PREVIEW: Blue Jackets look to be heroes as they host Canucks

Tuesday was a day of change – and, in the end, success – for the Blue Jackets.

Facing a critical stretch of games heading into the Olympic break, president of hockey operations and general manager Don Waddell made the decision Monday to replace head coach Dean Evason with Rick Bowness, and that didn’t leave much time for the team to get ready for Tuesday’s game vs. Calgary.

Bowness met with the team in the morning, led a pregame skate and then was behind the bench for an NHL-record 2,727th time as Columbus broke a 3-3 tie with 1:34 remaining on Boone Jenner’s goal and finished off the victory over the Flames.

It was the second win in a row for the Blue Jackets, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Not only did the victory start the Bowness era off on a good note, it came as Columbus began a stretch of seven home games in eight that provides the opportunity to rise up the Eastern Conference standings.

While CBJ players were disappointed their record meant that a change was necessary, they viewed Waddell’s decision to make a move as a sign the front office still believes in the team’s ability to play postseason hockey. Veteran Charlie Coyle called it “a tough day for everyone, and it’s a kick in the butt for everyone, too,” and the Blue Jackets responded to earn a crucial victory.

“You want to make the most of it, and yeah, we played a solid game for the most part,” Coyle said. “We get that goal with a minute 30 (seconds) left, and that doesn’t always happen like that, but I think it’s a great thing that it happened that way just because you get rewarded for playing the right way for the most part and you make it happen.”

After watching the tape, Bowness was pleased with what he saw from the team – other than, perhaps, three power-play goals allowed that let the Flames stay in the game. But while there will be a few tweaks and changes coming to the team’s X’s and O’s, what the new head coach wants to see the most is a team that competes and sticks up for one another, and the Blue Jackets passed the first test.

“Not a lot of things,” Bowness said when asked if he saw a lot he wanted to fix. “Certain things, for sure. I thought we had a great second period. We didn’t give up a scoring chance 5-on-5, but it was the penalty kill that kept them in the game, which we’re going to fix. Listen, we did a lot of good things last night, and there’s some things that I’m changing that aren’t going to happen overnight.

“But what I saw, when we were really effective, they weren’t getting anything through the neutral zone or anything off the rush. When we were out of that a little bit, that’s when we got in a little bit of trouble. Also in the (defensive) zone, I still want us to get nasty. I still want us to end plays more.”

Game two of the Bowness era comes tonight as a struggling Vancouver team comes to Nationwide Arena for DC Comics Superman™ Night. If the Blue Jackets appear to be faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, it’s because confidence is building.

“As players, when there’s a switch, you treat it like a fresh start,” Cole Sillinger said. “Obviously the last game was a positive lift for our group, and we just have to continue to build and trust each other that we have what it takes in the locker room. It’s also on us players to get the job done and help Bones out. It’s a fresh start and a new opportunity.”

Scratches: Zach Aston-Reese, Denton Mateychuk (upper body injury), Damon Severson (illness)

Injured Reserve: F Mason Marchment (upper body injury, week to week); F Miles Wood (lower body injury, week to week); D Erik Gudbranson (upper body injury, returned to practice); F Isac Lundeström (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 used the above lineup Tuesday, as the team didn't have Mateychuk or Severson for the contest against the Flames. Provorov and Zamula also missed practice Wednesday while Gudbranson took a full skate, so it seems fair to say the team will have to figure out who can go on defense today.

This Day in CBJ History

Jan. 15, 2001: Less than a month after posting the first shutout in CBJ history, Ron Tugnutt earns the first for the Blue Jackets in Nationwide Arena, stopping 31 shots in a 3-0 victory over fellow expansion squad Minnesota. Geoff Sanderson scores a pair of goals while Tyler Wright also tallies. Columbus would go on to earn points in eight straight games, the second best such streak for an expansion franchise at the time.

Jan. 15, 2019: John Tortorella coaches his 285th career game behind the CBJ bench vs. New Jersey, passing Ken Hitchcock for the most games in franchise history. Columbus wins its fourth straight game by downing the Devils by a 4-1 score, with Artemi Panarin, Cam Atkinson and Pierre-Luc Dubois each notching a goal and an assist.

Jan. 15, 2024: Foreshadowing? The Blue Jackets down Vancouver in Nationwide Arena, earning a 4-3 shootout victory thanks to Kirill Marchenko’s deciding tally in the fourth round.

The Numbers Game

After posting a 1-2-3 line against Calgary, Zach Werenski has points in 11 of the last 12 games (8-12-20) as well as 22 of the last 26 (13-26-39) and has scored eight times in the last 10 games. He has 11 goals and 29 points in his last 15 home games and is first among NHL defensemen in goals (17) and multipoint games (17) as well as second in points (50) and average ice time (26:37). ... Kirill Marchenko has points in nine of the last 11 games (6-6-12). ... With two goals and an assist, Charlie Coyle posted his fourth game with at least three-plus points Tuesday. ... Blue Jackets defensemen have scored 36 goals this season, the most in the NHL. … Boone Jenner is one assist away from 200 in his CBJ/NHL career – he'd be the fourth player in CBJ history to reach that mark after Werenski (304), Rick Nash (258) and David Vyborny (204) – while Coyle is two goals from 200 in his NHL career.

Know The Foe: Vancouver Canucks

Head coach: Adam Foote (First season)

Team stats: Goals per game: 2.63 (27th) | Scoring defense: 3.59 (31st) | PP: 19.6 percent (16th) | PK: 73.1 percent (30th)

The narrative: This always felt like a make-or-break season for the Canucks, who have boasted plenty of talent the past few years but made the playoffs just twice in the past decade. Finally, the other shoe dropped in mid-December when star defenseman Quinn Hughes was dealt to Minnesota for a bevy of young talent, and the Canucks appear to be considering what needs to be done to make the franchise a success in the future rather than the present. And the present appears pretty grim, with the Canucks last in the NHL with 37 points.

Scoring leaders: Elias Petterson has missed eight games on the season but still leads the way with a 13-15-28 line, though his point total is the lowest in the NHL for a player leading his team this season. Filip Hronek paces the defensemen and is second on the squad with 27 points, 24 of which are assists, while Central Ohio native Kiefer Sherwood has a team-best 17 goals but is out with injury. Though he’s been gone for a month, Hughes remains fourth on the team with 23 points.

In net: Longtime Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko is on injured reserve, with Kevin Lankinen currently leading the team with 23 games played and 21 starts while posting a 6-12-4 record, 3.34 GAA and .887 save percentage. Belarus native Nikita Tolopilo, 25, is also on the roster and has played in five games with a 3.50 GAA.

What's new: The bottom has fallen out for the Canucks, who responded to the Hughes trade by winning four straight games but are just 1-8-2 since then with eight straight losses. Injuries haven’t helped, as Sherwood and Demko are joined on the shelf by Marco Rossi – who was acquired from the Wild in the deal – as well as Teddy Blueger and longterm injuries to Filip Chytil and Derek Forbort. The Canucks are at the end of a six-game road swing, which so far has yielded zero points while the team has been outscored 23-8.

Trending: Columbus dropped a 4-3 final Nov. 8 in Vancouver, their fifth straight loss on the road in the series. On the other hand, the Blue Jackets have won five straight in Columbus.

Former CBJ: After playing six games with the Blue Jackets last season, wing Joseph LaBate has ended up back in Vancouver – the team that originally drafted him in 2011 – and played one game this season. Foote is a former CBJ captain in his first season as an NHL head coach, while Sherwood hasn’t played for the Jackets but is a Columbus native who will be a rather attractive piece at the trade deadline given his goal scoring and his 210 hits, second in the league.