The Blue Jackets went into Saturday night’s game knowing the desperation required, and they responded in kind.
Columbus played a sharp game through the first two periods against Toronto, putting together two periods of smart, sound hockey, only to find themselves down 2-0. From there, they were chasing the game, and the end result was a 5-0 setback vs. the Maple Leafs that further dented their playoff hopes.
It was the 14th time in the last 15 games where Columbus found itself in a 1-0 hole, and it wasn’t the first time the Blue Jackets came out with the requisite level of intensity and play only to find themselves facing a deficit.
It’s become a familiar refrain of late as the Blue Jackets have gone 4-10-1 in their last 15 games – lots of good minutes undone by a combination of frustrating mistakes and a dose of bad puck luck.
“Yeah, we're getting a little tired of saying that,” head coach Dean Evason said. “I guess we have to say it because it's reality. I mean, yeah, it's difficult because we did think we played a real strong (first) period. We started right, started with the right mindset.
“The energy level was great, but for whatever reason, you lack some confidence or whatever it is, and something bad happens like a goal and all of a sudden it's like we're reeling a bit.”
Unfortunately for the Blue Jackets, time is starting to run out. With seven games to play going into the second half of this weekend’s Ontario back-to-back in Ottawa, the Blue Jackets are now six points back of Montreal for the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spot.
That makes this evening’s game against the Senators a near must-win, but the Blue Jackets expect to battle to the end.
“Obviously, we set a standard, we set a culture, and as long as there's no (eliminated) next to our name and we can fight for that (clinched) spot in the standings, I don't see why we'd have to change anything,” Mathieu Olivier said after the game against the Leafs. “I think our first two periods tonight were really good. It's a good building block for us. Obviously, they're a good team, so we use that to build for tomorrow and go from there.”
Know The Foe: Ottawa Senators
Head coach: Travis Green (First season)
Team stats: Goals per game: 2.86 (20th) | Scoring defense: 2.80 (11th) | PP: 23.4 percent (12th) | PK: 77.9 percent (17th)
The narrative: Boasting a young roster with plenty of talent, the Senators have been building toward something, and this appears to be the year Ottawa will snap a seven-year streak of missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The arrival of Green and an improved defense have supplemented such standouts as Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, Drake Batherson and Jake Sanderson, allowing the Sens to occupy the first wild card spot, nine points clear of the playoff line.
Team leaders: Stutzle has become one of the NHL’s most consistent players at age 23, as the third overall pick in the 2020 draft from Germany leads the way at a near point-per-game pace (21-51-72 in 76 games). Batherson may be one of the game’s most underrated forwards, putting up 22 goals and 60 points on the year. Tkachuk is the straw that stirs the drink with a team-best 29 goals, 55 points and 123 penalty minutes to join CBJ forward Mathieu Olivier as the only players in the league with at least 15 goals and 100 PIMs. Sanderson adds 11-42-53 from the blue line, while veteran Claude Giroux has 15 goals among his 47 points.
Linus Ullmark was acquired from Boston in the offseason to steady the goaltending spot, and he’s largely done just that with a 22-14-3 record, 2.75 GAA and .909 save percentage.
What's new: While many of the teams battling for a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference have scuffled down the stretch, Ottawa has gone 11-4-1 in its last 16 games to open up some breathing room in the race. The Sens sensed that the opportunity to play postseason hockey was there at the trade deadline and bolstered the forward group, bringing in Dylan Cozens from Buffalo and Fabian Zetterlund from San Jose, with Cozens posting a 3-7-10 line in his first 15 games.
Trending: This is the middle of three contests in 11 days between the teams, with the Senators taking a 3-2 win last Sunday in the Canadian capital. Columbus has lost four straight on the road in the series.
Former CBJ: Goaltender Anton Forsberg has found a home in Ottawa, starting 24 games and playing in 27 with a 10-11-2 record, 2.57 GAA and .907 save percentage in his fifth season with the Sens.
