After what seemed like an eternity, the Columbus Blue Jackets are back on home ice. Their stay at Nationwide Arena lasts just one game before embarking on the road again.
The Blue Jackets host the Tampa Bay Lightning Saturday night in their first game since the All-Star and mid-season break. Meanwhile the Lightning are playing their third game in four nights after spending an off day in Columbus.
The Blue Jackets will get a key defenseman back for the game. That’s where we’ll start this edition of News & Rumors.
Boqvist is Back
Is the curse of the number 27 real? Based on recent history, there might be something to it. Adam Boqvist is set to return to the Blue Jackets lineup after missing three games due to taking a puck in the face and having some teeth knocked out.
Saturday marks the Blue Jackets’ 51st game of the season. It will be just Boqvist’s 21st game. He’s spent most of the season either on the bench as a healthy scratch or dealing with an injury.
Boqvist will jump right in on the top pair next to Zach Werenski. Meanwhile, Andrew Peeke will be the healthy scratch as the current seventh defenseman.
Boqvist was officially activated off injured reserve on Saturday after getting in a couple of practices this week with no issues. His activation means the Blue Jackets will enter their game with the Lightning with no one on their injured reserve. Patrik Laine is non-roster while he’s in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. Been a while since there’s been this kind of health, eh?
The story to watch here in the short term is who comes in and out of the lineup. With the trade deadline coming in short order now, a couple of defensemen including Boqvist have been rumored to be available. If the Blue Jackets continue to have good defensive efforts like they did in St. Louis, there might not be many changes to the lineup. But will there be some showcasing going on? Maybe. Boqvist and others have to take advantage of their ice time when they get it.
Defensive Progress?
In what has easily been one of the 2-3 most disappointing parts of the Blue Jackets’ season, their defense as a whole in terms of shots and goals against has been terrible. But recent outings suggest they could be turning a little bit of a corner.
The Blue Jackets earned a 1-0 shutout against the Blues in their last game before the All-Star Break. It was the team’s first shutout of an opponent since 2022, a span of 174 games.
Both captain Boone Jenner and coach Pascal Vincent each see progress taking place. Here’s what each had to say about their recent improvement.
“We had a complete game (in St. Louis) that we were patient with our system and the way we were playing,” Jenner said. “Obviously it’s not too exciting for the fans but that’s fine. Those are the fun ones to win. It was the end of the road trip, knew we had to grind it out. I just liked our awareness in all aspects of the game. It seemed we bought into that and played that style. We were tough to play against not giving up anything.”
“I think it was a real good effort defensively,” coach Vincent said. “Both teams were really sharp defensively. It’s a 1-0 game. So there wasn’t much. The two goalies were really good.”
“It’s the building blocks of where we are. We’re still teaching the D-zone coverage to our team and the way I want us to play. It was steps. Early in the season, it was to protect the middle. And now we’re adjusting how our team will move. We adjusted how our wingers will move, how our center will move. But we’re creating a foundation and moving forward and getting better at that. Last game, it’s about the chemistry and the players being all-in. It wasn’t about anything I’ve said before the game or between periods. It was them saying ‘we’re gonna finish this trip and do it right.’ And the effort was outstanding.”
Improvement in the Blue Jackets’ defensive zone is not going to happen overnight. Their last game showed that if they’re able to stay patient and not do too much, they can enjoy games like in St. Louis where they put together one of their best defensive efforts of the season. It’s just a step but it’s an important step. They’ll get a chance to build on that Saturday night.
Side Dishes
- Elvis Merzlikins and Andrei Vasilevskiy will oppose each other in net. Crazy to think Vasilevskiy enters the game with an .899 save percentage.
- Tanner Jeannot is now considered day-to-day. He took part in the morning skate Saturday and is getting closer. But he will not play Saturday night.
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- We mentioned at the top the Blue Jackets are playing one game at home before hitting the road again. Saturday night marks their only home game between Jan 19 and Feb 23. They get two days off before their game in Ottawa Tuesday. Then they get three days off before their game in San Jose and the start of the California trip. The light February will become an insane March with 15 games in the first 30 days of March.
- You may have noticed Nick Blankenburg not playing in Cleveland. He’s missed the last three games with an upper-body injury.