Losers of six consecutive games and 15 of 17 overall, the Blue Jackets entered Monday night's game desperate for two points.
Their start was less than inspiring, but they seemed to get better as the game went on and eventually picked up a 2-1 regulation win.
10 takeaways:
1. There were certainly some positives from last night's game and the most important thing is they picked up two points, but they still have a ways to go before we can legitimately say they're in contention for a playoff spot. The Jackets are 10 points out of 3rd in the Metro and 11 back for a Wild Card spot and they need to leap eight teams, so they have their work cut out for them. Again, the win is nice and should be a confidence booster, but they need to start putting together big chunks of wins. Up next is Florida again on Thursday. They need another two.
2. Columbus scored the 1st goal of the game and were tied through 40 minutes, but really they were lucky to be in that situation. They started very slowly and recorded just 11 shots in the first two periods. They must have better starts or they're going to continue losing a lot of games.
3. I thought the Blue Jackets did a much better job defensively against Florida than in games past. In five starts prior Bobrovsky faced almost 40 shots per game and was averaging almost four goals against per game. He's a very good goaltender, obviously, but asking him to stop 38 or 39 of 40 every night isn't realistic. 25 is a very manageable number.
4. Kerby Rychel didn't get a ton of ice, but I thought he was quite good in his home debut. The offensive penalty was a big negative, especially considering Florida scored on the power play, but besides that I thought he played real well. He was effective on the forecheck, made some nice plays in the cycle, and recorded a late assist on the eventual game-winner. He also posted a team-high 62 Corsi% at 5 vs 5. He definitely earned his 11:20 of ice time.
5. More Kerby: He didn't use it a ton, but he showed good power in the few shot attempts he had. He has a very hard shot and used it to overpower goalies in junior (I scouted him a ton during his days in the OHL) and it looks like he'll be able to do the same at this level. As he gets stronger and fills out a little more his shot should only get better.
6. With all the injuries the Jackets are dealing with they're asking a lot of Boone Jenner, and to this point he's been up for the challenge. He has a respectable seven points in 13 games and has 37 shots in that span while posting good possession numbers against high-end competition. I imagine his production will only go up once some bodies return and he gets settled in the lineup.
7. Defending the lead in the 3rd period Jenner (10) and Cam Atkinson (9) led the team in shifts, while Jared Boll (3) and Adam Cracknell (4) played the fewest shifts.
8. Kevin Connauton is a pretty good defenseman and I think he's serviceable on the 3rd pairing, but I'd like to see Tim Erixon return to the lineup. I feel Erixon's been very good this season, especially with James Wisniewski, and that pairing isn't something I'd break up.
9. Todd Richards was crazy fair in his ice time management with the defense last night. Only Connauton (16:12) played fewer than 20 minutes and David Savard (21:44) led the way in that regard.
10. Good news for Columbus: Brandon Dubinsky could be a go on Thursday. He'll probably take some time to hit his stride offensively, but he can take away some of the tough minutes Jenner's been playing and free him up to do his thing offensively.
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