Penguins Fall To Blue Jackets In Double OT, Series Tied 1-1

The Columbus Blue Jackets battled back against the Pittsburgh Penguins, defeating them 4-3 in double overtime to knot the series up at 1-1.

The Pens, who have now dropped four straight home overtime playoff games, dominated early on, going up 3-1 in the first. Brian Gibbons put two in the net for Pittsburgh and Matt Niskanen added another with just over two minutes left in the period.

Then it was all Blue Jackets the rest of the way.

Matt Calvert’s shorthanded goal—his first ever in the playoffs—at 7:31 of the second period really shifted the momentum in favor of Columbus. Said coach Todd Richards, “It gave hope to our guys. It was 3-1 at the time and we scored to make it 3-2. You could feel it on the bench. After that I felt like we played a very strong game.”

Jack Johnson tied it up with a power play goal six minutes into the third, ultimately sending the game into overtime. Both teams traded quality scoring chances in the first OT period, but were unable to find the back of the net. It didn’t take the Blue Jackets long to ice the Penguins in the second OT.

Calvert’s first goal changed the momentum, his second one, just over a minute into the period,  sealed the first playoff victory in the history of the franchise. The Blue Jackets entered the league through expansion for the 2000-01 season—prior to this year they made the playoffs just once and were swept.

The series moves to Columbus for Game 3 on Monday.