Columbus Blue Jackets season snapshot

With the NHL pausing the 2019-20 regular season on March 12 due to the concerns surrounding the coronavirus, NHL.com is taking stock of each of the League's 31 teams.
Today, a snapshot of the Columbus Blue Jackets at the pause:

Columbus Blue Jackets

Record: 33-22-15, 81 points
Playoff position: Tied with Carolina Hurricanes for first wild card into Stanley Cup Playoffs from Eastern Conference
The Columbus Blue Jackets have defied expectations by staying in the Stanley Cup Playoff hunt, overcoming 14 injured players, including forwards Josh Anderson (44 games) Oliver Bjorkstrand (21), Cam Atkinson (26) and Brandon Dubinsky (who hasn't played this season); defenseman Seth Jones (14); and goalie Joonas Korpisalo (24). The Blue Jackets lead the NHL with 419 man-games lost to injury.
The injuries came after they lost goalie Sergei Bobrovsky to the Florida Panthers, and forwards Artemi Panarin to the New York Rangers and Matt Duchene to the Nashville Predators as free agents this offseason.
More Blue Jackets season snapshot coverage: Awards | Fantasy honors | Memorable moments
Columbus had the third-best record in the NHL from Dec. 1 to Jan. 31, going 16-5-4 and allowing 49 goals in 25 games, the fewest in that span.
The injuries and free agents sapped the Blue Jackets of scoring. They are 28th in the NHL with 180 goals, an average of 2.57 per game..
Defense and goaltending have been saving graces. Columbus allowed 183 goals and is third in the NHL in goals-against per game at 2.61.
Defenseman Zach Werenski has filled some of the scoring void. He leads NHL defensemen with 20 goals and is 16th among defensemen with 41 points (21 assists) in 63 games.
Goaltending has been a strength. Korpisalo, who was selected to the 2020 Honda NHL All-Star Game, is 19-12-5 in his past 37 games with two shutouts, a 2.60 goals-against average and .911 save percentage. Rookie Elvis Merzlikins is 13-9-0 in his past 33 games with five shutouts, a 2.35 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage.

Breakout player

Werenski stepped up in Jones' injury absence. The 22-year-old defenseman is on pace to surpass last season's 44 points (11 goals, 33 assists) in 82 games. Werenski is plus-9, up from minus-12 last season.

Statement win

Blue Jackets 3, Hurricanes 2, Jan. 16: The home win moved Columbus into a playoff spot. The Blue Jackets were outshot 34-18, but Merzlikins made 32 saves and John Tortorella earned his 200th win as Blue Jackets coach. "It was just one of those games," Tortorella said. "We're probably playing the fastest team in the League, and we just as a group had one of those lethargic games. You can't explain it. But it's a find-a-way league. I thought we played a better third period."

Most compelling game

Blue Jackets 5, Vancouver Canucks 3, March 1: The Blue Jackets trailed 2-0 in the first seven minutes and were down 3-1 21 minutes into the game. But Columbus mounted a comeback with less than eight minutes left in the third period with goals by Riley Nash, Werenski, Emil Bemstrom and Gustav Nyquist.