The Blue Jackets face two important early tests this weekend – Hockey Writer – Columbus Blue Jackets
After a 5-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night, the Columbus Blue Jackets return home to face two important early-season tests. How these factors play out during the season will go a long way in determining whether the Blue Jackets make the playoffs.
The Blue Jackets will face the Washington Capitals on Friday night. Then on Saturday night, they traveled across Interstate 70 to take on the red-hot Pittsburgh Penguins.
If you look closely you can see what these two tests are. The first test was a pair of games against their division. The second test is their first of 15 back-to-back games this season.
powerful subway
The Blue Jackets enter Friday’s opener with the fewest points in the Metropolitan Division. There are some nuances to this.
The Blue Jackets enter play on Friday having played just six games and have the fewest games in the conference. All other teams have played at least seven games.
Although the Blue Jackets scored the fewest points with 6 points, their scoring rate was not the lowest in the conference. That honor belongs to the New York Rangers, who have a .444 scoring average. The Blue Jackets enter Friday at .500.
The Blue Jackets pulled off an impressive 5-1 victory in Dallas. Why do they look so backward on the subway? It’s been an incredible start for the top team.
The four teams, Metro, Devils, Hurricanes, Penguins and Capitals, have a combined opening record of 23 wins, 6 draws and 0 losses. The Capitals enter Friday’s game in Columbus with a .714 winning percentage, ranked fourth. It was still very early. But this picture perfectly illustrates the importance of the first test.
The Blue Jackets must deal with enemies in the Metro Sector. This is especially true at home at the National Stadium. Considering how fast the conference top spot has started, the Blue Jackets will have to win games to keep up.
The only way for a team to secure a playoff spot is to finish in the top three in its conference. Otherwise, it comes down to how the rest of the league fares in terms of wild-card positioning.
If the Blue Jackets hope to make the playoffs, they’re going to have to play better against conference teams. Friday’s game against the Capitals takes on added importance knowing that 24 hours later they’ll travel to Pittsburgh to take on the 6-2-0 Penguins. This is where the second test comes into play.
Terrible back to back
Every team in the NHL will face a ton of back-to-back games on their schedule. That’s what hosting the Olympics does.
Teams that want to make the playoffs have to manage these games with lower energy levels the next night. How will the Blue Jackets adjust after struggling for much of last season?
The Blue Jackets will face 15 back-to-back games in the 2025-26 season. The problem they had last season was falling behind early in games. Especially in Game 2, it will be Jeter Greaves or Elvis Merzlikins who will hold down the fort. Merzlikins is expected to start Saturday in Pittsburgh.
Before the end of the first quarter, the score could be 2-0 or 3-0. The Blue Jackets had to spend their time playing catch-up after that. The focus will be on better starts and easier matches to stay in these matches.
As has been well documented, the Blue Jackets missed the playoffs by two points last season. If we win one more game here, or lose one in overtime, the rankings will change a lot. While the team will focus on the game at hand, they must enter Game 2 ready to take on the rested Penguins.
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As last season went on, the Blue Jackets got better in conference play and back-to-back games. This is largely due to teams dropping out of the hunt or having no extra games to play. Now we’ll see if they can continue their success against teams that are motivated to pick up points early in the season.
The Blue Jackets are 3-3-0 and feel good about their second straight win. These two games against the Capitals and Penguins will provide a good litmus test to see where the team is.
Division success. Success in back-to-back games. If the Blue Jackets can make enough progress in both areas, it should give them the confidence to know they can make the playoffs in 2025-26.
