The Columbus Blue Jackets are still alive, but their margin for error is slim. They enter Monday night’s matchup against the New York Rangers (7:00 PM EST), needing to keep pace in a stacked Eastern Conference.
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With a 29-21-8 record, the Blue Jackets have 66 points, the same as the Edmonton Oilers (back-to-back Stanley Cup Finalists), who sit third in the Pacific Division with 61 games, three more than Columbus. That difference alone highlights just how elite the Eastern Conference has been this season. Columbus is five points back of the Boston Bruins for the final wild-card spot in the East with a game in hand, and one point behind the Washington Capitals with four games in hand.
The New York Islanders hold the final Metropolitan Division spot with 75 points, but the Blue Jackets have three games in hand. Here are three keys for Columbus to get back on track with a must-win game against the Rangers tonight.
Blue Jackets Must Get Back To Closing Games
The Blue Jackets have to let Saturday night’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Islanders be a one-off, after they blew a 2-0 lead. It was reminiscent of their struggles earlier in the season under former head coach Dean Evason, where the team became passive with the lead instead of continuing to attack.
They were hot right before the Olympic Break, and the timing of that break did not help. Now they need to get back to that aggressive mindset and find a way to get that third goal to put the opposition in a hole and close out the win.
Postgame, new head coach Rick Bowness said, “When you get a chance to make that 3-0, and we had enough chances to do that, that eventually will bite you.”
While the Blue Jackets had 16 shots on goal in the second period on Saturday, they managed only three in the third. That cannot happen. Offensive pressure has to be sustainable, instead of falling into a defensive shell.
Blue Jackets Need Two Points, Not One
At this point, overtime or shootout losses are not good enough. The Blue Jackets need to come away with two points, especially against a division rival, like the Rangers, while they hold games in hand on the teams above them in the standings.
Depth scoring has to get back on track. They need to produce more offense if they want to stay in the race. Kent Johnson is expected to be a healthy scratch for a second straight game, while Dimitri Voronkov has seen limited ice time – 8:31 on Saturday.
Columbus should be drawing more penalties than they have recently – two in the last three games, despite some questionable misses – although they cannot rely on officiating, no matter how frustrating it may be. They should up the forecheck pressure, play their chippy style, and keep trying to get calls by being more aggressive on the puck.
If they do get a power-play opportunity, they need to capitalize. The power play was strong before the break. It’s at a 19.6% success rate on the season and ranks 18th in the NHL as of Mar. 2. Special teams can be the difference-maker in tight road games, especially at an always-packed Madison Square Garden.
At the same time, the penalty kill has to be sharp against a New York team with high-octane offensive talent and a power play that ranks 10th in the NHL at 22.6%. Remaining disciplined on Monday night will be important.
Blue Jackets Can’t Underestimate Rangers
Despite their 23-29-7 record, the Rangers are still a dangerous team, especially with Igor Shesterkin back between the pipes. When Shesterkin is in the net, the Rangers are 18-12-5 compared to 4-14-2 when Jonathan Quick plays. Shesterkin is expected to start against Elvis Merzlikins. Columbus will need a solid performance from Merzlikins.
The Rangers still have dangerous offensive weapons like Mika Zibanejad and Vincent Trocheck, with Trocheck putting up five points in his last three games. Defensively, Columbus needs to avoid pinching too much and giving up odd-man rushes to keep their goals-against down against a good transition team like the Rangers.
The Blue Jackets are still very much in the playoff hunt, but the path is tight. Getting back on track Monday night can help propel them back up the standings.
