The Columbus Blue Jackets fell 4-3 on Saturday night to the Vancouver Canucks, extending their losing streak to three games, all on this five-game road trip. They are just three games into it.
Related: Canucks Defeat Blue Jackets 4-3 in Back-And-Forth Affair
Kirill Marchenko led the way with two goals, while Dmitri Voronkov added the other for Columbus. Elvis Merzlikins stopped 21 of 25 shots in the loss.
For Vancouver, Jake DeBrusk, Drew O’Connor, Conor Garland, and Brock Boeser found the back of the net, while Kevin Lankinen made 29 saves on 32 shots to earn his third win of the season.
Lost Another Winnable Game
The Blue Jackets didn’t play nearly as poorly as they did in Wednesday’s 5-1 loss to the Calgary Flames, but they still failed to finish the job. Columbus outshot Vancouver 32-to-25, won 59.6% of faceoffs, and forced 11 Canucks giveaways, but couldn’t capitalize when it mattered most.
The power play continued to be a major issue, going 0-for-3 on the night. Fourteen games into the season, the Blue Jackets’ power play ranks 29th in the NHL, connecting just 14.7% of the time. It has not been a bright spot for this team at all, and continues to cost them in close games.
Despite a solid third-period push and several quality looks to tie the game, they could not find the equalizer. Head coach Dean Evason summed up the frustration after the game.
“It’s a tough one because, for the most part, we played well. And the goals that we gave them, three are turnovers, and one is a crucial part of the hockey game where we allow people to get in behind us for a semi-breakaway. It can’t happen. We can’t continually give those types of goals away where we’re not making teams earn them as much as we should be, and consequently, we’ve lost three in a row.”
Too Top-Heavy Right Now
Once again, the Blue Jackets’ offense was carried almost entirely by the top line. Marchenko, Adam Fantilli, and Voronkov combined for eight points and 14 shots on goal. Marchenko led the way with two goals and an assist, extending his point streak to seven games, while Fantilli added two assists and Voronkov chipped in with a goal and two helpers.
However, no other line registered a point. Depth scoring continues to be an issue, with Cole Sillinger and Sean Monahan struggling to make much of an impact. Monahan was bumped to the second line midway through the game as Fantilli moved up to center the top group. Kent Johnson, expected to take a big step this season, has just four points in 14 games and is still searching for consistency, which I think he will find soon.
Zach Werenski was another player leaned on heavily, logging 29:27 of ice time, the most by any skater on either team. He finished with four shots and one blocked shot.
The penalty kill, however, was a bright spot Saturday. The Blue Jackets went a perfect 3-for-3 on the night, including a huge kill during a five-minute major in the second period after Mathieu Olivier’s game misconduct for boarding. They built momentum from that stretch and took their only lead of the game shortly after, when Voronkov cleaned up a loose rebound in front to make it 2-1. That momentum just didn’t last.
Too Many Turnovers
Turnovers once again proved costly, directly leading to three of Vancouver’s four goals. The Blue Jackets finished with 10 giveaways on the night, continuing a troubling trend during this recent skid.
The opening goal all started from a neutral-zone mistake by Miles Wood that led to DeBrusk’s tally after a defensive lapse. Later, Dante Fabbro failed to clear the puck before O’Connor’s goal and then took an undisciplined cross-checking penalty in frustration. He felt there was a missed cross-check before the turnover, but then lost his cool.
According to HockeyStatCards.com, Fabbro had a team-low adjusted game score of minus-3.71, while Monahan, Wood, and Ivan Provorov also struggled. Marchenko, Voronkov, and Denton Mateychuk all had great games, though, per the scorecard.
The game-winner didn’t come off another turnover, but rather a total defensive breakdown, as Provorov and Damon Severson allowed Boeser to slip behind them on a breakout pass. Merzlikins got a piece of the shot but couldn’t keep it out, a soft goal on an otherwise alright night.
When it comes to goaltending, it has been a struggle lately for both Merzlikins and Jet Greaves. It’s hard to say whether the issues fall more on the defense or the goalies themselves, but either way, the tandem needs to get back on track soon.
Despite dropping three straight, the Blue Jackets remain at the .500 mark at 7-7-0 thanks to a strong October. They’ll look to regroup quickly as they visit the Edmonton Oilers on Monday night at 8:30 PM EST. The Oilers, who were walloped by the Colorado Avalanche 9-1 on Saturday, will be looking for redemption, so the Blue Jackets will need to clean things up fast.
