PREVIEW: Blue Jackets look to find their edge in Detroit
Columbus heads north to take on the Red Wings on a Saturday night
Columbus still earned a 4-2 win in the City of Brotherly Love, but it was more gritty -- no, not Gritty -- than pretty as Jackets allowed 49 shots on goal in the victory. When the teams returned to Columbus for a repeat matchup Thursday, the head coach expected his team to be somewhat refreshed by Wednesday's day off.
"I'm expecting tonight to have a whole lot more energy," he said Thursday morning.
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Which is why Larsen was so flummoxed by what he saw Thursday night in Nationwide Arena. The Blue Jackets took an early lead but never really found the energy or emotion, with Philadelphia scoring four unanswered goals to take a 4-1 win in Nationwide Arena.
"They had a day off yesterday," Larsen said postgame. "They should have had tons of energy for tonight's game. No excuses for tonight. We were not engaged in that game at all, nowhere near where we needed to be.
"I hope that's a one-off because we can't play that way. We can't. We went out and played hockey tonight, that's it. We weren't competitive enough, we weren't hard enough. We skated around, hoped we'd get the puck, hoped we'd get the shot on goal, hoped we'd get a rebound. If it didn't work out, oh well. That's how we played. Everybody did."
Adding to the disappointment was the fact that the Blue Jackets have put a focus on finishing strong. While the Blue Jackets are yet to be officially eliminated from playoff contention, it appears unlikely the team will qualify for the postseason, but Larsen and his staff have pointed to just how important it is to keep building on a season that has exceeded the expectations of a lot of the NHL world.
Larsen had seen a lot of buy-in from his team, as well, as the Jackets continued to put up solid efforts over the past few weeks. But the players even acknowledged Thursday night's showing was short of the standard.
"It just felt like there was no energy for both teams," Zach Werenski said. "Obviously they win the game. I don't think we had much tonight. We had chances to score, I think, but a few of our mistakes and a few bad bounces and they're up 3-1. It's just kind of a weird game. I don't think either team really played that great, but they found a way to win. It's one of those tough games."
Perhaps that will happen once or twice down the stretch, but the Blue Jackets certainly don't want to make a habit of it heading into tonight's game in Detroit.
"It's important," winger Eric Robinson said of finishing well. "These games mean something. This would be one we want to put behind us and get right back to work on Saturday."
Know the Foe
It's been an up-and-down season for the Red Wings, who remain in the midst of a total rebuild and will miss the postseason for the sixth straight season.
The up? Such core youngsters as forward Lucas Raymond (2020 first-round pick) and defenseman Mortiz Seider (2019 first-round pick) have had huge seasons, while the team's .458 points percentage is its best since 2016-17.
The down? The Wings are leaking oil down the stretch, winning just six of their last 22 games, and the team has given up at least nine goals three times since late February, including losses by scores of 11-2 (at Pittsburgh on March 27) and 10-7 (vs. Toronto on Feb. 26). That makes Detroit the first team since the 1995-96 season to give up double digits in goals twice in a campaign.
Overall, Detroit is tied with Montreal for last in the NHL in goals allowed, ceding 3.80 per game, and the penalty kill checks in at only 73.0 percent to place 31st in the league. Offensively, the Wings are 21st overall with 2.85 goals per game, while the power play is 27th at 17.2 percent.
It wouldn't be a stretch to say Raymond and Seider have been the brightest spots on the roster, as Raymond's 22 goals and 53 points are both second among NHL rookies while Seider leads all NHL first-year players with 40 assists among his 45 points (fourth among rookies).
They join such foundational pieces as Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi that the Wings are building around, though Larkin is now in his age 25 season and Bertuzzi is 26. Larkin leads the team with 30 goals and 67 points, while Bertuzzi has made up from an injury-plagued campaign a year ago to post a 26-28-54 line.
Young defenseman Filip Hronek adds five goals and 31 assists for 36 points, while the injured Robby Fabbri (17 goals), Pius Suter (13), Michael Rasmussen (12) and former CBJ forward Sam Gagner (11) are also in double digits.
In net, the defensive inconsistencies haven't helped Ohio native Alex Nedeljkovic settle in, as the former Carolina Hurricane is 18-21-8 with a 3.31 GAA and .901 save percentage in his first year in Detroit. Veteran Thomas Greiss is 9-12-1 with a 3.63 GAA and .890 save percentage.
