Kent Johnson scores 2 goals, the Blue Jackets beat the Blackhawks 5-1 to end a 4-game losing streak

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Zach Werenski scored and had two assists and Kent Johnson scored twice for the Columbus Blue Jackets in a 5-1 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday to end a four-game losing streak.

Denton Mateychuk and Adam Fantilli each scored, Dmitri Voronkov had two assists and Elvis Merzlikins made 27 saves in the teams’ return from a break for the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Craig Smith scored and Petr Mrazek made 16 saves for the Blackhawks.

Johnson made it 2-0 at 1:12 of the second period and Mateychuk countered Smith’s power-play goal with his score 12:28 into the second to make it 3-1.

Blackhawks: If they were hoping for a reset after the break, they didn’t get it. They have one win in the past six games (1-3-2) and are 2-4-4 in the past 10.

Blue Jackets: Getting healthy for a playoff run is important. Captain Boone Jenner made his season debut after undergoing shoulder surgery on Oct. 9 and had an assist. Forward Kirill Marchenko (fractured jaw) and defenseman Dante Fabbro (concussion) returned after missing three games.

Mateychuk, a rookie defenseman, gave the Blue Jackets some breathing room by skating unchecked across the blue line and wristing a shot from 42 feet for his second goal and a 4-1 lead.

Werenski extended his home point streak to 22 games, tying Phil Housley (1991-92) for the third-longest streak by a defenseman in NHL history. Bobby Orr holds the record of 25 games in the 1974-75 season.

The Blackhawks host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday and the Blue Jackets host the Dallas Stars on Tuesday.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl