Kent Johnson's OT Winner Lifts Blue Jackets Past Flyers

Kent Johnson finished a two-on-none give-and-go with Adam Fantilli 2:22 into overtime, and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 on Tuesday night in Philadelphia, according to the AP. It was Johnson's second goal of the night, and he also set up the opener.

The win saved Columbus from a brutal collapse. The Blue Jackets led 3-0 after one and watched Philadelphia tie it with 11 seconds left in regulation. Instead of a crushing loss, Columbus (5-5-0) won consecutive games for the first time this season.

Kent Johnson's big first period

Columbus scored three times in a 2:46 span of the first period. Johnson set up Fantilli for the opener at 10:58, then deflected a Zach Werenski shot past Flyers goalie Dan Vladar at 12:54. Denton Mateychuk made it 3-0 just 50 seconds later. Blue Jackets fans watching that stretch saw the Johnson and Fantilli pairing at its best, and it showed up again in overtime.

That fast start ended up being everything, because Columbus barely had the puck after the first intermission. The overtime winner was Johnson's sixth goal of the season, and it came off the same kind of quick passing between him and Fantilli that opened the scoring. Cam Talbot made 28 saves for his third win, and he needed most of them in the second and third periods.

How the Flyers clawed back

Philadelphia outshot Columbus 28-6 over the final two periods, and the pressure finally paid off late. Noah Cates poked a loose puck past Talbot for his first goal of the season. Trevor Zegras cut it to 3-2 with just under five minutes left in regulation. Then Zegras slid a pass to Tyson Foerster, whose shot was tipped in by Jamie Drysdale with 11 seconds remaining to force overtime.

Vladar made 11 saves. The Flyers (3-7-4) have lost two straight but have points in four of their last five after a franchise-record nine-game winless start. Flyers fans can take something from that third period, even if the result stung.

What's next for both teams

Philadelphia heads to Washington on Wednesday. Columbus continues its road trip at Carolina on Thursday, and the Blue Jackets will need to be a lot better than six shots in two periods against the Hurricanes. Columbus fans should watch whether Johnson and Fantilli stay together after the way they connected on the winner.

Johnson was in on three of the four Columbus goals and has six on the season. Smacktok pick: lean higher on Kent Johnson's points against the Hurricanes.