Is there some life?
The Columbus Blue Jackets are at the most pivotal juncture of their season.
In the middle of a stretch featuring seven out of eight home games, and a season-long five-game homestand starting next Tuesday against the Ottawa Senators, it feels like now or never for the 2025-26 Blue Jackets.
Winners of three straight games, and giving new head coach Rick Bowness a perfect 2-0-0 mark to his start with the team, the Jackets finally got out of last place for the first time since Dec. 1 with Tuesday's 5-3 win over the Calgary Flames. Then they beat the Vancouver Canucks 4-1 on Thursday behind a two-for-two power play night and 30 saves for Elvis Merzlikins, the game's First Star of the Night.
Columbus travels to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, a test that is never easy. In three games this season against the Penguins, the Jackets have gone to overtime in each, with Pittsburgh winning the last two games in comeback fashion.
The Penguins won a 4-3 overtime affair on Nov. 28 at Nationwide Arena after Columbus relinquished a 3-1 third-period lead. Then on Jan. 4 at Nationwide, Pittsburgh erased a 4-1 deficit, scoring twice in the third period and tying the game with 14 seconds left before Sidney Crosby's overtime goal to win 5-4.
| 1/20 | Ottawa |
|---|---|
| 1/22 | Dallas |
| 1/24 | Tampa Bay |
| 1/26 | Los Angeles |
| 1/28 | Philadelphia |
Pittsburgh won 6-3 on Thursday over the Philadelphia Flyers, snapping a three-game losing streak. Columbus comes into Pittsburgh looking to win for the second time in three games at PPG Paints Arena and close the Metropolitan Division gap. The Jackets trail the Penguins by five points, the difference between third and seventh in the Metropolitan Division.
Columbus is seven points behind the second wild card in the East, currently held down by the Boston Bruins, but the Jackets find themselves tied with the Senators, one point behind the New Jersey Devils, two points behind the Florida Panthers, three points behind the Philadelphia Flyers, and five points behind the Washington Capitals and Toronto Maple Leafs.
As opportune as this stretch of games is, the upcoming homestand won't be without its challenges.
After a third and final meeting with the Ottawa Senators on Jan. 20 — the regular season series is tied 1-1 — the Jackets host the Dallas Stars on Jan. 22, the Tampa Bay Lightning on Jan. 24, the Los Angeles Kings on Jan. 26, and the Flyers on Jan. 28, a national TNT game.
Columbus beat Dallas 5-1 at American Airlines Center on Oct. 21, beat the Lightning at home 3-2 on Oct. 19, and also beat the Kings 3-1 on Dec. 22.
Following the homestand, the Blue Jackets are in Chicago to face a Blackhawks team that is getting healthier with Connor Bedard back in action on Jan. 30, the St. Louis Blues on Jan. 31, the Devils on Feb. 3, and a home date with the Blackhawks on Feb. 4 before the Olympic Break.
So, we'll have a good idea of where the Blue Jackets stand by the time players break for Italy.
