One certainty in the NHL concerning good teams is that when the odds are stacked against them, they will still find ways to win games that perhaps they shouldn’t. Columbus wants to be a good team and last night we saw proof that while they might be getting close, they just aren’t quite there yet. The Jackets overcame a two-goal first period deficit, tying the contest in the third only to drop a 3 – 2 decision to the Minnesota Wild last night.

Columbus entered Tuesday’s tilt with Minnesota just one night after a hard-fought, 2 – 1 victory over the Dallas Stars at Nationwide Arena. Last season, Columbus was an abysmal 4 – 12 – 1 in the back half of back-to-back games. Minnesota meanwhile, had Monday off. Disadvantage: Columbus.

The Jackets were originally scheduled to fly out of Columbus Monday night following their game. Their flight was cancelled due to fog and the club didn’t arrive into Minnesota until the following day. Disadvantage: Columbus.

Steve Mason, who is still searching for the magic that made him one of the league’s best goaltenders four years ago, got the nod in net with Bobrovsky having played the night before. Mason had two starts this year prior to Tuesday; the first a not very impressive outing in a 5 – 1 drubbing against the Phoenix Coyotes and the second a stronger performance, albeit another loss, to the Chicago Blackhawks. Overall, heading into the matchup with Minnesota, Mason had stopped 58 of 66 shots against; a Save % of just 0.879. Disadvantage: Columbus.

The good teams in the NHL won’t let factors like that get in the way of winning games. They find a way to overcome the odds to come out with two points at the end of the day. Columbus almost did, showing this is an improved team from last season, but they couldn’t quite get over the hump last night against Minnesota.

Here are my impressions from the contest. Admittedly, due in part to living on the West Coast and having other obligations I had to attend to, I was not able to watch the first two periods live.

Flat start – Not surprisingly given the difficult nature of their travel into Minnesota, Columbus came out flat against the Wild. Through two periods the team was outshot 23 – 8 but were fortunate probably to be down just 2 – 1. Columbus was far and away the better team in the third, tying the game on a PP goal at the 7:32 mark and nearly taking the lead a couple times after that. But Pierre-Marc Bouchard potted the eventual game-winner finishing off a two-on-one by roofing the puck over Mason’s glove. The Jackets showed some intestinal fortitude and resilience in their effort but the slow start doomed Columbus.

Mason – I am at a crossroads with Mason. It’s highly unlikely he will be a part of the future in Columbus given his contract is set to expire following the season and his play the last few years not warranting bringing him back. If Mason continues to struggle when given a chance to start I’d go with Curtis McElhinney, who has been brilliant in the AHL, as the backup and bid adieu to Mason.

That being said, Mason was pretty good last night. He made a few key saves that allowed Columbus to stay within striking distance. His save on a Zach Parise wraparound late in period two kept the score 2 – 1 and he stoned Bouchard on a penalty shot late in the third period, again keeping the Jackets within a goal.

Overall the performance might have been good enough to keep the team in the game and perhaps win it but Mason and Bobrovsky are going to have to steal games here and there for Columbus to remain competitive. Mason wasn’t quite that good last night. I’m sure he’ll get another chance soon enough though.

Power Play – While the man-advantage unit did convert on one of their four chances, it was the failure to capitalize on two chances in the latter half of period three that sticks out to me. Shortly after tying the game on a PP goal from Jack Johnson, Columbus had an opportunity to build on that momentum and take their first lead of the game when Tom Gilbert was banished to the box for shooting the puck into the stands. Instead Minnesota successfully killed it off potentially taking back some of the momentum Columbus stole away on the Johnson goal. Just a few minutes after their man-advantage failure, Bouchard broke the tie.

Columbus would get one more chance to get even on the PP when Zach Parise got called for holding at 16:13 of the period. Again Columbus couldn’t break through with a big goal when needed and Minnesota wrapped up the win.

The Jackets are converting just 11.8% of their PP opportunities, a mark that ranks 26th in the NHL. Something else good teams do is play well on special teams. Columbus’ penalty-killing is much improved over last year but now the PP needs some work.

Nicklas Backstrom - This was my first time seeing Backstrom this year and he looked shaky. He allowed several big rebounds that just eluded Blue Jacket players. His numbers headed into last night were pretty rough so perhaps he has yet to find his groove. Backstrom is a quality goaltender so I suspect he'll round into form soon enough.

Up Next: A much-needed off day followed by a return home Thursday night to host the red hot St. Louis Blues.

St. Louis – The Blues are 5 – 1 – 0 through six games and reside in 4th place in the Western Conference and are just two points behind the undefeated Chicago Blackhawks in the Central.

Top Scorers:
Kevin Shattenkirk and Vladimir Tarasenko – 8 points apiece
Alex Pietrangelo – 7 points
David Perron – 6 points

In Net:
Jaroslav Halak – 3-0-0, 1.69 GAA, 0.902 Save %
Brian Elliot – 2 – 1 – 0, 2.74 GAA, 0.875 Save %

The Blues boast the third highest scoring attack in the NHL averaging 3.83 goals-per-game. They also get offensive contributions from their blue line with two of their three leading point-getters being defensemen.

Defensively, the Blues are stifling. They allow 2.17 goals-per-game, tied for 6th fewest with Chicago. More impressive yet, they allow just 19.5 shots per game. That’s six less than the next lowest average. Halak and Elliot have below-average Save % yet the Blues still rank among the stingiest clubs to score on.

This should prove to be a tough test for Columbus. I expect Bobrovsky to be in goal and he’ll need to be excellent to keep St. Louis’ potent attack subdued. Meanwhile, the skaters are going to have to have their legs and play like they did in the third period Tuesday as opposed to how they performed earlier in that contest. St. Louis is terrific defensively so the Jackets will have to forecheck aggressively to create offensive chances while making sure not to overcommit or else the Blues transition will lead to some excellent opportunities the other way.

Update: The Blue Jackets have recalled F Jonathan Audy-Marchessault and D Tim Erixon from their Springfield affiliate in the AHL according to a report from Rob Mixer of BlueJackets.com. Audy-Marchessault, who will be referred to by his nickname JAM from here on out, is currently the leading active scorer in the AHL with 45 points (16goals, 29assists) in 42 games.

Erixon leads all AHL defensemen in scoring among active players. He has 29 points (five goals, 24 assists) in 40 games.

Both players came from the Rangers organization this past offseason. JAM signed with the Blue Jackets as an undrafted free agent after playing for one season with the Rangers affiliate, Connecticut Whale, also of the AHL.

Erixon was acquired from the Rangers in the Nash trade and is a former first-round draft choice of the Calgary Flames.

The recalls were made as the Jackets experience some injuries in their forward ranks. Matt Calvert is expected to miss at least a week with what is being called an "upper body injury." Cam Atkinson was already placed on IR and his return is not known. Originally Coach Richards said it could be up to two weeks with a "lower body injury."

Join the Discussion: » 25 Comments » Post New Comment

» Murray to Miss 4 - 6 Following Knee Surgery

» Columbus Deadline Rundown

» Blue Jackets Deadline Plans

» Tyutin to Miss Two to Three Weeks with Ankle Injury

» Blue Jackets Playing Contingent Out in Sochi