The Columbus Blue Jackets improved their preseason record to 5-1 with a win in Nashville on Monday night.
James Wisniewski led the Jackets to a 3-0 victory with a goal and an assist at Bridgestone Arena against the Predators. The Preds had a heavy shot advantage, but Curtis McElhinney stood tall between the pipes saving all 36 shots he faced.
McElhinney, 31, has been sharp for the Jackets throughout the preseason, allowing only three goals in as many games.
“I felt like I was fighting it a little bit (Monday),” the goaltender said, via the team’s website. “I thought the first couple shots, guys did a great job and in terms of our penalty kill, I thought we eliminated a lot of the cross-ice stuff.
“It was a well-fought effort for us in our end own tonight, and that was nice to see. My hat’s off to (my teammates) tonight for cleaning up some of my mess.”
Artem Anisimov opened the scoring off Nick Foligno’s impressive pass from behind the net. Wisneiwski picked up the second assist then scored a shorthanded goal in the opening minutes of the second period. Jared Boll made it a 3-0 game at 7:53Â in the third.
The lead could have easily been larger if the Jackets didn’t hit a post or miss a few good opportunities.
“It feels good to just have the confidence up a little bit after such a tough year last year, but the team’s been playing well and been piling up the wins here,” said Boll. “We’ve got a little bit (of the preseason) left here and a lot of work to do, but we just have to keep getting better.”
Photo via Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY Sports Images
