Panarin, Bobrovsky lift Blue Jackets to morale-boosting win

TORONTO -- Said to be self-conscious of his limited English, Artemi Panarin normally does postgame interviews only in his native Russian. But on Monday, wearing his trademark grin minutes after assuming the role of overtime hero, he did acknowledge a greeting from a reporter in the victorious Columbus Blue Jackets dressing room.

"Merry Christmas," the reporter told Panarin. "Great present."
"Thank you. It was," the Blue Jackets forward replied in English, nodding in appreciation.
Across the room, the smile on goalie Sergei Bobrovsky's face mirrored that on Panarin's. So, too, did his response.
"Great win," Bobrovsky said. "Great Christmas present, even though it's a bit late."
Christmas is celebrated in Russia on Jan. 7 because the Russian Orthodox church uses the Julian calendar for religious holidays.
And what a Christmas this has been for the dynamic Russian duo of Panarin and Bobrovsky, a celebration culminating in
a dramatic 3-2 overtime victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs
at Air Canada Centre.

A little more than 24 hours after defeating the Florida Panthers 3-2 in an eight-round shootout on Russian Christmas on Sunday, the Blue Jackets earned the type of morale-boosting victory that could resonate for the remainder of the season.
"When you walk into the dressing room after a win like we just had, the mood of the entire team is just so upbeat," Bobrovsky said. "It's the type of win that will stick with guys for a while."
This has not been an easy season for the Blue Jackets, who were picked by many to win the Metropolitan Division after acquiring Panarin from the Chicago Blackhawks on June 23 in a trade that saw Brandon Saad sent out of Columbus.
"We've been ravaged by injuries," Blue Jackets president John Davidson said, poking his head into the giddy Columbus dressing room after the win. "It says a lot that these guys keep grinding away.
"We're playing without some key people right now."

The Blue Jackets placed center Alex Wennberg (back) and right wing Cam Atkinson (foot) on injured reserve Dec. 26, announcing that each was expected to miss 4-6 weeks.
Thankfully for the Blue Jackets, their two marquee Russians continue to be difference-makers, even when things look their bleakest.
The Blue Jackets found themselves trailing 2-0 after 55 minutes Monday and showed little signs of being able to claw their way back. The score could have been much worse if not for Bobrovsky, who kept Columbus within two goals despite Toronto having the first 12 shots on goal of the third period.
But with 4:35 remaining, the Blue Jackets got some much-needed hope when Nick Foligno's redirection of Jordan Schroeder's shot blooped over goalie Frederik Andersen's head before somehow deflecting into the net.

Then, 1:48 later, Pierre-Luc Dubois finished off a tic-tac-toe passing play to tie the game 2-2, and euphoric players on the Blue Jackets bench began jumping around and hugging each other.
After Bobrovsky made a game-saving blocker stop on Tyler Bozak at 2:59 of overtime, Panarin scored the winner at 3:11, knocking the puck from his skate to his stick before it crossed the goal line.
As coach John Tortorella pointed out, this was about more than two points. This was about the way the Blue Jackets won, a comeback that seemed so unlikely as the clock clicked down in the third period.
While his teammates were celebrating inside the dressing room, Panarin was doing a lengthy interview with a Russian reporter.
"Tonight's win is such an important experience for us," he said in Russian. "The team now knows that even when we are losing throughout the game, it doesn't mean anything as there is always a chance to come right back and win.
"We are very happy. These two points are huge for us."

During the conversation, he admitted his winning goal was a fluke.
"This was an accident," Panarin said. "Everything happened really fast, I didn't even realize I scored. I only knew the puck got on my stick."
Next thing he knew, he'd ended the game. And that proved to be the best Christmas gift of all -- even if it was a day late.