Kent Johnson scored two goals in the third period to help the Columbus Blue Jackets break a three-game losing streak and finish their five-game road trip with a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday.
Johnson scored both of his goals less than 2 1/2 minutes apart, marking his second two-goal game of the season. His first goal came when Sean Monahan passed the puck to him near the net, giving Columbus a 2-1 lead with 12:45 left in the game.
Johnson added another goal with 10:18 remaining, finishing a two-on-one rush with a pass from James van Riemsdyk. Van Riemsdyk also had another assist during the game.
Johnson’s goals came after a strong defensive effort from Columbus against one of the top teams in the league. The Jets, who had 44 shots in their previous meeting with the Blue Jackets, only managed 25 shots on Sunday.
The Jets’ only goal came from Kyle Connor, who scored his team-leading 15th goal on a power play with 8:09 left in the second period. Josh Morrissey got his 24th assist on the play.
Columbus has allowed a power-play goal in 13 straight games, but the Jets’ lead didn’t last long. Brad Lambert was penalized for high-sticking Ivan Provorov with 6:58 left in the second period. Just 51 seconds later, Dmitri Voronkov tied the game with his seventh goal of the season.
Elvis Merzlikins made 24 saves to earn the win. Eric Comrie of Winnipeg stopped 24 shots but took his fourth straight loss in goal.
Sean Kuraly scored an unassisted empty-net goal with 1:22 left to seal the victory for Columbus and end Winnipeg’s two-game winning streak.
