Only one player in the history of the Blue Jackets had reached 82 points in a season, with Artemi Panarin doing so during both the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. Now, Werenski joins him on that exclusive list.
“He's up in the play, in front of the net, and you're looking that way, and then you look back into our zone and he's standing in front of our net,” head coach Dean Evason said. “He scores points. No question, we need points, we need goals, we need offense to win hockey games. But you have to keep it out of your net too and he's committed to do that. He’s been a big part of our team.”
His play has been consistent throughout the season, through his historic 22-game home point streak to his six-game point streak to end this season (3-5-8). Just the ninth NHL defenseman since 1996-97 to earn 80-plus points in a season, Werenski has been much of the reason Columbus earned the right to have playoff implications through game 81. Placing second in the NHL in both goals and points among defensemen, he will now see where he lands in the Norris discussion.
Werenski said he is proud of how the group fought through adversity throughout the season and added it was good to get one final win at Nationwide for the team, and the fans.
“Our core is going to be intact for a while," Werenski said. "But there's always guys moving in, guys moving out. I think just to enjoy tonight in front of our fans, get a big win, play lose, play relaxed and just play with each other, I think it was super special. One of those games you always remember.”
2. Jet Greaves ended the season with a fifth straight win.
After being the talk of the NHL coming down the stretch thanks to his impressive play, Greaves earned one last win for the Blue Jackets, stopping 36 of 37 shots against the Islanders.
Since his call-up on April 10, he ended the season with a 5-0-0 record, two shutouts, a .975 save percentage and a 0.80 goals-against average. His late-season “Linsanity” run brought the Blue Jackets to the brink of the playoffs and showed his future is bright at the NHL level.
“It's been fun to watch him the last week or whatever," Werenski said. "He's been a special player and special person. I think just the way he approaches the game, the way he works, it's one of the best I've seen."
His teammates and coaches have shown their support after each game the past week. In this game, the fans jumped on board as they started “Jet, Jet, Jet” chants as the goaltender made key saves throughout the game.
“It was so cool,” Greaves said. “You never expect those types of situations, but I'm just so grateful to be in those situations. The fans have supported this team so much all year through everything that's gone on, which it's just been so special to see that. We're just so grateful to play in front of these fans and have that support.”
3. A five-goal second period earned the Blue Jackets their 40th win of the season.
For the seventh time in franchise history, Columbus reached the 40-win mark. That milestone was reached on the back of a second period where five different Blue Jackets put the puck in the net (Cole Sillinger, Dante Fabbro, Dmitri Voronkov, Sean Kuraly and Werenski). It was just the fourth time in team history the Blue Jackets had a period in which they scored five times, the last coming in the third period against Ottawa on New Year’s Eve in 2018.
Home ice was a boost for the Blue Jackets all season, and the fans had the team’s back all year. It was fitting for the Blue Jackets to reward them with one last six-goal performance, the 13th of the season at home and 16th overall.
“This fan base and this group here, we've gone through a lot together over the years,” Werenski said. “It feels like one big family. ... I think tonight was extra special. I think this year was extra special in a lot of ways. I think they're the best fans in the league. I know it's the only thing I know, but I love playing here, and our whole group does as well.”
The Blue Jackets have grown accustomed to scoring and winning at home this season, as their 161 goals on home ice is the most in the league as well as a franchise record. They also tied their team record for most points (57) in home games in a season.
“The fans don't change," Evason said. "They do the exact same thing every night. They are vibrant. They're jacked. They get us going. They know when to pick us up. It's been a family relationship with the fans, and hopefully we're giving back to them, and in the future, we want to still be playing so that they can cheer in the playoffs.”
