New York. They have nothing more to play for, but as the Washington Capitals learned last night, it’s a mistake to think that Adam Bukvist and his Columbus Blue Jackets buddies will defer to them.
Aided, among other things, by two amazing goals set by Adam, they came back again and again from deficits at Capital One Arena and won 7-6.
– It shows that we still care, 22-year-old Maas tells Sportbladet.
Practically speaking, the Blue Jackets have been cut since last fall and few games this calendar year have ever mattered, but like I said:
They keep fighting and from time to time they manage to make it to opponents who have a lot to play for.
Like capitals tonight.
They led 3-0, 4-2, 5-3, 6-5, but still managed to get rid of the players from Ohio. With 47 seconds left in regular time, Bon Jenner equalized and then Jack Roslovic made it 7-6 in overtime.
– We know we’re not going to the playoffs this year, but we’re working hard for each other and we’ll do it until all 82 games are played, says Adam Bukvist as we reach him after the brawl in D.C.
– It feels very good to see that we can do this, because it’s not easy to focus when you’re not in the supplement battle.
Adam himself was a real tormentor of the caps and scored two goals, one of which was really impressive after a solo raid through the home area.
“The fact that we’ve been back two or three times really shows we care,” he notes.
Emil Bimström also scored and played to the last, while Niklas Backström and Rasmus Sanden each provided an assist for the home team.
Many of the divisions involved in the Battle of the Eastern Line again defended themselves during the night.
For example, the Florida Panthers had an excellent opportunity to eliminate Pittsburgh and other opponents, but suffered an inexplicable loss 6-3 away to Philadelphia.
“It’s never fun to miss this time of year, but when you have a hot streak like we did, it can be a good idea to do it and learn something,” says Sam Reinhart.
At the same time, Buffalo lost 7-3 at home to Nashville — which quickly recovered from Sunday’s loss in New York — and so the Keybank Center playoff dream began to unravel.
“It’s the first time in a long time our club has come close to the knockout stages and we’d very much like to be the team that pushes us in, but there was more pressure and we just couldn’t handle it,” states star Taj Thompson.
Ottawa played a better game against Boston but eventually lost 2-1 – after two passes from Hampus Lindholm and 40 saves from Linus Allmark – and they’ll probably have a hard time going in the sprint.
The big winner that night in Australian air was the New York Islanders, who beat Toronto itself by a score of 7-2.
This means that they are four points away from the Penguins just below the line. Admittedly, two more games were played, but still.
– It’s too big. We need the result that everyone understands. But the really encouraging thing is that we played really well, said our two-goal scorer Cal Clutterback.
Junior Simon Holmstrom also scored a goal—his fifth this rookie year—and assisted Timothy Lillegren on one of the Leafs’ goals.
The New York Rangers quickly got back on the floor after weekend performances against Pittsburgh and Nashville, respectively, and lost a top-flight showdown with Carolina at Madison Square Garden last night.
They had the upper hand with both a 1-0 and a 2-1 lead, but the warm visitors came back and eventually won 3-2.
– And we were not as close as the result indicates. They have outpaced us for a long time, said coach Gerard Gallant.
Jesper Fast wonderfully set up a goal scored by Stefan Noysen.
Tampa also successfully converted a free kick against Montreal, losing 3-2.
– For some reason we’ve lost the ability to score goals, sighs Bullets coach John Cooper.
in st. Lewis’s Red Wings beat the Blues 3-2 on penalties.
Fullback Gustav Lindström was booked for an assist.