The Chase is your daily report on where the Blue Jackets stand in the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs race. What happened, what's next, and who to cheer for.
One week ago, the Blue Jackets seemed dead in the water in regards to their postseason chase. They were losers of eight games in a row, and the injuries were piling up by the day.
Since then, though - the Blue Jackets have won two out of three games, and thanks to some help across the league, are right back in the mix to extend their season past April 3.
Tonight, they get back on the ice after a two-day break to begin a western road trip against a bundle of talented Canadian competition. Their first test will be against the Calgary Flames tonight at the Scotiabank Saddledome at 8:30 PM.
This will be the second and final meeting between the Blue Jackets and Flames this regular season, with Calgary taking the first contest by a score of 3-0 on Nov. 2.
Here's where we stand on Wednesday, March 4.
| GP | GR | W | L | OT | PTS | RW | ROW | STRK | L10 | Make Playoffs [#] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| METROPOLITAN | |||||||||||
| WASHINGTON CAPITALS | 65 | 17 | 40 | 19 | 6 | 86 | 30 | 36 | W1 | 4-5-1 | 99.80% |
| PHILADELPHIA FLYERS | 65 | 17 | 38 | 20 | 7 | 83 | 28 | 33 | W6 | 8-2-0 | 99.20% |
| PITTSBURGH PENGUINS | 65 | 17 | 38 | 21 | 6 | 82 | 27 | 35 | W1 | 4-6-0 | 90.00% |
| ATLANTIC | |||||||||||
| BOSTON BRUINS | 67 | 15 | 43 | 13 | 12 | 96 | 37 | 42 | W3 | 8-2-0 | 100.00% |
| TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING | 66 | 16 | 41 | 20 | 5 | 87 | 33 | 39 | L1 | 5-5-0 | 99.96% |
| TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS | 67 | 15 | 35 | 24 | 8 | 78 | 27 | 34 | L1 | 5-5-0 | 85.60% |
| WILD CARD | |||||||||||
| NEW YORK ISLANDERS | 65 | 17 | 35 | 22 | 8 | 78 | 24 | 32 | L2 | 2-6-2 | 61.30% |
| COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS | 67 | 15 | 32 | 21 | 14 | 78 | 24 | 32 | W1 | 2-4-4 | 41.70% |
| CAROLINA HURRICANES | 64 | 18 | 35 | 24 | 5 | 75 | 25 | 30 | OT1 | 4-4-2 | 70.90& |
| NEW YORK RANGERS | 66 | 17 | 35 | 27 | 4 | 74 | 30 | 34 | L3 | 6-4-0 | 25.300% |
| FLORIDA PANTHERS | 66 | 17 | 33 | 26 | 7 | 73 | 28 | 30 | L1 | 3-6-1 | 20.00% |
p - Clinched President's Trophy; x - Clinched Playoff Spot
Remember the help we said Columbus had been getting around the league? Well, in NHL action on Tuesday night, the New York Islanders were bested by the Montreal Canadiens by a score of 6-3, and the New York Rangers were taken down by the St. Louis Blues 3-1.
This helped keep the Rangers at bay (for now) and allowed the Islanders to be at a more feasible distance to be caught up to. Both are also on multi-game losing streaks - which is very nice to see.
Tonight's Game(s) of Interest
| Home | Away | Who to Cheer for |
|---|---|---|
| CALGARY (34–26–7, 75p) | COLUMBUS (32–21–14, 78p) | The boys in blue. |
| WASHINGTON (40–19–6, 86p) | PHILADELPHIA (38–20–7, 83p) | Capitals. The Flyers are hot right now, but can still be caught up to by the Blue Jackets. Washington might be too far ahead at this point. |
Aside from Columbus - Calgary, the only other game to pay attention to tonight will be the Washington Capitals hosting the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers are red-hot, winners of six-straight, but we need the home-ice advantage of the Capitals to take care of business for the Blue Jackets.
Blue Jackets Playoff Odds
| Make It In | 2nd Rnd | Conf. Finals | SC Finals | Win SC | Win Metro | 2nd Metro | 3rd Metro | WC1 | WC2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 41.70% | 16.70% | 7.40% | 3.20% | 1.60% | 0.1% | 0.8% | 5.2% | 14.3% | 21.4% |
Odds courtesy of MoneyPuck.com
The Blue Jackets have 15 games remaining on the season, with ten being on the road - knocking three of those out in the next week on this road trip. Thankfully, any points given up in this time will be to western conference foes (and not teams fighting with the Blue Jackets for a playoff spot), but that's about as far as that silver lining goes.
Meaning, all the teams from this voyage, the Flames, Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks, are vying for their playoff lives, and won't go down easy.
Today's stress ball: Remember how much fun these episodes were to watch on repeat?
