Labatt What We Learned: CBJ 3, EDM 1

Referee Ian Walsh may have done the Blue Jackets a favor.
Late in the first period, he incorrectly assessed a four-minute high-sticking penalty to Alex Wennberg and then assigned it to Jack Johnson - but the thing is, it wasn't a Columbus stick committing the foul in the first place.
Milan Lucic's stick clipped Connor McDavid and it gave the Oilers an opportunity to (potentially) take control of the game; they already held a 1-0 lead and had played a strong first period, but the four-minute penalty kill gave the Blue Jackets some life and they continued to build upon it.

"Even though it was a bit of a tough call, it kind of got us going and we fed off of that," said Matt Calvert. "We didn't look back from there."
"It gave us some juice," head coach John Tortorella said of the lengthy PK.
The Blue Jackets scored twice in the third period to collect their seventh consecutive win, moving to 13 games over .500 (18-5-4) for the first time in franchise history. Cam Atkinson's power play goal was the game-winner, set up perfectly by a great pass from Sam Gagner, who had a good night himself.
With two more points, Columbus' .741 points percentage is tops in the NHL and they're one point out of first place in the Metropolitan Division with games in hand.

Here's what we learned:
Bob starts the ball rolling: The Blue Jackets needed their goaltender in the first half of this game. They were slow out of the gate, turned pucks over and were not sharp in the neutral zone. In the first three minutes of the double minor, they had great sticks and made plays to disrupt the Edmonton power play…but in the final minute of the four, it was the Bob show. He made a handful of outrageous stops including one show-stopper on Connor McDavid. Bobrovsky finished with 33 saves and earned his 17th win, passing Carey Price for most wins by a goaltender in the NHL.
"Bob made two or three great saves, and from there, you could see we were finding our legs," Tortorella said. "We checked very well in trying to shut down their speed. I don't think we panicked. We just played.
"I think Bob's been solid right from the start of the year. For a lot of the year, we've played pretty well in front of him, but when (there are breakdowns), he looks like he's ready for that."

Power play steps up: At two key junctures of the game, the Blue Jackets turned to their league-best power play to make an impact. First, it was the Alexander Wennberg-to-Sam Gagner alliance (his team-leading 12th goal of the season) to get Columbus on the board and tie the game 1-1 in the second period. And in the third period where the Blue Jackets have been so good lately, the power play made another imprint. Gagner, in the slot, felt pressure and slipped a pass to Atkinson in the left circle, and he ripped a one-timer past Cam Talbot for the go-ahead goal. When the Blue Jackets needed a spark, Bobrovsky lit the fuse and the power play did the rest.
"Throughout this year, we've found different ways to win," Gagner said. "Tonight it was our power play and goaltending, and I thought we took over later in the game."

Close the deal: These Blue Jackets are riding a good feeling in the third period and the recent trend continued tonight. They have not allowed a third-period goal since Nov. 29 against Tampa Bay, a game they won 5-1 at Nationwide Arena. When the game is in the balance, they have a collective confidence about them and it helped again tonight. After Atkinson's goal, Calvert added on with an insurance goal to make it 3-1 for Columbus.
"We're confident right now in third periods," Calvert said. "We're defending well, tracking pucks well, and just waiting for the other team to make a mistake. Patience is the big word in our room."