PREVIEW: Blue Jackets bring momentum into matchup with Kings

Thursday, the Blue Jackets won by a 1-0 score in regulation for just the 15th time in their 25-year history, scoring an early goal and holding off Dallas for the next 50-plus minutes.

Saturday, there were 13 combined goals scored in Nationwide Arena, but the result was the same – the Blue Jackets knocked off one of the best teams in the NHL. Columbus scored a season-high eight goals and batted back a barrage of comeback attempts by Tampa Bay, earning an 8-5 victory to end the Bolts’ 15-game point streak.

As the Blue Jackets moved to six wins in the last seven games, they showed what is often the mark of a good team – the ability to win two vastly different styles of game.

“For sure,” Mason Marchment said after he posted his first CBJ hat trick in the victory over the Lightning. “They’re two really good, different teams, and you’re going to have to win different kinds of ways every night. The thing that stuck out for me is just the way we bounced back after they came back and pushed against us in the second there. For us to keep our foot on the gas and keep frustrating them is huge.”

And while one game featured 12 more goals than the other, there were similarities in the Blue Jackets’ game – in particular the way they stuck together and played a team game throughout. That’s what head coach Rick Bowness has been preaching, and the message has been eagerly received as Columbus has won five of his first six contests to move within four points of third place in the Eastern Conference.

Looking back, the Blue Jackets’ defending likely wasn’t as bad as the final score indicated, either, as Tampa Bay got one goal on a fluke mistake by the CBJ and also scored a power-play tally and an extra-attacker goal. Bowness wasn’t super pleased with the 1980s scoreline, but he did like the way his team stuck with it to get the victory.

“That’s what you have to be able to do, find a way to win a game,” Bowness said. “That’s the bottom line, right? I hate giving up five goals. It just drives me nuts, but I give that team over there a lot of credit. ... I think there was a couple that we made it a little too easy for them, but when you break the game down, they had the power-play goal, they had the 6-on-5 goal. They got the fluky one on the third, so when you look at it, you say, ‘OK, really, we gave up two.’

“So that being said, I see that the good news again is we’ve got better than this. We’ll play better than that, but it doesn’t matter. Find a way to win any way you can.”

So far, for the most part, the Blue Jackets have found a way to do that under Bowness. They’ll have another chance to add two points tonight as Los Angeles comes to snowy Columbus, and the head coach wants to see his team keep taking steps to get to where they want to go.

“I enjoy it because I see the areas that I know we can be better at,” Bowness said. “I like that challenge. Even though we’re winning. I like the challenge of keep pushing us to make us better.”

Scratches: Zach Aston-Reese, Brendan Gaunce, Dante Fabbro (lower body injury)

Injured Reserve: D Denton Mateychuk (upper body injury, day to day); F Miles Wood (lower body injury, week to week); D Brendan Smith (knee surgery, out three to four months as of Jan. 8)

Roster Report: The Blue Jackets were off because of Sunday's snowstorm, so we'll have to see today if any changes are coming. Mateychuk took part in the team’s Saturday morning skate and could be set for a return in the near future.

This Day in CBJ History

Jan. 26, 2007: The Blue Jackets capture a 3-2 win vs. Buffalo in Nationwide Arena in which Fredrik Norrena stops Daniel Paille’s penalty shot attempt in the second period with the Sabres ahead 2-1. That proved crucial as Rostislav Klesla and Dan Fritsche scored in the third to give the Blue Jackets the win. On the same day, Columbus acquires LW Curtis Glencross, C Zenon Konopka and a seventh-round pick from Anaheim in exchange for RW Joe Motzko, C Mark Hartigan and a fourth-round pick.

Jan. 26, 2022: Elvis Merzlikins makes a franchise record 56 saves but the Blue Jackets drop a 6-0 final to Calgary in Nationwide Arena. Johnny Gaudreau has three assists and Erik Gudbranson scores for the Flames.

The Numbers Game

Dmitri Voronkov is set to play in his 200th career NHL game. ... Zach Werenski has a point in 18 of the last 19 home games with 33 points (14-19-33) in that span. After two assists Saturday vs. Tampa Bay, he has points in 15 of the last 17 games (10-15-25) as well as 26 of the last 31 (15-29-44). He is first among NHL defensemen in goals (19), second in points (55), second in average ice time (26:39) and is first in multipoint games (18). With one more goal, he’ll notch his third 20-goal season and become the fourth active NHL defenseman with three-plus 20-goal seasons. ... Mason Marchment earned his third career hat trick and the second for the Blue Jackets this season (Kirill Marchenko at Minnesota on Oct. 11) on Saturday night. With eight goals and 11 points since joining the team, Marchment has set franchise records in both categories by a player in his first nine games with the franchise. ... Kirill Marchenko has eight points in the last seven games (2-6-8) and points in 12 of the last 16 games (8-9-17). ... With a goal and two assists Saturday, Charlie Coyle notched his fifth game with at least three points this season. ... Goaltender Jet Greaves has won his last four decisions and has a .915 save percentage in his last 13 appearances. ... Blue Jackets defensemen have scored 38 goals this season, the most in the NHL. … Columbus has scored the first goal in 15 of the last 20 contests and is 5-1 in shootouts this year. ... Danton Heinen is two goals from 100 in his NHL career.

Know The Foe: Los Angeles Kings

Head coach: Jim Hiller (Third season)

Team stats: Goals per game: 2.60 (29th) | Scoring defense: 2.74 (4th) | PP: 15.2 percent (32nd) | PK: 77.3 percent (25th)

The narrative: The Kings have made the playoffs four straight seasons but lost in the first round in all four, and this year’s squad is in the postseason mix yet again in the crowded Pacific Division. One of the NHL’s oldest squads, Los Angeles has found it hard to get over the hump while battling the likes of Edmonton and Vegas in the Pacific the past few years, and this year’s team may need a shakeup to get where it wants to go given how hard goals have been to come by.

Scoring leaders: One of the NHL’s most consistent performers over the past few seasons, Adrian Kempe leads the way with a team-high 39 points, including 17 goals and 22 assists. Kevin Fiala leads the squad with 18 goals among his 36 points, but offense has been a struggle for the Kings this year. Quinton Byfield (9-19-28) and Corey Perry (10-15-25) follow, while 22-year-old Brandt Clarke is the highest-scoring defensemen with 25 points, including six goals.

In net: Darcy Kuemper has started a team-best 33 games, going 13-9-9 with a 2.56 GAA and .902 save percentage. Anton Forsberg is the backup, with the former Blue Jacket posting an 8-6-4 record, 2.56 GAA and .907 save percentage.

What's new: The Kings have been without legendary center Anze Kopitar of late, as his final NHL season has been derailed by a lower-body injury that has kept him out since early January. With a 6-15-21 line in 37 games, Kopitar is on the team’s road trip and could return soon. That hasn’t helped the team’s struggling offense, as LA went 5-8-6 and averaged 2.37 goals in a 19-game span from Dec. 10 to Jan. 17 before winning the last two games vs. the New York Rangers (4-3) and at St. Louis (5-4, shootout).

Trending: The Blue Jackets snapped a four-game losing skid in Los Angeles on Dec. 22 with a 3-1 victory. Columbus has points in eight of the last nine in Nationwide Arena (5-1-3) after last season’s 3-2 OT victory Jan. 25.

Former CBJ: Forsberg signed a two-year deal with the Kings this offseason after five years in Ottawa.