Five takeaways from the Columbus Blue Jackets' OT loss to the Philadelphia Flyers
PHILADELPHIA — They’re keenly aware of the league standings, but the Blue Jackets and their coaches aren’t focused on it.
They have two games left following a 4-3 overtime loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday at Wells-Fargo Center and they're trying to avoid finishing last in the NHL, which a portion of their fans want to happen with a “generational” talent like Connor Bedard available in the draft.
“We know where we’re at,” Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said. “I’m not ignorant. I mean, I know exactly where we’re at, but it doesn’t change how we approach the game. The way it’s talked (about) outside and by, maybe, certain fans or the media, that’s on them. We go out, these guys are here to perform and play hard. We’re trying to win the game.”
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Columbus concludes the season with back-to-back games at Nationwide Arena on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Penguins and Friday against the Buffalo Sabres. The Jackets are ranked last in the 32-team league after the Chicago Blackhawks moved past them with a 5-2 win Tuesday over the Penguins, who might need a win against Columbus to sneak into the playoffs. The Anaheim Ducks, meanwhile, slid back down to 31st via tiebreaker with the Blackhawks after their loss Tuesday to the Vancouver Canucks.
Should the standings stay this way, the Blue Jackets would have a 25.5% chance to win the first pick in the draft lottery, the Ducks would get a 13.5% chance and the Blackhawks' odds would be 11.5% to land Bedard. Going into Tuesday's game, the Jackets were tied in points (56) with the Blackhawks and 31st in the standings.
Philadelphia, which is locked into the lottery's seventh-best odds, plays Thursday in Chicago in the finale for both teams. It's a “race” that may go down to the wire Friday for the Blue Jackets, who will push for two wins.
“These kids that come up, these opportunities don’t come along all the time, and you don’t want to have any regrets,” Larsen said. “Even in these (last) games, we’re evaluating right to the end in what they bring. You can’t let up, because all of a sudden, next year comes and you’re a healthier group and you’re on the outside looking in. So, these guys, you hope they take advantage of it. Some guys are. Some guys, maybe not as much as you’d like to see.”
Columbus Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner a late scratch
Injuries continue to ravage the Blue Jackets’ NHL roster, including their captain.
After missing practice Monday in Columbus for “maintenance,” Boone Jenner was a late scratch Tuesday night in Philadelphia with an upper-body injury. He is day-to-day and will be reassessed before the final two games. Only 18 skaters made the trip to Philadelphia, including five AHL recalls, so the Jackets played with 11 forwards and six defensemen.
The Columbus injury report has reached a comical length.
Others out with injuries include Patrik Laine (triceps), Zach Werenski (shoulder), Jake Bean (shoulder), Justin Danforth (shoulder), Erik Gudbranson (shoulder), Lane Pederson (upper body), Mathieu Olivier (bone bruise), Eric Robinson (upper body), Nick Blankenburg (lower body) and Elvis Merzlikins (lower body).
Who needs to worry about “tanking” when there’s a slew of injuries that get the job done organically?
Not all of those injuries are long-term and at least a few injured players would likely be in the lineup if a trip to the postseason were at stake. Since that’s not the case, they’re not taking any unnecessary health risks this late into a forgettable season.
Columbus Blue Jackets rookie Trey Fix-Wolansky showing strides
Trey Fix-Wolansky led all Blue Jackets forwards in ice time against the Flyers and made it 2-0 in the first period with his first NHL goal since last season.
Fix-Wolansky played an NHL career-high 20:12 after helping the Monsters win a big game Monday, but said his legs felt better in Philadelphia than they did 24 hours earlier. Scoring the goal might've been a factor.
"It felt amazing," Fix-Wolansky said. "Tonight, it felt like I had my legs under me and I was playing my game pretty consistently, shift in and shift out. I tried to use my shot. I had a nice opportunity there and put one home, so that was nice for me to get the first one of the year."
It was a relief too.
This is Fix-Wolansky's fourth recall from the AHL this season and his strong efforts for the Monsters hadn't translated until Tuesday. He also overslept and missed a team meeting April 1 against the Florida Panthers that led to a demotion the same day. It's a mistake he plans to rectify and this was a good start.
"He's been around," Larsen said. "It's not his first year in the league, right? At some point you have to take that step and show that you belong. He's got a skill set that could work at this level, even as a smaller guy. He's got a tenacity to him that you have to see every game and he can finish. We know he can produce, so he's got to keep building on that and show that."
Carson Meyer excited for return to Columbus Blue Jackets lineup
Taking the opportunity to play an NHL game for granted isn’t something Carson Meyer will do anytime soon.
The former Ohio State Buckeyes forward and alum of the Ohio AAA Blue Jackets was excited to get back into the Blue Jackets’ lineup Tuesday as one of the five AHL players recalled to fill out the lineup. Meyer sustained an oblique strain on Jan. 10 in Tampa, missed 20 games and was assigned back to the AHL when ready to play.
He played 19 games for the Monsters before the recall, helping the Jackets’ top minor-league affiliate make its ongoing push to secure a playoff spot. He also sustained a cut across the bridge of his nose and notched an assist against the Flyers.
“It’s nice, because once you get sent down, you never know when the next call will come or if it’ll come,” Meyer said. “It took a little while to get back into game shape. I’d never sat that long mid-season, from an injury, but getting this chance again is exciting.”
John Tortorella is giving Philadelphia Flyers assistants a new experience
Since taking over the Flyers’ coaching job, former Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella has increased his penchant for giving assistants rare in-game experiences running the bench.
This was the fourth time in the past couple weeks that he allowed one of his assistants to run the show while he watched elsewhere. Rocky Thompson ran the Flyers’ bench for the second time with Darryl Williams and former Blue Jackets assistant, Brad Shaw, assisting.
Assistant video coach Vinny Yula was also invited to join the Flyers' bench Tuesday.
Shaw got the opportunity for two games as Thompson and Williams will run things Thursday in Chicago. Tortorella never went that far in Columbus, but did allow Shaw and Larsen to run the bench during preseason games. He also gave video coach Dan Singleton and skills coaches Kenny McCudden and Jared Boll their first in-game NHL coaching experiences as bench assistants at the end of his final season with the Blue Jackets (2020-21).
Larsen replaced Tortorella last season and will never forget what the former Blue Jackets coach did for him as a person and colleague.
“He’s going to be a friend for life,” Larsen said. “I love the man. He’s always cognizant of what’s going on and trying to grow people around him. I’m a younger coach in this league, but I’m still trying to do the same for my staff. So, I always appreciate what he did for me.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets five takeaways after OT loss to Flyers
