Blue Jackets End Losing Streak with Shootout Win Against Kraken

SEATTLE, Washington — The Columbus Blue Jackets snapped a four-game losing streak with a 2-1 shootout victory over the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday at Climate Pledge Arena. Jet Greaves made 22 saves in his second consecutive start for Columbus.

Greaves, who played the previous night against the Edmonton Oilers, said, “It’s nice to just stay in the rhythm of things and I thought the guys did a good job in front of me. I thought they kept the puck in their end a lot of the time, which helped for me managing my energy as well.” The Blue Jackets improved their record to 8-7-1.

The game remained tight, with the Kraken taking an early 1-0 lead thanks to Carter Winterton’s goal in the first period. Winterton scored his second career NHL goal after receiving a backhand pass from teammate Jaden Schwartz. “We’ve just been hounding it pretty well these last couple of games,” Schwartz said about their efforts. “Just trying to get on their defensemen. Just created a couple turnovers there to get some chances.”

Columbus tied the game with a goal from Adam Fantilli late in the second period during a two-man advantage. Fantilli shot the puck past Seattle Goaltender Matt Murray, who had lost his stick during the scramble. Columbus coach Dean Evason praised his team, saying, “The guys just committed to playing hard. We’ve been banged up a bit and sick, but the way they played the game tonight, against a fresh team, we did all the right things.”

In the shootout, Columbus scored on three of their four attempts, while Murray stopped one shootout shot. The Kraken’s coach, Lane Lambert, expressed frustration over his team’s inability to convert opportunities, saying, “We’ve got to find a way to score. When we have opportunities, we’ve got to bury them and that’s just the bottom line.” With the loss, Seattle fell to 7-4-5 on the season.