COLUMBUS, Ohio — After Monday’s morning skate in Nationwide Arena, Montreal Canadiens’ Patrik Laine sounded off on his former club, the Columbus Blue Jackets, saying the organization wasn’t committed to winning and was caught in a vicious cycle of losing during his four seasons in Columbus.
That is why, Laine said, he requested the trade that landed him in Montreal in August.
Laine’s words made it down the hallway to the Blue Jackets’ dressing room and eventually up to the suite level, where the Blue Jackets’ front office is housed. Nobody was happy, and both groups took action.
There were several superlatives in the Blue Jackets 5-4 win before 17,875 in Nationwide. Dmitry Voronkov had two goals. Kirill Marchenko (goal, two assists), Sean Monahan (three assists) and Zach Werenski (three assists) each had three-point nights. Top prospect Denton Mateychuk looked steady and calm in his NHL debut.
But it was Laine’s comments, and the friction they created, that provided the drama. He was booed every time he touched the puck. He was clearly targeted for hits (hard, but clean) by his former teammates. He left the game after the first period with an upper-body injury and did not return.
Werenski stepped forward in the post-game dressing room to speak for the rest of the Blue Jackets.
“It’s unfortunate,” he said. “As guys in here, and as a guy who’s been here, we were nothing but good teammates to him, nothing but good friends to him. For him to bash us like that, I think it’s just unacceptable. I hope he’s all right with whatever he’s dealing with tonight, but he didn’t finish the game. A couple hits and … yeah, I don’t know what happened, but it’s unfortunate.
“We were nothing but good teammates to him. For him to come in here and say all that, that’s bulls–t. I’m definitely not happy about it and none of us in this room are happy about it. That speaks more about him than it does us.”
MARCHY PUTS US ON TOP!@FanaticsBook | #CBJ pic.twitter.com/lD6byOvBsB
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) December 24, 2024
James van Riemsdyk, Cole Sillinger, Dante Fabbro and Adam Fantilli each landed hits on Laine, but it was a run-in with the 6-foot-5 Voronkov in the corner — Laine was actually credited with a hit on that one — that brought the biggest roar from the crowd. Laine ended up on his back.
Asked if the Blue Jackets were motivated by it, Werenski didn’t flinch.
“Yeah, 100 percent,” Werenski said. “What’s he thinking saying all that? It’s just incredible. I’ve got no more time for that. I don’t want to talk about Patty anymore. I hope he’s all right. I just thought that was pretty ridiculous, to be honest.”
The front office didn’t appreciate it, either.
The Blue Jackets had a “welcome back” video ready to play for Laine during a TV timeout in the first period, but by afternoon they’d decided against showing it. The last time that happened was when Ryan Johansen returned to Columbus after being traded to the Nashville Predators midway through the 2015-16 season.
Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason, who was hired this past summer, said he could tell his players were riled up by the time they returned to the rink before the game.
“I didn’t even know that went down (Laine’s comments),” he said. “I don’t hear it, but I definitely heard players talking about it, and I thought our guys handled it appropriately. They probably weren’t happy about it and rightfully so, but they did it the right way.
“I was happy and proud of our guys for how they conducted themselves. And the fans.”
One of the biggest cheers of the night came in the third period when the scoreboard zoomed on a fan with the words “Where is Laine?” typed on her cellphone. Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said after the game that he didn’t have an update on Laine’s status.
That’s a lot of animosity to carry into the NHL’s holiday break, but there was much to celebrate, too.
Jordan Harris, acquired in the deal that sent Laine to Montreal, scored his first goal with the Blue Jackets at 3:34 of the second period to put Columbus ahead 3-1. Nothing has come easy lately for the Blue Jackets, and that continued on Monday.
The Canadiens took a 4-3 lead only 20 seconds into the third. The Jackets tied it just three minutes later when Voronkov scored a power-play goal off a tic-tac-toe passing sequence that ended with Voronkov ripping a one-timer from the slot.
With 2:12 remaining, Marchenko scored off a nasty release from the left circle, snapping off a shot that beat Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault over his glove and under the crossbar.
The Blue Jackets’ top line — Monahan centering Voronkov and Marchenko — combined for three goals and five assists. They each played over 20 minutes.
“They were unreal,” Werenski said. “Money was making plays all over the ice. Marchy and Voro … they were huge for us. They’re the line that drives our team, so for them to play like that was awesome.”
(Photo of Patrik Laine and Dante Fabbro: Ben Jackson / Getty Images)
