Blue Jackets React to Matthew Knies’ Historic Debut

If it seemed like Matthew Knies had a little bit of a chip on his shoulder on Thursday night, his performance against the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night certainly showed that. Just days after the Blue Jackets acquired the power forward from the Toronto Maple Leafs, it didn’t take him very long to make his point.

Knies recorded his first two points, a power-play goal and then an assist, in less than a one minute span late in the first period. That helped the Blue Jackets build a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes.

Then almost midway through the second, Knies added his second goal of the night becoming the first Blue Jacket to ever score multiple goals in their debut. He positioned himself well in front of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and deflected Emil Andrae’s shot to make it 4-1.

The Blue Jackets won their home opener 6-3 over the Sabres.

Knies also tied Artemi Panarin for the most points in a Blue Jackets’ debut with three. For that performance, not only did he earn the famed “Donkey of the Night”, but he also got the locker room talking.

Blue Jackets Reaction

Consider what Knies has been through in the last week. He went from being an important part of the Maple Leafs to suddenly having to move his life to Columbus and be ready for a game with one practice.

Knies had no time to learn the systems. The trade was still fresh in his mind as he did everything he could to just play his game.

What Knies did was far more than most people expected. He immediately paid dividends on the power play. Then he showed what he can really do by being a disrupting force in front of an opposing goaltender.

Knies’ teammates enjoyed what they saw.

“I can’t ask for much more,” said Charlie Coyle, who finished the night with three assists. “I imagine when you’re traded like that at this stage and it’s a shock and you got to get your bearings away from the rink, where you’re living, what you’re doing. Just everything is different. It’s a tough thing I don’t think people realize … I think you can breathe for now knowing that he had a pretty good game. And it just helps those guys settle in even more with such a hectic situation.”

“This is awesome,” said Denton Mateychuk, who recorded an assist while playing over 27 minutes. “The guys loved it. He loved it. It was just a really cool night for everybody and for him to perform like that, it’s awesome to see.”