The Columbus Blue Jackets wanted Friday night in Buffalo to be the capstone on a clean 3-0 week. Instead, they walked out with a 5-2 loss, another reminder that the road and the second night of back-to-backs are still giving them trouble.
Josh Norris led the way for the Sabres with two goals, and Owen Power piled up three assists in a game Buffalo controlled for long stretches. Kent Johnson had a goal and an assist for Columbus, and Zach Werenski scored for the second straight game. That was about as much good news as the Blue Jackets could find.
Buffalo set the tone early and never really gave it back. Outside of a few brief stretches where Columbus showed some life, the Sabres were the team dictating pace and forcing the issue. The Blue Jackets never looked fully settled, and that slow start left them chasing the game before it had a chance to become competitive.
Head coach Rick Bowness didn’t hide his frustration afterward.
“That’s what I told the players after,” Bowness said. “We will take a look at what we’re doing as a coaching staff, but they have to take a look at what they’re doing to prepare for a back-to-back.
There are a lot more, there’s 10 more or whatever, coming. We have to take a good look at that.
We’ve played better in the back-to-backs than we did here tonight and that’s a hungry team over there.”
What bothered him most was how cleanly Buffalo was able to attack. The Sabres leaned into their speed, and Columbus didn’t manage the puck well enough to slow them down.
“They’re a rush team,” Bowness said. “(Our) puck management wasn’t where it has to be.
You saw how we got that first goal. It was a good forecheck and created some really good opportunities.
But you’re going to lose some games. It’s just how you lose, and I don’t like how - we just made it too easy for them tonight.”
The loss pushed Columbus to 1-5 on the road and 0-3 in the second half of back-to-backs. Only the Chicago Blackhawks have yet to win a road game this season. The Blue Jackets have been outscored 21-13 away from home, including 12-6 in those second-night road games.
Charlie Coyle put the night in plain terms.
“We didn’t come out as hungry as they did. Simple as that.”
He said the answer starts with communication and execution.
“I think just talk,” Coyle said. “We prep.
We do our video. We do everything we need to do.
It’s just up to us to go out and execute and play the right way and be on our toes. They came out hard and they didn’t let up.
It doesn’t matter what night, doesn’t matter if we just played three in a row or four in a row. We have to come out with the same mindset.
If we take quicker shifts doing it, then that’s the play.”
Mathieu Olivier agreed the Blue Jackets didn’t have enough jump, but he pushed back on the idea that the road issues have become something bigger.
“If we start looking into that, then it becomes a thing,” Olivier said. “It’s not a trend yet.
Three of those losses came on the road the second night of back-to-back and we have to find a way to be more ready to play. Tonight our jump was off and our battle level was off a little bit and that’s what ultimately cost us the game.
It’s not a trend. It’s just a compete and execution thing.”
The Blue Jackets did manage a 2-1 week, with both wins coming at home, so the overall picture isn’t all bad. But the split also showed the same problem in two different places: a 6-3 home record is helping, while the road results are dragging the bigger number down.
There were moments, including Johnson’s goal, where Columbus had a chance to grab control. Buffalo answered by turning up the pressure and outworking them the rest of the way.
Now the Blue Jackets get a few days to regroup before hosting the Florida Panthers at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday. The biggest question is the health of Sean Monahan and Dmitri Voronkov. Monahan blocked a shot and left the game, while Voronkov suffered an upper-body injury in the third period and was seen in street clothes after the final horn.
Bowness said both were still being evaluated and had no further update. If either or both are unavailable, Luca Del Bel Belluz and Ryan Lomberg would be in line to enter the lineup after being healthy scratches Friday.
Columbus returns to practice Sunday morning, and that should bring more clarity on the injuries.
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