The Columbus Blue Jackets got run out of the building Saturday night, dropping a 4-1 decision to the Utah Mammoth in a game that tilted fast and stayed there.
Utah set the tone early and turned the night into a pace Columbus couldn’t match. Once the Mammoth got rolling, the Blue Jackets were chasing, and that’s a bad place to be against a team built to play at speed.
Columbus did get one highlight. Kent Johnson scored the Jackets’ lone goal, beating Mammoth goalie Sebastian Cossa on a breakaway after Matthew Knies made a sharp pass off the boards to send him in. It was Johnson’s first goal of the season, and he finished with five shots on goal, matching his single-game career high for the seventh time.
Knies had the assist on that goal and kept his strong start going. He now has points in both games this season, and with four points through his first two games, he became the first player to do that with the Blue Jackets. The previous mark had been three points, done seven times before.
Adam Fantilli also made his presence felt in the circle. He went 15-of-20 on faceoffs, leading all skaters on both teams, and has won 31 of his first 40 draws this season. Columbus as a team finished with a 55.7 percent edge on faceoffs, going 34-of-61.
But the Blue Jackets couldn’t keep Utah out of the net when it mattered most. The Mammoth scored three times on four power plays, and Columbus managed to kill only one of those four penalties.
Jet Greaves faced 31 Utah shots and stopped 27, but the volume and the special-teams gap made the job a tough one. Utah had eight shots on those four power plays alone.
Saturday also carried a bit of history. It was the first meeting in the series to end in regulation. The first four games between the Blue Jackets and Mammoth all went to overtime, and the visiting team has now won all five matchups.
Zach Werenski was busy in a losing effort, logging 31:43 and blocking five shots. Mathieu Olivier led Columbus with four hits, while the Jackets as a team finished with 21 hits and 23 blocks.
Next up for Columbus is a home date with the Pittsburgh Penguins next Friday at Nationwide Arena.
In Other News...
Blue Jackets Have A Problem Game 2 Exposed Fast
Game 2 gave Columbus an early reminder that the margin for error in this series is thin. Utah rolled to a 4-1 win, leaned on a sharp transition game and stayed ahead in shots and expected goals from start to finish, leaving the Blue Jackets chasing a pace they never really controlled. Columbus managed its lone goal in the second period, but the overall flow of the game kept tilting the other way.
The special teams gap only made the night harder to absorb for Columbus. Utah cashed in on its power play and kept applying pressure late, outshooting the Blue Jackets in the third period and turning a manageable night into a more lopsided result. For a team that needs cleaner execution and better answers when the game opens up, the issues exposed here came quickly and in more than one phase. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Already Face An Early Test They Couldn't Afford
A win over Buffalo and a loss to Utah gave Columbus an early read on where this group stands after a summer of change. Matthew Knies has already been folded into the mix and provided some offense, while Adam Fantillis extension gave the franchise another important piece of long-term stability. Even so, the first week has reminded the Blue Jackets that progress is going to be tested quickly, especially on the back end where the lineup has already been stretched.
The defense has had to absorb more than its share of turbulence, forcing other skaters into bigger minutes and tougher matchups sooner than planned. With a lighter week ahead against Pittsburgh and St. Louis, Columbus has a chance to steady itself, but the bigger question is how long the rotation can hold up if the injury situation keeps taxing the blue line. For a team trying to build momentum early, this is the kind of problem it would much rather avoid. [Read more 🡒]