Taylor Hall scores first NHL goal as Edmonton Oilers fall to Columbus Blue Jackets
Taylor Hall had to wait a while to get his first National Hockey League goal, potting it Thursday night. But the 2010 NHL draft's first overall pick's goal just wasn't enough as the Edmonton
Oilers lost 3-2 to the Columbus Blue Jackets in a shootout.
How it happened
The home team got the ball rolling in the first period with a goal from Samuel Pahlsson 4:11 into the game. Pahlsson’s wrist shot was assisted by Chris Clark and Kyle Wilson. Edmonton
got that one back at 7:20, while on the power play. Captain Shawn Horcoff beat Columbus goaltender Steve Mason for his fourth goal of the season, with the assists coming from Jordan Eberle and Hall. The Blue Jackets took a 2-1 lead after Wilson’s wrist shot
found the back of the net at 18:09. Derick Brassard and Clark provided the assists.
After a scoreless second period, Hall scored his first career NHL goal to tie the game at two goals apiece. The assists went to Theo Peckham and Ales Hemsky. Hall’s goal came at 9:57 of
the third off a tip-in, and was the only one scored in the period. There were no goals scored in overtime either. As a result, the game would require a shootout in order to determine the winner.
In the shootout, Sam Gagner and Gilbert Brule were both stopped by Mason, but Rich Nash and Nikita Filatov slipped goals past Devan Dubnyk to give the Jackets the win.
What they’re saying
The hockey experts were speculating on how long it would take Hall to net his first goal. Some said that Hall might be returned to his major junior team before he got it, but Hall silenced
his critics by finally scoring that milestone tally.
“Definitely not the prettiest goal of my life, but I’ll take it for sure,” Hall said of his tip-in. “It was a big goal for our team as well. I’ve been waiting a long time and I’ve been
asked about it a million times. I put a lot of pressure on myself just because it’s out there.”
“I definitely wanted to score tonight, and I had a feeling before the game that this was going to be the night.”
Blue Jackets head coach Scott Arniel was happy to get another win, even if the game was decided in a shootout.
“Sometimes you win ugly, and sometimes you win in dramatic fashion,” Arniel said. “It was a wild and scrambly game.”
Edmonton returns to action on Friday, 29 October to face the Chicago Blackhawks, while Columbus will take on the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday, 30 October.
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