Alexandre Texier’s second-period short-handed goal sparked the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets to a 5-2 victory over the Calgary Flames on Thursday.
Yegor Chinakhov, Damon Severson and Adam Fantilli all collected one goal and one assist and Dmitri Voronkov scored once for the Blue Jackets, who snapped a two-game skid. Goaltender Daniil Tarasov made 28 saves to net the win for the Blue Jackets, who sit at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division.
MacKenzie Weegar and Connor Zary replied for the Flames, who have lost four straight games, all in regulation and all at home. Goalie Jacob Markstrom stopped 27 shots.
With the score tied 2-2 after a back-and-forth first period, Texier’s goal at 6:33 of the second period provided Columbus the clutch go-ahead goal. He nailed the post with a shot off the rush, but the puck came back to him for the tap-in to net his seventh of the season.
Voronkov added a power-play goal with 6:17 remaining in regulation by chipping a bounding puck home for his 11th of the season, and Fantilli added an empty-net goal, his 12th goal of the season, to round out the scoring.
Twice, the Blue Jackets staked a lead in the opening period and twice the Flames drew even.
Chinakhov opened the scoring on a lucky break at the 2:50 mark when his dump-in banked off an official and right back to him, which allowed him to catch Markstrom off guard for his 12th goal of the season. Weegar replied five minutes later with his 12th of the campaign by finding the top corner with a long wrist shot from the slot.
Severson made it a 2-1 game at the 11:48 mark when he was the beneficiary of a fumbled Markstrom clearing attempt and hit the open net for his sixth goal of the season. However, Zary tied the score again three minutes later by converting a rebound chance for his 10th goal.
The game marked the emotional return of Flames defenseman Oliver Kylington, who last played in the NHL in a playoff clash on May 26, 2022 and was away from the game while dealing with his mental health.
Flames forward A.J. Greer left the game in the middle of the second period with what looked like a potentially broken ankle.
–Field Level Media
