The Blue Jackets are back at Nationwide Arena tonight, and the Utah Mammoth are coming in with a quick reminder of what kind of test this could be. Columbus opened its season Thursday with a 6-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres, while Utah rolled past the Chicago Blackhawks 6-0 on the road the same night.
That Jackets win came with the two points, but not much polish. The start was rough, and Columbus didn’t really settle in until Buffalo made it 1-0.
Against a Mammoth team that brings talent and depth across the lineup, that kind of uneven effort could get exposed fast. The only other meeting between these teams this season comes on February 17 in Salt Lake City.
For Columbus, the night comes down to more than just another home game. It’s about whether the Jackets can clean up the details, keep their top line rolling, and bring the kind of edge that changes the tone of a game.
The first area to watch is the defensive side. The Jackets had real trouble there on Thursday, especially when Buffalo attacked off the rush.
There were too many odd-man looks, and the Sabres repeatedly found space with cross-ice passes. Jet Greaves bailed them out on several of those chances, but Buffalo’s first goal was the clearest example of the issue.
Columbus was stacked too deep beyond the blue line and gave the Sabres time and room to create.
That’s the kind of mistake Rick Bowness’ club has to clean up tonight. The gaps need to shrink, the turnovers need to be trimmed down, and the Jackets have to play smarter in their own end. One player to keep an eye on in that mix is Jake Christiansen.
The second thing to monitor is whether the top line’s strong start was real chemistry or just a one-night burst. Columbus got three goals from that line on Thursday, and it powered the win.
The question now is whether that group can keep it going when the game gets messy or swings the other way. Even if the points don’t come, the bigger signs matter: are they driving play, connecting on passes, staying dangerous?
Per the TV broadcast, the Jackets have the youngest top line in the NHL. If that group can keep producing the way it did Thursday, the ceiling for this team gets a lot more interesting.
The third area is the physical side of the game. Utah brings a mix of size and skill that looks a lot like Columbus in some ways - young, big, and deep.
The Jackets didn’t lean into that enough against Buffalo, and they looked flat in the second period until the game turned emotional. Their 5-on-3 penalty kill, sparked by Mathieu Olivier lighting a fuse, helped swing the night.
That kind of edge is something Columbus should try to bring again. Maybe it comes from Olivier.
Maybe Ryan Lomberg. Maybe even Emil Andrae, who’s clearly fun to watch.
However it shows up, the Jackets seem to play their best when the game gets heated. Even against a Western Conference opponent, that’s the identity they need to keep building.
In Other News...
Sabres Leave Columbus With Two Big Problems Already Showing
Buffalos season opener in Columbus gave the Sabres an early reminder that one strong skater cant cover for a shaky night in goal. The Blue Jackets skated away with a 6-3 win, but there were still a few signs the Sabres have some backbone, especially after the way they kept pressing even as the game slipped away.
Owen Power was one of the few bright spots for Buffalo, logging heavy minutes and helping drive play from the back end with two assists. Still, the bigger concern from this one was the kind of early goaltending trouble that can put a team behind the eight ball fast, and with a tough schedule looming, the Sabres do not have much time to sort it out. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets May Already Be Moving On From Jake Christiansen
Jake Christiansens place in the Blue Jackets defensive picture looked shakier in a recent game against Buffalo, even with Columbus dealing with injuries on the blue line. The left-shot defenseman started out with regular shifts, but his usage quickly tapered off as the night went on, a sign that the staff was not fully comfortable leaving him in the rotation even under less-than-ideal circumstances.
What stood out was not just the reduced workload, but who was being trusted instead. Carson Soucy and Emil Andrae were both getting the nod ahead of Christiansen despite the shortage of healthy defensemen, which says plenty about where he sits when the group is at full strength. His positioning and defensive play have been under the microscope, and the way Columbus handled him suggests the evaluation is already shifting toward other options. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Fans Face A New Reality For Watching This Season
Blue Jackets fans are heading into the 2026-27 season with a very different viewing setup, as the teams games will largely live on the Blue Jackets Hockey Network rather than in the familiar place many viewers are used to. The network will be available regionally through Fubos My Local Sports add-on, giving Columbus followers a streaming-first path to keep up with the team across the regular season.
For fans, the shift also means navigating Fubos subscription options and deciding whether the service fits the way they watch sports beyond hockey. The appeal is straightforward enough: one platform, a broad mix of live sports channels and unlimited Cloud DVR, plus the ability to follow Blue Jackets coverage through the teams own network without having to piece together a traditional cable setup. [Read more 🡒]