With 13.8 seconds left in regulation, the Pittsburgh Penguins believed they had tied their game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Furious pressure over the final few minutes of the game had brought the Penguins to within one on Patric Hornqvist's shot from above the circles that goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky never saw. Hornqvist almost had his second moments later on a scramble in front of the net, but the goal was waived off immediately thanks to interference on Bobrovsky and the kicking motion of No. 72's skate.
Pens think they tied it, but immediately waived off by the ref. Kicked in. pic.twitter.com/UC8xvsHQiQ
— Stephanie (@myregularface) November 14, 2015
While the Penguins almost had two quick strikes late to bring them back into it, their opponents had two goals in two minutes of the second period that eventually put the game out of reach for Pittsburgh. The Blue Jackets haven't had the easiest road since new head coach John Tortorella took over behind the bench, but Columbus has rebounded to an even 5-5 record in that time span, and they certainly have been playing better.
Thanks to two goals in 1:41 from noted Penguin pest Scott Hartnell and Pittsburgh native Brandon Saad in the second period, the Blue Jackets were able to create themselves enough of a cushion against their skilled opponents. The Penguins weren't able to turn on the offense until it was too late, as Columbus had a handle on the shot count 20-15 through two periods. Pittsburgh responded with a 14-8 shot lead in the third period, but goaltender Bobrovsky was locked in all evening to shut down the Penguins offense.
Pittsburgh themselves have had a strange year on the offensive side of the puck. Despite all the talent the Penguins have, they've only produced 35 goals in 16 games, sitting them near the bottom of the league in goals per game at 2.19. Columbus, despite the threat the Penguins offense has, had no difficulty curbing Pittsburgh's offense until the final moments. Even then, the Penguins had dug themselves into too much of a hole to climb out, despite the furious last few minutes.
Scores
Columbus Blue Jackets 2, Pittsburgh Penguins 1
Calgary Flames 3, Washington Capitals 2 (OT)
San Jose Sharks 3, Detroit Red Wings 2
New York Islanders 4, Anaheim Ducks 1
3 things we learned
1. Alex Ovechkin held off the board, again
One night after having his historic goal taken away, again, Ovechkin was held to just three shots in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Calgary Flames. The Capitals captain has been struggling to break Sergei Fedorov's record for most career Russian goals, set by the forward at 483. Ovechkin has been stuck at that magic number since November 7 against Toronto, and he almost broke it twice in three games, with both goals called back on coach's challenges. Ovechkin will get the chance to break it once more in Detroit on Wednesday, Fedorov's old club, where the third time will hopefully be the charm.
2. Flames are thriving in OT
More than half (4) of #Flames' 6 wins this season have come in overtime. 9.1% of their 44 GF this season have come in OT (2nd behind 'Canes)
— StatsCentre (@StatsCentre) November 14, 2015
Calgary has stumbled out of the gate to the season, but they can't seem to shake their comeback kids label of last year. The Flames may have let the Caps back into Friday night's game, but somehow Calgary has figured out the 3-on-3 overtime. With the plethora of young upstarts the Flames have on their team, we shouldn't be too surprised that they're succeeding in the free hockey period.
3. Corey Perry hits important Ducks milestone
Anaheim's alternate captain now owns sole possession of the second spot on the Ducks' all-time scoring list. Perry's goal out of a scramble to cut the Islanders' lead to 2-1 in the second period of their game helped the forward pass Paul Kariya's 300 goals Friday evening. The great Teemu Selanne holds Anaheim's top spot with 457, but Perry certainly has more time left in his career to carve himself further into Ducks history.
Impact Moment
The National Anthem was playing at #CapsFlames hockey game, but their thoughts were with #Paris. #PrayForParis pic.twitter.com/9YaCNwjv70
— Scott Eddy (@MrScottEddy) November 14, 2015
Ducks holding a moment of silence for Paris before the anthems. pic.twitter.com/dYK9ZLxnsD
— Stephanie (@myregularface) November 14, 2015
Multiple NHL arenas showed their support for the victims of the Paris attacks in a heartfelt moment of solidarity.
Stat of the Night
Latta scores second NHL goal, two days shy of 2nd anniversary of his first. it's 2-1. #CapsFlames
— Mike Vogel (@VogsCaps) November 14, 2015
Hopefully it doesn't take him two years to get his next one!