The Columbus Blue Jackets will enter Tuesday night in a wildcard playoff spot. However, where they go from there will rely heavily on the results of their next two games.
The Blue Jackets embark on a home-and-home series against the Carolina Hurricanes. The game Tuesday is in Columbus while Thursday’s game will take place in Raleigh.
As it stands, the Blue Jackets “somewhat” control their own destiny. They own a game in hand on the New York Islanders and trail them by just one going into Tuesday night.
On the other hand, the Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings could catch the Blue Jackets in the wildcard with a better tiebreaker. Obvious to say, but the Blue Jackets are potentially staring at their season over the next three days and two games against the Metropolitan Division’s best team.
A pair of wins against the Hurricanes would position the Blue Jackets well for their final six games. A pair of losses could mean losing total control of their own destiny. Anything in between and well, there would be a lot to figure out.
The Blue Jackets know how crucial these two games are. Coming off a dud weekend that saw them gain only one of a possible four points, they know they need to win. But will they be able to look past the disappointment of the Sharks’ and Bruins’ games and get back to the way they are capable of playing?
We’ll get you set for Tuesday night’s game with thoughts from both head coaches Rick Bowness and Rod Brind’Amour as well as Zach Werenski and Eric Robinson.
Fixing the Blue Jackets’ Mistakes
Bowness came out after Sunday’s shootout loss to the Bruins and said that some of his players need to learn how to play at this time of year. The Blue Jackets spent the morning going through meetings and video to diagnose what happened.
One main theme stuck out to Bowness.
“When I see teams skating down the middle of the ice, that’s not us at all,” Bowness said. “So we had to clean that. That was definitely addressed. There was times we had three forwards on the same side of the ice. That never works, the wrong side of guys. When you see a team coming at us and they’re coming through the middle of the ice, I’m upset. I hate to see that. So we dealt with that. But then we showed them how good we could be, right? That first period, parts of the second, even a couple things in the third, just how good we are. We just didn’t do it for 60 minutes and … it cost us an important point.”
For Werenski and the rest of his teammates, they had to process what happened on the weekend. But now they have to move on from it and be ready to go.
“I think the whole weekend as a whole sucks,” Werenski said. Then you think about it, you process it and you move on. We’re still in a good spot, but we have to correct a few things. It starts tonight.”
Werenski conceded that he didn’t think the team had their legs Saturday against the Sharks. Then upon reflecting on the Bruins’ game, he said that stung more.
“We had a great first. We’re up 3-0 and then we kind of just let them dictate the play. We don’t stay on the attack and maybe that’s puck decisions. Maybe it’s just not thinking. I think we competed. I just don’t think we competed smart and ultimately, we let them back in the game. I think after watching video today, it’s pretty obvious why the Boston one happened and I think it’s just more so on us than anything.”
Hurricanes Will Be Ready
The Hurricanes come back to Columbus coming off a weekend that saw them split a pair of games. They defeated the New Jersey Devils on Saturday and then lost to the Montreal Canadiens the next night.
Despite the setback Sunday, coach Brind’Amour has liked the way his team has played. But he did concede the one game in their recent stretch they didn’t like. It was the last time they faced the Blue Jackets.
“I liked everything. We played very well,” Brind’Amour said. “Other than the game here. That was our only bad game since the break. We haven’t won them all, but we’ve hit a lot of hot goalies so that is what it is. But overall, I’m pretty happy with pretty much every game check that one.”
What was the one thing Brind’Amour didn’t like about the last game in Columbus?
“We just weren’t ready to play the right way. It’s still a fairly even game. We just didn’t play our game and we need to, to have success that’s for sure.”
Robinson didn’t play in the game in Columbus. But he will be in the lineup on Tuesday night to face his old team. Like what Brind’Amour said, he likes the way his team has played most of the season.
“I really liked the way we played honestly all year,” Robinson said. “But since the Olympic break, I think we came back with the right mindset that we got 25 games left. This is our final push to get ready for the playoffs.”
Given that the Hurricanes called the last game in Columbus their only bad game since the Olympic break, expect them to be ready to go from puck drop.
Gameday Notes
- Bowness said Mathieu Olivier will be out “a couple of weeks” after having to leave Sunday’s game against the Bruins. Kent Johnson will play in Olivier’s place.
- Two things Bowness wants to see from Johnson. Skate to the open ice. And win more than he loses on board battles.
- Luca Del Bel Belluz was at the morning skate but will not play on Tuesday night. Jet Greaves will start in net.
- For the Hurricanes, Brind’Amour is keeping the same skaters from Sunday. He is also continuing the goalie rotation so Brandon Bussi will get the start Tuesday night.
- Why could this two-game series with the Hurricanes determine their season? Let’s look at it from a best case and worst case for Tuesday. The best case is that the Blue Jackets would be in third in the Metro and tied for second in points in the division due to the tiebreaker. The worst case is not only being out of the playoffs, but out of the playoffs with a team to climb over. Then they’d have to go to Raleigh in a virtual must-win game.
- A win would allow the Blue Jackets a 4-3 finish to get to 98 points. A loss would mean needing 5-2 and having to be almost perfect. It’s a huge game, one in which the Blue Jackets know full well what the ramifications are.
