get ugly even faster than Tuesday's game if they're not careful.
Boone Jenner on Tuesday night's loss, "We knew they're gonna come out hard. I just don't think we were playing quite to our standard there in the first. Obviously, they made us pay. More of our style in the second, and it got us back into it."
Final Stats
Player Stats
- Mathieu scored his 14th and 15th goals of the season. He also led the Jackets with 3 shots and had 3 hits.
- Kirill Marchenko scored his 25th goal.
- Zach Werenski tallied his 49th assist.
- Kent Johnson now has 24 assists.
- Adam Fantilli recorded his 21st assist.
- Boone Jenner now has 9 assists in 8 games this season.
- Denton Mateychuk got his 3rd assist.
- Elvis Merzļikins stopped 23 of 28 Devils shots.
Team Stats
- The Jackets power play went 0/3 on the night.
- The Columbus PK stopped 4 of 5 New Jersey man advantages.
- Columbus won 54% of the faceoffs.
What's Next? The Columbus Blue Jackets return home on Thursday to play the Vegas Golden Knights.
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