With their backs against the wall, the Blue Jackets delivered on Tuesday night.
Knowing a loss could potentially eliminate the team from postseason contention, Columbus put together a 5-2 win over Ottawa at Nationwide Arena. It may have just been a temporary reprieve, but head coach Dean Evason was proud of the way the team responded after a pair of shutout losses in Ontario over the weekend dropped the squad to 4-11-1 in its last 16 games.
“Basically to play with great confidence and have some bite and play with an edge, that we’re good too,” Evason said when asked the message to the team before the game. “I think we lost that a little bit. We’ve gone over the last games ... and yeah, we haven’t scored, but the way we’ve played is not poorly, but we didn’t play with that little extra edge that we had tonight.
“And we have to play like that the rest of the way. We have a chance. You guys know the numbers better than I do ... but we’re not mathematically eliminated, so we’re going to play freakin’ hard every night.”
Still, the math is not on the Blue Jackets’ side. Columbus sits eight points back of Montreal for the final Eastern Conference postseason spot with five games to go, as the Habs (four games left) have won six in a row to all but clinch their spot. The Blue Jackets would be eliminated from contention tonight with a regulation loss, but the players have said they plan to battle to the end.
“We have a lot of character in this room,” Justin Danforth said. “There’s no quit. We didn’t come this far just to give up and feel sorry for ourselves. That’s not the kind of team we are, not the kind of people we are. Regardless of what happens, we’re going to finish strong for our fans and for each other.”
Tuesday’s win provided the recipe the Blue Jackets have followed much of the season to surprise NHL experts and be in the race. Columbus scored first and never trailed, tallied a power-play goal, got timely saves from Elvis Merzlikins and got contributions from up and down the lineup with five players scoring goals and 11 notching points.
“I think we’re a desperate team right now, and I think it showed early on,” Danforth said. “For us, getting first goals is big for our confidence – play a bit mean, a bit with some swagger, so it was a great team win. Everybody played great up and down the lineup. Elvis made some big stops for us. There were a lot of guys playing with some bite regardless of the size or who you are. It was good to see.”
Know The Foe: Buffalo Sabres
Head coach: Lindy Ruff (First season)
Team stats: Goals per game: 3.27 (7th) | Scoring defense: 3.47 (29th) | PP: 18.2 percent (26th) | PK: 76.6 percent (23rd)
The narrative: The Sabres have some impressive young offensive talents and looked to be turning the corner a few seasons ago, but they haven’t been able to get over the hump. Buffalo is going to miss the postseason for the 14th straight season, the longest streak in league history and now tied with the New York Jets for the longest active stretch in pro sports. At some point, you have to think it will come together, but this year a strong start was followed by a 13-game losing streak that essentially doomed the squad.
Team leaders: Tage Thompson continues to be one of the most feared shooters in the NHL, breaking the league record for hardest shot recorded (106.0 mph) earlier this year and leading the league with 37 even-strength goals among his 44 tallies (tied for second in the league) and 71 points. Upstate New York native Alex Tuch continues to excel in Buffalo, posting a 34-29-63 line and leading the NHL with six shorthanded goals. Captain Rasmus Dahlin leads the blue line with 15 goals and 62 points, while JJ Peterka (24-38-62) and Jason Zucker (21-30-51) have added offense.
Keeping the puck out of the net has been the downfall for the Sabres, with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen leading the team with 53 starts and posting a 23-24-4 record, 3.23 GAA and .885 save percentage.
What's new: That 13-game losing skid late November into late December left the Sabres at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, but they have left the cellar thanks to a strong finish. Buffalo comes to Columbus having won five in a row and eight of nine while averaging nearly five goals per game in that span. The Sabres were active at the trade deadline, dealing forward Dylan Cozens to Ottawa and also trading forward Nicolas Aube-Kubel and defenseman Henri Jokiharju.
Trending: The teams have split the previous matchups in the series, with Columbus earning a 6-4 win Oct. 17 at home and the Sabres responding with a 3-2 victory Feb. 4. The home win ended a three-game losing streak in the series for the Jackets at Nationwide Arena.
Former CBJ: Former CBJ center Joshua Dunne has played two games with the Sabres this year but has since returned to AHL Rochester.