Columbus Blue Jackets beat Edmonton Oilers 3-1 to close in on NHL record
Wednesday 4 January 2017 09:09, UK
The Columbus Blue Jackets are one win from equalling the longest streak in NHL history after beating the Edmonton Oilers 3-1 on Tuesday.
Victory at the Nationwide Arena was their 16th in a row and the Blue Jackets will have the chance to equal a mark set by the 1992-93 Pittsburgh Penguins when they face the Washington Capitals on Thursday.
Cam Atkinson sent them on their way to victory in the first period with his 18th goal of the season but they were pegged back five minutes into the second by a goal from Edmonton defenceman Oscar Klefbom.
Parity lasted for only five minutes with William Karlsson restoring the Blue Jackets' lead and Nick Foligno added an insurance goal early in the third in front of a sellout crowd.
Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky made 21 saves for his 14th straight victory and that also puts the Russian in second place in the all-time list, three behind Gilles Gilbert who won 17 straight decisions for the 1975-76 Boston Bruins.
Trending
- Transfer Centre! Trent, Rashford, Olmo latest
- PL Predictions: Expect the unexpected... Man Utd to win at Anfield?
- Littler crushes MVG to become youngest World Darts champion
- Littler thrashes Van Gerwen to win first world title | Final highlights
- Salah wants 'special' Premier League win in 'last year' at Liverpool
- 'It's a possibility' - Amorim doubles down on Man Utd relegation comments
- Liverpool latest: What do Salah's latest comments mean?
- Arsenal latest: Just signing a striker isn't enough to win title - Arteta
- World Darts Championship final: Relive how Littler beat MVG to lift title...
- Man Utd latest: Rashford set to miss Anfield trip due to 'illness' says Amorim
"I'm proud of the team. They deserve it," Columbus coach John Tortorella said.
"I'm really happy how they've handled the past three games with all the talk and all that. It's a good test for them.
"I just want us to keep our head down and I just want us to play. You know what we are? We're a group of businessmen as far as I'm concerned.
"That's where I think they have really grasped, is they have accepted the thought of coming to work every day and learning about that day, playing that game and worrying about that game, not worrying about what happened, not worrying about what's ahead of us."
