The Columbus Blue Jackets played pretty well for the first 40 minutes of their game Sunday night against the Boston Bruins. They took a 1-0 lead into the locker room. But then it was all downhill from there.
Brad Marchand scored a natural hat trick in the third period with the last two of those coming on the power play to lift the Bruins to a 3-1 win. Jeremy Swayman got his revenge from Monday’s loss by stopping 24/25 shots he faced. Spencer Martin stopped 25/28 for the Blue Jackets.
The story of this game from a Blue Jackets’ perspective was once again their special teams and specifically their power play not being able to click despite getting chances. At some point, the team needs to look in the mirror and figure this part of their game out.
Power Play Struggles Continue
In a 0-0 game in the second period, the Blue Jackets had two chances on their power play. They couldn’t convert on either of them. While they eventually opened the scoring thanks to Boone Jenner’s goal, they’re allowing opportunities to pass them by.
These passed opportunities allow good teams such as the Bruins to wait for their chance to take the game. Marchand did just that in the third period.
Marchand opened the Bruins’ scoring just 1:56 into the period. That made it 1-1. Then the Blue Jackets took consecutive penalties by Dmitri Voronkov and Johnny Gaudreau. Marchand cashed in both opportunities. That’s the difference in the game.
The Blue Jackets got two other chances later in the third period. But that turned into nothing. On the first of those chances, they didn’t even get a shot on goal.
Going -2 on the night in special teams will result in many losses. It did on Sunday night. It continues to show that this area of the Blue Jackets’ game is very much a work in progress that’s in need of a massive jolt.
More of the Same Issues
These power play struggles are not a new issue for the Blue Jackets. They’ve struggled to be consistent in this area for several seasons now.
While some of the personnel has changed through the years, the results have been similar. They will get some goals and some pockets where it’s looking like things are turning a corner. But then they go back to their inconsistent ways. Sunday night showed their inconsistency again.
Opposing teams know the power play is a struggle. Good teams like the Bruins can sense it and they attack. The Blue Jackets’ best players get little time to make decisions because of how aggressively teams play them. There’s no fear. It forces the Blue Jackets into rushing plays and making mistakes.
Good power plays get production from their best players. Marchand’s two goals created the difference in the game Sunday night. His two power-play goals on the night are more than what Patrik Laine and Johnny Gaudreau have scored all season combined. That duo has just one power-play goal between them. That’s just unacceptable given what they’re expected to produce.
Coaches have changed. Personnel has changed to a degree. But the Blue Jackets still face many of the same issues. Their lack of production is costing them important points in the standings.
Why Are They Struggling?
Let’s put some numbers to this to show how bad the power play has been. The Blue Jackets have 10 power-play goals in 26 games. Three of those 10 goals are from a player in Emil Bemstrom who’s in the AHL.
That leaves just seven power-play goals scored by players on the current roster. The breakdown goes like this.
- Boone Jenner 3
- Kirill Marchenko 2
- Adam Fantilli 1
- Patrik Laine 1
Gaudreau has no power-play goals in 26 games this season. Power-play success starts and ends with your best players. They are not producing in a way they would be expected to produce given their contract and their skill. The question is why?
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Here’s my take. It’s a few things. The first one is that they’re too predictable. Generally the same players will get the puck into the zone and try to set plays up. With teams being aggressive on them, they don’t get the kind of zone time they would like. In other words, teams aren’t backing off. They’re attacking. If they know what to expect, they can aggressively pursue and break the play up.
The next thing is the passing. That comes in the form of making the wrong pass or not completing the right pass. There are struggles with consistency in this area. That comes from a lack of confidence. That also comes from not wanting to make the big mistake. Good power plays get the puck up the ice and are setup in the zone quickly. Too often these Blue Jackets can’t consistently get setup in the zone. They’re chasing the puck back in their zone in short order.
Next up are the aforementioned star players. Laine continues to fumble pucks that he usually controls. It used to be almost automatic when Laine had chances on the power play back in his Winnipeg days. He scored 35 power-play goals in his second and third seasons combined. He scored eight power-play goals last season. He has just the one this season. Their star players are really fighting it in the head.
The last thing for now is not enough shots on net. The Blue Jackets either pass good opportunities up or they’re not on target. This is where a simplified approach would do wonders. Get shots on net. Create rebounds and chaos. But too often passing on shots and missing the net will result in the puck out of the zone.
What’s Next?
That’s the ultimate question for the Blue Jackets. They’re playing well in spurts in other areas of their game. If they can somehow get any kind of production from their power play to chip in, then they’ll start seeing results on the scoreboard.
We mentioned a simpler approach earlier. This is their best course of action until their stars figure out what’s bothering them. There is too much skill on this Blue Jackets’ team to be this bad when they have an extra man on the ice.
The reality is that it comes down to execution. That is something that has escaped the Blue Jackets for years on the man advantage. They have to make things work with what is available to them. It should be a whatever it takes approach at this point. Play the players on the power play that are willing to put in the work and execute.
Werenski said it best recently. These struggles are long overdue to be rectified. It’s on the leaders in the room and their skill players to come together to find a way to get something out of their power play.
It doesn’t have to be pretty all the time. It just needs to be effective. The Blue Jackets’ power play hasn’t been effective for a long time. It continues to betray them when success is needed the most.
