Labatt Blue What We Learned: CBJ 3, LAK 2 (SO)

Leave it to John Tortorella to, as he usually does, accurately assess tonight's game.
"I'm happy that we won," he said. "Did we deserve to win? I'm not so sure."
It was your typical game against the Los Angeles Kings: air-tight, little room to operate, and any mistake stands a good chance to end up in your net. Stay on your toes.

The numbers paint a different picture than the outcome: the Blue Jackets were out-shot 46-27 in regulation and overtime, had only 43 percent of even strength shot attempts in the game, and didn't help themselves in the puck management department.
But boy, did they need a win like this.
Curtis McElhinney spelled Sergei Bobrovsky tonight and did a tremendous job in goal. He made 44 saves in the first 65 minutes, and to top it off, stopped Anze Kopitar and Marian Gaborik in the shootout to seal a 10th straight win for the Blue Jackets, setting a new franchise record.
So, what does 10 straight wins mean to this team?
"It means we're going to try really hard to win 11," said Brandon Dubinsky.
The Blue Jackets are 21-5-4 and one point from first place in the Metropolitan Division (with games in hand), and they happen to welcome the division-leading Pittsburgh Penguins to Nationwide Arena on Thursday night.

Here's what we learned:
Red-hot Camsanity: Make no mistake, the Blue Jackets are a four-line team; Tortorella wants to distribute the minutes as much as possible to keep everyone fresh, but he's not afraid to shorten the bench if a situation calls for it. Tonight, he had to have resisted the urge to put the Jenner-Dubinsky-Atkinson line over the boards on every other shift. Those three drove the bus for the Blue Jackets and gave the Kings fits beneath the hash marks; they handed LA a bit of its own medicine in the cycle game, keeping pucks down low and wearing down the defense. Atkinson's two goals - giving him a team-best 14 on the season - were manufactured by two similar shifts started by his line mates. On the first, Boone Jenner won a race to a dump-in and allowed Dubinsky to go work along the goal line. Dubinsky found Atkinson in front after he'd slipped the checking of Jeff Carter, leading to the game's first goal. In a 1-1 tie in the third period, Dubinsky found Atkinson again, this time firing a quick shot through traffic that eluded Peter Budaj to give Columbus an early third period lead. Atkinson's second goal was the 100th of his NHL career and he's the team's scoring leader with 33 points in 30 games.
"He's a good player," said Tortorella of Atkinson. "He's a really good player. He's impressed me right from Day 1 here."
Said Dubinsky: "We know what we've got in Cam. He puts himself in the right spots, and he's just got that knack for the puck in scoring positions. We're doing our best to find a piping hot No. 13 right now."

How about Mac? Tortorella heaped praise upon McElhinney in his post game press conference, and for good reason. When called upon this season, he has given the Blue Jackets a chance to win and, at times, bailed them out of some tough situations. He's in a tough situation himself with only four starts in the team's first 30 games, but Tortorella said McElhinney is an easy guy to pull for because he shows up to work every day and goes about his business. He's ready whenever needed, and tonight, the Blue Jackets really needed him. His overtime save on Jeff Carter, who was bidding for a hat trick in front of 16,568 of his biggest fans, was a key save in a big moment to keep the game alive.
"He has to go to the morning skates while we're sitting in the hotel, and he has to go work with the extras. He's a bit of a speed bag with all the (crap) that comes at him," Tortorella said of McElhinney. "But you know what? Look what he's done here, just finding ways to get points for us. I'm thrilled for him. I obviously hope it continues. He's been a tremendous pro since I've been here."
Shootout skills: Budaj was tough on the Blue Jackets all night. He's been really good for the Kings lately, too, but Columbus found some holes in the shootout to secure the extra point. They seem to be more comfortable lately in shootouts, winning their last two after dropping the first to Florida on Nov. 26.

Sam Gagner has been key to both wins, scoring the important second goal in each victory. He did the job tonight, going five-hole on Budaj after a subtle deke to give the Blue Jackets a 2-0 strangehold before McElhinney slammed the door.