PREVIEW: Blue Jackets welcome Canucks to Nationwide Arena
Ryan Murray to make his return as Columbus looks for defensive improvement
"The remedy starts with energy," said Tortorella, who described the game against the Wild as a clunker on Saturday. "We're getting nothing accomplished if we play with the energy level that we've had the past couple of games. And (when you have energy), then you start thinking, you start taking care of reading the ice and defensive coverages and all that. If you don't have the energy and you're chasing the game like we were, that stuff doesn't even come into play.
"As I've said right from the get-go, we've been put in this situation and the reason why we've kept ourselves afloat is because of our energy, is because of the tightness of the group. We're lost without it because we are not skilled enough to win games that way. We have to do it with energy and grind and get back to playing good defense."
From an execution standpoint, shoring up things in their own end is the next big step for Columbus. The Blue Jackets have given up 37 goals over the past nine games, an average of 4.1 per game, including five in consecutive losses to Minnesota.
There is some good news in that regard, though, with the return of Ryan Murray. The defenseman returns after being out since Dec. 14 with a back injury, and he's been one of the more solid two-way defensemen in the league the past two seasons, including two goals and seven points in the first 24 games of this year. He also should see time on special teams.
Strategically, there are a couple of places the team can get better when it comes to the defensive side. Getting out of the defensive zone had been dicey at times over the past few games, and that's one place Murray should help.
In addition, Tortorella points to patience as a key. Minnesota scored twice in a 34-second span Friday in the first seven minutes of the game on two plays where the Blue Jackets lost their patience -- on one, a busted clear ended up in the back of the net when all the forwards flew the zone without the puck; on the second, four Blue Jackets crashed the net looking for a goal, only to see the Wild go the other way to score on an odd-man rush.
There's also the matter of protecting the middle of the ice, as too many of the Wild's goals came either from the slot or right in front of the net.
"I feel like when a team attacks the middle on you, you're kind of giving it to them," defenseman Zach Werenski said. "We're a team that likes to push teams to the outside and give them bad-angle shots. We've given them too many free ones the last few games -- rebounds in front of the net, tonight (Zach) Parise was standing there all alone, stuff like that.
"It's mental mistakes we can't be making this time of year. But we have 16 games left. We still control our fate, so we just have to come back and get ready for Sunday."
Know the Foe
Columbus is yet to face the Canucks this year, making Vancouver the last team the CBJ has not played this season.
It's been a solid bounce-back season for the team, which occupies a playoff spot in the Pacific Division thanks in part to an offense that is ninth in the NHL with 3.25 goals per game. It's been a bit of a rough February, though, for the team, as Vancouver is 4-6-2 in its last 12.
The offseason acquisition of J.T. Miller was panned by some but it's proved to be a huge deal for the Canucks, as the 26-year-old has been a point-per-game player with 25 goals and 40 assists for 65 points.
After that, two youngsters have been huge parts of the equation and might have the Canucks set up for years to come. Last season's Calder Trophy winner, Elias Pettersson, is following up a great rookie campaign with a solid sophomore season with a 25-35-60 line. Meanwhile, 20-year-old rookie Quinn Hughes might be in line for the Calder this year with eight goals and 43 assists to lead all NHL rookies with 51 points.
Bo Horvat adds a 20-31-51 line while Brock Boeser is another good building block piece as the 22-year-old has 16 goals and 45 points but is out with a rib injury. Tanner Pearson (19 goals) and Jake Virtanen (18) also can find the net while deadline acquisition Tyler Toffoli has four goals in five games since joining the team.
In net, Jacob Markstrom is having a Vezina-quality season a 2.75 goals-against average and .918 save percentage, but he's out with a lower-body injury. Thatcher Demko has 23 games under his belt and is 11-8-2 with a 3.08 GAA and .903 save percentage, while Louis Domingue has been acquired from New Jersey to serve as the backup.
3 Keys to the Game
Protect the net: Minnesota scored most of its goals from the dangerous area in front of the net, a spot Columbus has cleared out most of the year.
Play with energy: To Tortorella, this is the biggest key. The Blue Jackets have to grind their ways to wins, the head coach says.
Avoid the box: The Canucks have one of the best power plays in the league, scoring on 24.3 percent of chances, third in the league.
Of Note
Columbus has points in 30 of 37 games (20-7-10) but is 1-5-5 in its last 11. … The team's 14 overtime losses lead the NHL. … Werenski leads all NHL defensemen with a CBJ-record 19 goals from the blue line this season. … Emil Bemstrom has scored in three of four games while Foligno has tallies in four of five. … Alexander Wennberg is one point from 200 in his career. … The Blue Jackets have played in one-goal contests (excluding empty-net goals) in 15 of the last 17 games and 41 one-goal games overall this season. … The Blue Jackets are in the midst of a stretch of six straight games vs. Western Conference foes. … Columbus has lost five straight at home vs. Vancouver.
Projected Lineup
(Subject to change)
Gustav Nyquist - Boone Jenner - Nick Foligno
Stefan Matteau - Alex Wennberg - Riley Nash
Devin Shore - Pierre-Luc Dubois - Emil Bemstrom
Eric Robinson - Kevin Stenlund - Ryan MacInnis
Zach Werenski - David Savard
Ryan Murray - Markus Nutivaara
Vladislav Gavrikov - Andrew Peeke
Joonas Korpisalo
Matiss Kivlenieks
Scratches: Oliver Bjorkstrand (injury), Nathan Gerbe (injury), Jakob Lilja, Gabriel Carlsson, Elvis Merzlikins (injury)
Roster Report:Gerbe did not practice Saturday being he's "nicked up," Tortorella said, and MacInnis took line rushes in his stead. Murray should return and play with Nutivaara.
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