PREVIEW: Blue Jackets finish road trip at Carolina

It would be difficult to imagine two more different games than the ones that kicked off the Blue Jackets’ current road trip, which ends tonight in Carolina.

Saturday, Columbus saw two different multigoal leads go by the wayside, and Florida rallied to take a wild 7-6 victory in the final seconds of overtime. Sunday, goals were much harder to come by, as netminders Jet Greaves and Logan Thompson battled all night before Washington finished off a 2-0 victory.

They were two more games where the Blue Jackets were close but were unable to leave with a victory. Though Columbus has points in 12 of the last 15 contests, the Blue Jackets have dropped 10 games by a one-goal margin this year, plus Sunday’s game that was within one until the Caps’ empty-net tally.

Sunday was also the first time the Blue Jackets were shut out this season, though head coach Dean Evason could find little to quibble about when it comes to his team’s effort.

“They know how hard they’re working,” Evason said of his team. “They know how well we’re playing. Some nights it goes in the net, some nights it doesn’t. Some nights we get the two points, obviously, and then some nights we don’t. Some nights we get one. But yeah, we did a lot of really good things here tonight and just couldn’t find one.”

It wasn’t for a lack of trying, as the Blue Jackets put 39 shots on Thompson, one of the leading Vezina Trophy candidates in the NHL in the early going. But after scoring a combined 16 goals in the previous three games, the Blue Jackets came up empty.

“It’s a little unlucky,” said Kirill Marchenko, who led the way with six shots on goal. “We look at the future, work on our shots a little bit and be ready for the next game. It's a good game today. They score one, we score zero. It’s kind of a playoff game, but (it's) fine.”

On the other hand, the Blue Jackets did a solid job of limiting the attack of a Washington team that ended up winning its 10th game in 12 tries. Columbus’ defensive structure was much closer to where they’d like it after giving up 14 goals in the previous three games, and Greaves made 36 saves of his own in a standout performance.

That will be a key again tonight against a Carolina team that can pressure its way into goals, especially on home ice.

“I think so overall,” Damon Severson said when asked about if the Blue Jackets limited Washington’s chances. “Overall, Jet made some big saves when we needed him to as well. There's obviously going to be breakdowns in games. There’s going to be mistakes that happen, but for the most part I think our game was pretty solid overall to limit a good team like that to one (goal).”

It's also a key Metropolitan Division game, as just four points separate the second-place Hurricanes and last-place Jackets.

Scratches: F Zach Aston-Reese, D Jake Christiansen

Injured reserve/Non-Roster: F Mathieu Olivier (upper body injury), D Erik Gudbranson (upper body injury), F Boone Jenner (upper body injury)

Roster Report: The Blue Jackets were off Monday, so any potential changes to the lineup will come at the team’s morning skate.

This Day in CBJ History

Dec. 9, 2009: Steve Mason stops 32 shots against in his first shutout of the season as the Blue Jackets claim a 3-0 win over Florida at Nationwide Arena. Jason Chimera, Derick Brassard and Samuel Påhlsson score for Columbus.

Dec. 9, 2014: Kevin Connauton scores 1:58 into overtime against Mason to give Columbus a 3-2 home win over Philadelphia.

Dec. 9, 2017: The Blue Jackets improve to 19-10-1 with a 1-0 shutout of Arizona at Nationwide Arena. Sergei Bobrovsky stops 35 shots in his fourth shutout of the season while Josh Anderson scores the only tally just 30 seconds into the game.

Dec. 9, 2019: Columbus posts a 5-2 win at Washington behind a pair of goals from Cam Atkinson. The victory kicks off an 8-0-4 stretch for the Blue Jackets, a 12-game point streak that is the third longest in team history.

The Numbers Game

Zach Werenski remains tied for second among NHL defensemen in goals (nine), is second in points (30), is first in shots on goal (107), places second in average ice time (26:44) and is first in multipoint games (10). He has points in 11 of the last 13 games (5-14-19) and is tied for third in the NHL in scoring in that span. ... Sean Monahan has three goals and three assists in the last five games. … Kirill Marchenko has goals in two of the last three games and has nine tallies in 10 career contests vs. Carolina. ... Blue Jackets defensemen have scored 22 goals this season, one behind Washington for the most in the NHL. … Jet Greaves has posted a 4-1-4 record and .917 save percentage in his last nine starts. ... Denton Mateychuk’s six goals tie for fifth among NHL defensemen. ... Miles Wood has points in six of the last 10 games, posting a 4-4-8 line, and is one goal away from 100 in his NHL career. ... The Blue Jackets have points in 12 of the last 14 games (6-3-6).

Know The Foe: Carolina Hurricanes

Head coach: Rod Brind'Amour (Eighth season)

Team stats: Goals per game: 3.32 (6th) | Scoring defense: 2.89 (14th)| PP: 15.3 percent (27th) | PK: 79.0 percent (23rd)

The narrative: Players and management have come and gone, but most things stay the same in Carolina under Brind’Amour, who has led the franchise to the playoffs in every year of his tenure. But yet again, the Hurricanes came up short of the ultimate goal a season ago, falling to Florida in the Eastern Conference Final. Carolina remains in the mix for a fourth Metropolitan Division title in seven years, but all eyes will be on whether the squad can get over the hump in the postseason.

Scoring leaders: Sebastian Aho is one of the most consistent players in the league, as the fantastic Finn leads the Canes with 26 points thanks to nine goals and 17 assists. Seth Jarvis leads the squad with 16 goals among his 24 points, and he seems well on his way to a third straight 30-goal season. Shayne Gostisbehere leads the defense with a 3-18-21 line in 19 games, while the team’s big offseason acquisition, high-scoring wing Nikolaj Ehlers, has a 6-13-19 line.

In net: Carolina has played three goalies this season, with veteran Frederik Andersen posting a team-high 14 starts as well as a 5-7-2 record, 3.15 GAA and .875 save percentage. Brandon Bussi has been one of the best stories of the young season, making his NHL debut at age 27 and going 8-1-0 with a 2.21 GAA and .903 SV%. Injuries have limited Pyotr Kochetkov to just six games, though he’s posted a 1.96 GAA.

What's new: You know what you're getting with the Canes, as their smothering style again has Carolina first in the league in shot attempt percentage (60.5) at 5-on-5 by a wide margin. They put pressure on you from the opening faceoff and fire just about everything toward the net, putting teams under stress for a full 60 minutes. Tonight’s game ends a seven-game homestand for the Hurricanes, who are 3-3-0 thus far and are coming off a 4-1 loss to San Jose on Sunday. Jaccob Slavin is the only major injury, as the defenseman has been limited to just two games this year but appears close to a return.

Trending: The Blue Jackets have lost six straight in Raleigh and are just 5-10-0 against the Canes the past four seasons, though they did capture both games in Nationwide Arena a season ago.

Former CBJ: Eric Robinson is in year two in Carolina, and he’s posted a 5-2-7 line in 22 games.