Zach Werenski and Sean Kuraly each scored two goals and the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets held off an Anaheim Ducks rally to earn a 7-4 victory Wednesday while completing a successful three-game run through California.
Johnny Gaudreau, Yegor Chinakhov and Boone Jenner also scored goals for the Blue Jackets, who blew a four-goal lead before scoring three times in the third period. Gaudreau, Jenner, Alexandre Texier and Jack Roslovic each had two assists.
Daniil Tarasov left briefly after taking a stick to the face through his mask but made 27 saves as the Blue Jackets went 2-1-0 on visits to San Jose, Los Angeles and Anaheim.
Mason McTavish scored two goals, Troy Terry had a goal in a three-point game and Pavel Mintyukov had three assists for the Ducks, who scored four goals in 12 minutes during the second period, including three in a 3:31 span. Alex Killorn also had a goal, while John Gibson stopped 20 shots for Anaheim.
The Blue Jackets made their mark early as Werenski saw a Gaudreau shot deflect off Gibson then rebound off his left skate then knee for a 1-0 lead 3:32 into the game.
Gaudreau scored at 9:32 of the first period. He rushed the Ducks’ goal, forced Gibson to commit and delivered inside the left post for his eighth of the season.
Werenski scored again at 18:30 of the first, rebounding a shot off Gibson’s skate and across the line. The two goals doubled his season total.
After a Gibson turnover in the Ducks’ zone, Texier fed Kuraly for a 4-0 Blue Jackets lead at 2:49 of the second period.
Terry got the Ducks on the scoreboard at 9:07 of the second period on a blast from the top of the right circle, his 17th. McTavish scored at 16:05 of the second, with Tarasov leaving after he took a stick through the mask from teammate Adam Boqvist. Tarasov was replaced by Elvis Merzlikins, who didn’t save either of the two shots he faced.
Anaheim added two more goals in a 47-second span late in the second period against Merzlikins. McTavish scored his 17th with the teams four-on-four at 18:49 before Killorn scored his seventh at 19:36 just as the Ducks were finishing killing a penalty.
Chinakhov gave Columbus the lead for good when he scored at 6:05 of the third period, his 15th. Kuraly delivered 49 seconds later for a two-goal lead at the 7:39 mark, his ninth. Jenner scored his team-leading 18th into an empty net with 32.5 seconds remaining.
–Field Level Media
