Jones lifts Blue Jackets past Stars in OT
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Defenseman Seth Jones scored 46 seconds into overtime as the Columbus Blue Jackets extended the Dallas Stars' losing streak to three games with a 3-2 overtime victory in front of 10,141 at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday.
Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky was solid in net, stopping 36 of 38 shots on goal.
The Stars were faster in their transitions through the neutral zone and more aggressive on the forecheck than the Blue Jackets early in the game. They controlled the pace and capitalized on myriad Columbus turnovers.
Dallas outshot the Blue Jackets 18-9 in the first period, throwing everything but the kitchen sink at Bobrovsky.
Sensing his team needed a spark to shake them from their malaise, Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno dropped the gloves with Dallas' Antoine Roussel seven minutes into the game.
One minute after Foligno and Roussel fought, the Blue Jackets generated their first shot on goal. Columbus then proceeded to put five shots on Stars goaltender Antti Niemi over the next four minutes.
Foligno opened the scoring at 3:50 of the second period to give Columbus a 1-0 lead with a quick, rising shot from the left circle, getting it past Niemi.
Foligno leads Columbus with nine points (2 goals, 7 assists).
The Stars evened the score on a snipe from forward Jason Spezza that sailed past the shoulder of goalie Bobrovsky at 10:13 of the second period.
Dallas pounced on a sleepy start to the third period by the Blue Jackets. The Stars took their first lead of the night at 1:13, as Tyler Seguin beat Bobrovsky with a quick release along the goal line.
Seguin leads the Stars with eight points (5 goals, 3 assists).
The Blue Jackets had a late power-play opportunity with 59.9 seconds remaining in the game, down 2-1, after Johnny Oduya chopped the stick out of Foligno's hand.
Sam Gagner tied the score with 15.1 seconds remaining off a drop pass from Cam Atkinson.
Columbus needed only 46 seconds of overtime to win, as Jones beat Niemi with a shot from the point.
NOTES: Blue Jackets D Ryan Murray draws into the lineup versus Stars. Murray missed last four games with an upper-body injury. ... Columbus ranks second in the NHL in power play success at 33.3 percent. ... Blue Jackets G Sergei Bobrovsky owns a career record against Dallas of 8-1-1 with a 1.78 goals-against average and a .940 save percentage. ... D Dalton Prout and D Scott Harrington were scratched for Columbus. D Dillon Heatherington is on injured reserve (wrist) and F David Clarkson is on long-term injured reserve (back). ... The Stars led the NHL in scoring last season with 3.23 goals per game, but currently rank 26th with 2.25. ... Dallas F Tyler Seguin leads the club with seven points (4 goals, 3 assists) ... Stars Fs Ales Hemsky (groin), Patrick Sharp (concussion), Cody Eakin (knee) and Mattias Janmark (knee) are out with injuries. ... F Curtis McKenzie and Ds Jamie Oleksiak and Patrik Nemeth were scratched for Dallas.