Blue Jackets’ 3 Biggest Games Left in the 2025-26 Season

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The Columbus Blue Jackets dropped the first game of a five-game homestand on Tuesday night, losing 4-1 to the Ottawa Senators. However, the Blue Jackets have a lot of big games left on their schedule. To make the playoffs, Columbus will need to nail this homestand, earning all eight remaining points. They might feel comfortable at least walking away with six points before they hit the road for three games, but it will make their postseason climb that much harder.

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With Mason Marchment and Isac Lundestrom, hopefully, returning by the end of the week, the team has a chance to improve its offense and boost its forward lines. However, some players have stepped in their absence. Cole Sillinger has been bumped to the top line and has made an impact alongside Kirill Marchenko and Adam Fantilli. With reinforcements on the way, here’s a look at three big matchups that remain on the Blue Jackets’ schedule this season.

February 28 – New York Islanders

The New York Islanders have been a struggle for the Blue Jackets all season, and they sit in second place in the Metropolitan Division. This game will be played at Nationwide Arena, and the last time these teams met in Columbus, on Dec. 28, the home team rallied with three third-period goals to win 4-2. That game was a turning point for the Blue Jackets’ third-period struggles this season.

Mason Marchment Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus Blue Jackets celebrate the goal scored by left wing Mason Marchment (Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images)

Given how close the standings are, every game against a division rival will be critical after the Olympic break. However, if the Blue Jackets can handle this game and beat a team ahead of them in the standings, one that will likely be in a playoff spot, it might give them some life down the stretch.

March 17 – Carolina Hurricanes

This game lands in the midst of a five-of-six game stretch against Metropolitan teams. The Blue Jackets have struggled against division rivals this season, to the tune of a 4-7-3 record through 14 games. Columbus has also struggled mightily against the Carolina Hurricanes in general. They are 3-7-0 against them in their past 10 meetings, and with a minus-16 goal differential.

According to the projections of Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic, the Blue Jackets are projected to miss the postseason by just two points, while the Hurricanes are looking for bigger prizes than winning the Metropolitan, like returning to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006. The Blue Jackets will need to take advantage of this matchup. These two points, with a month left in the regular season, could be the difference.

April 4 – Winnipeg Jets

This will be Blue Jackets Head Coach Rick Bowness’ first game against his former team, the Winnipeg Jets – the team he coached from 2022 to 2024 before he announced his retirement. It is also the last game Columbus plays before a three-game road trip against three Eastern Conference opponents who will all likely be in the playoff race.

The Jets have found success against Columbus in their last 10 meetings, although the Blue Jackets lead the series, 5-4-1, despite a goal differential of minus-6. The previous result this season was a 5-2 win for the Jets in Winnipeg.

This game will be circled for Bowness, but the Blue Jackets have to handle these Western Conference opponents, especially at home this late in the season.

If at this point, Columbus is close to a playoff berth, every game will be critical. Too often, the Blue Jackets have slipped too far out of the playoffs too early, and games down the stretch don’t matter. This season, they are in a position to strike, but they need to start piling up points, and they must take these three games seriously. The Blue Jackets will be back on the ice on Thursday night when they host the Dallas Stars.

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