The Columbus Blue Jackets continue their five-game Western Conference road trip on Thursday when they face the Edmonton Oilers.
Both teams are coming off shutout losses on Tuesday. The Blue Jackets’ six-game point streak (5-0-1) ended with a 3-0 loss to the Calgary Flames, while the Oilers concluded a three-game trip with a 1-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Edmonton’s shutout loss was its fourth this season. According to Statmuse, the Oilers are tied with five other teams for the second-most shutout losses, and only the Utah Hockey Club (five) have been blanked more often.
The lack of offense is a far cry from last season’s squad, which scored the fourth-most goals in the NHL. Through 25 games, the Oilers have tallied 72 goals, ranking 21st in the 32-team league, a somewhat surprising figure, especially given that the team features Leon Draisaitl (17 goals, 15 assists, 32 points) and Connor McDavid (12-19-31). Both players are among the top 14 in the league in points.
After the loss, Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch attributed the lack of shots to the style of game that was played.
“It was a tight-checking game,” Knoblauch said. “There wasn’t much room … I think we had some really good chances in the second period, where we just didn’t get a good shot. Either it was just on the ice, or we missed the net, or we just couldn’t get our stick on a couple around the back door, little tap-ins that we just didn’t connect on.”
The Oilers’ shutout loss also ended a three-game winning streak that coincided with a boost on offense. Edmonton scored 14 goals in those three games and 22 in the previous five games (4-1-0).
Columbus suffered its first shutout of the season Tuesday and posted a season-low 16 shots on goal after scoring 31 times during the previous six games. Zach Werenski’s eight-game point streak also ended in the Blue Jackets’ loss. The defenseman, who leads the team with 26 points (eight goals, 18 assists), registered 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) during his streak.
The game Tuesday also featured a pregame ceremony honoring the late Johnny Gaudreau, who played for both teams and died in August along with his brother after they were struck by a vehicle while riding their bikes. Though the ceremony was emotional, Columbus coach Dean Evason declined to blame that for the team’s flat performance.
“For whatever reason, we’re going to dive into it tonight (and) tomorrow, but we didn’t have the same pop that we’ve had,” he said. “We were just kind of a step behind all night, literally.”
The Blue Jackets have surged recently despite the team’s struggles on special teams. Columbus has allowed at least one power-play goal in the past 10 games. The team has allowed 14 goals during that span while down a skater, including five in the past two contests. Meanwhile, the Blue Jackets have scored just four goals in 25 opportunities with the man advantage in that same stretch.
–Field Level Media