Rewind: Columbus Blue Jackets fall apart in Montreal, split back-to-back

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Rewind: Columbus Blue Jackets fall apart in Montreal, split back-to-back

Brian Hedger, Columbus Dispatch · The Columbus Dispatch

Mon, Nov 18, 2024 ·

13 min read

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The Blue Jackets settled for a split of their third straight weekend back-to-back with an ugly finish to a 5-1 loss Saturday night in Montreal .

One night after ending a six-game winless skid Friday with a 6-2 romp over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Nationwide Arena, the Jackets had the wheels come off yet again in a back-to-back finale.

Here's how it all unfolded, along with preview information, lineups and analysis:

FINAL: Montreal Canadiens 5, Columbus Blue Jackets 1

Via @naturalstattrick.com ... the final 5v5 analytic glance at the Blue Jackets ' 5-1 loss in Montreal, for those interested.

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— Brian Hedger ( @brianhedger.bsky.social ) November 16, 2024 at 11:56 PM

Just like the Jackets did Friday to the Penguins at home, the Canadiens turned a one-goal lead starting the third period into a blowout win with three goals in the final 20 minutes. It's Montreal's sixth straight win over the Blue Jackets in the all-time series.

The Blue Jackets fall to 6-9-2, split their third straight weekend back-to-back and dropped their seventh straight road game (0-5-2).

"We talked continually about simplifying and getting pucks deep and gettin' after it (all game)," Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason said during postgame comments shown by FanDuel Sports Network. "We were having some success there. We just didn't stay with the game plan. We kinda went rogue a little bit, and they capitalized on a few mistakes ... and then the game was over."

Nov 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj (72) defends the puck against Columbus Blue Jackets center Zachary Aston-Reese (27) during the third period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

GOAL, 3rd period 15:55: Montreal Canadiens 5, Columbus Blue Jackets 1

It always seems like former Blue Jackets find ways to get on the scoresheet against Columbus, doesn't it? Alexander Wennberg beat them in overtime for the San Jose Sharks on the West Coast, Oliver Bjorkstrand set up a goal for the Seattle Kraken to end that trip and now Josh Anderson tacks one on late in the third period for the Canadiens, who scored during 4-on-4 after Adam Fantilli negated a Blue Jackets power play by attempting a stick lift in the slot that knocked a stick free.

He was sitting in the penalty box for interference when Anderson deflected a puck past Tarasov from the low slot.

GOAL, 3rd period 12:52: Montreal Canadiens 4, Columbus Blue Jackets 1

The Blue Jackets' mistakes are making the worst team in the NHL look like one of the best. Evans gets the fourth of the game for Montreal off a nice feed from Cole Caufield , and the Canadiens are making this look easy. The Jackets' newly reworked third line of Cole Sillinger , Justin Danforth and Kirill Marchenko plus the third defense pairing of Jake Christiansen and Jordan Harris were on the ice for this one.

Nov 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Damon Severson (78) defends the puck against Montreal Canadiens center Alex Newhook (15) during the second period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

GOAL, 3rd period 11:04: Montreal Canadiens 3, Columbus Blue Jackets 1

The Blue Jackets' second defensive pairing is having a tough night. This time, Ivan Provorov and Damon Severson committed back-to-back turnovers that led directly to a goal by Luca Condotta to give the Canadiens a two-goal margin.

Provorov's exit diagonal exit pass attempt was picked off cleanly just outside the Blue Jackets' blue line and carried back in for a shot that Tarasov stopped with a leg pad. Severson got the rebound and sent a no-look clearing pass off the end boards that kicked right out to Armia for a pass to Condotta that he snapped past Tarasov.

Ugly sequence.

3rd period, 1:19: Columbus Blue Jackets get early power play

Joel Armia got his stick into Zach Werenski 's feet in the corner of the Blue Jackets' zone and tripped him, putting the Blue Jackets on a power play here trailing by a goal. Columbus generates a couple decent looks, but doesn't convert it into a power-play equalizer.

Nov 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; NHL linesman David Brisebois (96) drops the puck at a face-off between Montreal Canadiens center Jake Evans (71) and Columbus Blue Jackets center Sean Monahan (23) during the first period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

THIRD PERIOD START: Montreal Canadiens 2, Columbus Blue Jackets 1

The puck is down for the start of the third period at Belle Centre, where the Jackets need to get an equalizer before the Canadiens can increase their lead.

5v5 analytical breakdown after two periods there in Montreal via @naturalstattrick.com ... CBJ trailing 2-1.

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— Brian Hedger ( @brianhedger.bsky.social ) November 16, 2024 at 9:02 PM

SECOND PERIOD END: Montreal Canadiens 2, Columbus Blue Jackets 1

It was a "low event" period in terms of shots in the second, which favored Columbus 7-5, but there was a lot going in that period. Dante Fabbro scored his first goal as a Blue Jacket, tying it 1-1, Mathieu Olivier handled himself impressively in a fight against Arber Xhekaj , one of the league's toughest customers, and yet another defensive breakdown allowed Nick Suzuki to give the Canadiens' a one-goal lead after 40 minutes.

One more frame of 20 left for the Jackets to see if they can sneak out a win or point.

Nov 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Sean Monahan (23) plays the puck against Montreal Canadiens center Nick Suzuki (14) during the first period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

GOAL, 2nd period 15:49: Montreal Canadiens 2, Columbus Blue Jackets 1

Montreal's Nick Suzuki got the puck in a great position after Damon Severson's pinch in the neutral zone was unsuccessful and rifled it past Tarasov on the glove side to put the Canadiens back up by a goal with 4:11 left in the period.

Nov 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Mathieu Olivier (24) and Montreal Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj (72) fight during the second period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

2nd period, 8:09: Columbus Blue Jackets' Mathieu Olivier squares off with Montreal Canadiens' Arber Xhekaj

Less than a minute after Fabbro's goal, the game's temperature got turned up even more with an spirited heavyweight scrap between Olivier for the Blue Jackets and Xhekaj (pronounced 'Jacke Eye') for the Canadiens.

If there were judges scoring it, the decision had to be for Olivier, who landed multiple jabs to Xhekaj's chops with his left hand to set up at least two big overhand rights that landed somewhere on the Canadiens defenseman's head.

Xhekaj, who has the size advantage by three inches at 6 foot 4, also landed some shots against Olivier — who's from Montreal, has family in the building and gave the Jackets an emotional jolt by shouting toward his stick-clacking teammates afterward.

"I mostly just black out, so I can't tell you exactly what happens," Olivier said after the game. "It's obviously tons of respect going both ways. It's just a time of the game, I think it was 1-1, and it was kind of just flat. Both sides were kind of flat, especially us, I felt like. Not a dig against our team, but I just felt we could've used a little jolt, so it was a good moment to do it."

Xhekaj went to the Canadiens' dressing room after the fight, but returned to the ice to finish the game.

That escalated quickly.Fabbro ... first CBJ goal for him. Nice reverse feed from Werenski, one-timer, traffic in front ( Labanc , ZAR) ... goal, tie game 1-1. Olivier-Xhekaj right afterward, which was way more entertaining than Tyson-Paul.Blog -> www.dispatch.com/story/sports...

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— Brian Hedger ( @brianhedger.bsky.social ) November 16, 2024 at 8:43 PM

GOAL, 2nd period 7:40: Columbus Blue Jackets 1, Montreal Canadiens 1

Dante Fabbro on the board with his first goal as a Blue Jacket in just his third game since being claimed off waivers last Sunday from the Nashville Predators . Reverse, no-look feed from Zach Werenski above the circles, Fabbro steps into a one-timer with his right-handed shot and fires the puck through traffic into the the Canadiens' net.

Traffic in front provided by Kevin Labanc at the net-front and Zach Aston-Reese in the slot, along with the two Montreal players battling with them. Montembeault never saw it.

Nov 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli (19) plays the puck against Montreal Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj (72) during the first period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

SECOND PERIOD START: Montreal Canadiens 1, Columbus Blue Jackets 0

They're back to playing ice hockey in Montreal, as the Blue Jackets try to regroup while trailing by a goal following a challenging first period.

FIRST PERIOD END: Montreal Canadiens 1, Columbus Blue Jackets 0

First period 5v5 analytic breakdown for Blue Jackets @ Canadiens via @naturalstattrick.com ... Montreal's up 1-0 on Matheson's PPG ->

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— Brian Hedger ( @brianhedger.bsky.social ) November 16, 2024 at 8:03 PM

The horn to end the opening period couldn't have sounded soon enough for the Blue Jackets, who were hounded for almost the duration of the 20 minutes. It's a minor miracle they're only down a goal and somehow got 11 shots on goal to the Canadiens' 16 in the frame.

Turnovers galore. Inaccurate passes in bunches. A terrible power play that led to Montreal scoring the lone goal of the period on its own power play. The Blue Jackets look like a team with tired legs coming into the second game of a back-to-back following a late night flight Friday, and that's something they need to figure out along their long-term path to consistently competing at a high level.

The lone good news of the first period for Columbus was the play of goalie Daniil Tarasov , who stopped 15 of 16 shots despite not playing for a week as Elvis Merzlikins ' backup.

GOAL, 1st period 4:59 (PPG): Montreal Canadiens 1, Columbus Blue Jackets 0

One area the Blue Jackets still haven't corrected, and it dates back years, is their power play. More specifically, they still have issues toting pucks up ice after they've been cleared. At best, it leads to discombobulated shifts that result in nothing dangerous. At worst, it leads to shorthand scoring chances like the one Jake Evans got for the Canadiens during the Jackets' first power play early in the game.

Nov 16, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson (8) celebrates his goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets with his teammates at the bench during the first period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

Damon Severson was forced to take a slashing penalty while defending it, which led to the Canadiens striking first on defenseman Mike Matheson 's goal to cap the ensuing power play. Montreal also drew another slashing penalty on Kevin Labanc shortly thereafter, but the Blue Jackets killed it thanks Tarasov's work in net to keep it 1-0 Canadiens in the first.

GAME START: Columbus Blue Jackets 0, Montreal Canadiens 0

After a pregame ceremony to induct former Canadiens defenseman Shea Weber into the team's Ring of Honor and recognize his recent induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame, the puck is in play for the Blue Jackets and Les Habitants (Canadiens/Habs) out there in Montreal.

Oct 22, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Daniil Tarasov (40) stands in net during the second period of the NHL hockey game against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Nationwide Arena.

Columbus Blue Jackets vs Montreal Canadiens: Lineup changes

The only lineup change for the Blue Jackets is in net, where Daniil Tarasov is getting another start on the second half of a back-to-back. The difference this time is the Jackets won the front half, so he's trying to help them sweep one. The Canadiens announced during pregame warmup that former Blue Jackets defenseman David Savard wouldn't play due to an upper-body injury. Savard, who participated in the Canadiens' morning skate, will be replaced in the lineup by Jayden Struble .

Columbus Blue Jackets vs Montreal Canadiens: Lineups

COLUMBUS

Forwards

(10) Dmitri Voronkov — (23) Sean Monahan — (86) Kirill Marchenko

(59) Yegor Chinakhov — (19) Adam Fantilli — (4) Cole Sillinger

(82) Mikael Pyyhtia — Justin Danforth — (24) Mathieu Olivier

(27) Zach Aston-Reese — (7) Sean Kuraly — (62) Kevin Labanc

Defense pairings

(8) Zach Werenski — (15) Dante Fabbro

(9) Ivan Provorov — (78) Damon Severson

(2) Jake Christiansen — (22) Jordan Harris

Goalies

(40) Daniil Tarasov

(90) Elvis Merzlikins

Scratched: D Jack Johnson , D David Jiricek , F James van Riemsdyk

Injured: F Boone Jenner (shoulder surgery), D Erik Gudbranson (shoulder surgery) and F Kent Johnson (shoulder)

MONTREAL

Forwards

(20) Juraj Slafkovsky — (14) Nick Suzuki — (77) Kirby Dach

(15) Alex Newhook — (71) Jake Evans — (13) Cole Caufield

(17) Josh Anderson — (28) Christian Dvorak — (11) Brendan Gallagher

(51) Emil Heineman — (82) Lucas Condotta — (40) Joel Armia

Defense pairings

(48) Lane Hutson — (8) Mike Matheson

(21) Kaiden Guhle — (52) Justin Barron

(72) Arber Xhekaj — (47) Jayden Struble

Goalies

(35) Samuel Montembeault

(30) Cayden Primeau

Scratched: LW Michael Pezzeta

Injured: D David Savard (upper body), C Rafael Harvey-Pinard (fractured leg), RW Patrik Laine (knee), D David Reinbacher (knee)

Columbus Blue Jackets vs Montreal Canadiens history

All-time record:The Blue Jackets are just 20-16-5 in 41 games against the Canadiens, including 10-9-4 at Bell Centre in Montreal. Columbus has dropped five straight games in the all-time series (0-4-1), including 0-2-1 last season.
Last meeting:The Blue Jackets were shut out, 3-0, on March 12, 2024 to complete the Canadiens' series sweep last season. Brendan Gallagher, Juraj Slavkovsky and Joshua Roy scored goals for Montreal, which got a 41-save goose egg performance from goalie Cayden Primeau.
2024 matchups:Nov. 16 in Montreal (7 p.m.); Nov. 27 in Columbus (7:30 p.m.) and Dec. 23 in Columbus (7 p.m.)

Columbus Blue Jackets news

Blue Jackets 6, Penguins 2: takeaways

Rewind: Blue Jackets end skid by routing Pittsburgh

Blue Jackets notes: Will Jiricek be the odd man out?

Injury update: Kent Johnson making strides in return effort

Kraken 5, Blue Jackets 2: Takeaways

Rewind: Strong start in Seattle fizzles, Blue Jackets drop sixth straight

Dante Fabbro joins the Blue Jackets' blue line via waivers

Apr 13, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski (8) looks to pass as Montreal Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault (35) defends the net during Wednesday's NHL game between at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Barbara Perenic/Columbus Dispatch

Columbus Blue Jackets November 2024 schedule, record

Here's a look at the Blue Jackets' schedule for November, along with start times, television, and radio information of upcoming games:

Friday, Nov. 1: Blue Jackets vs Winnipeg Jets (L, 6-2) ; Takeaways ; Photos
Saturday, Nov. 2: Blue Jackets at Capitals (L, 7-2) ; Takeaways
Tuesday, Nov. 5: Blue Jackets at Sharks (OTL, 2-1); Takeaways
Saturday, Nov. 9: Blue Jackets at Kings (L, 5-2) ; Takeaways
Sunday, Nov. 10: Blue Jackets at Ducks (L,4-2) ; Takeaways
Tuesday, Nov. 12: Blue Jackets at Kraken (L, 5-2) ; Takeaways
Friday, Nov. 15: Blue Jackets vs Penguins (W, 6-2) ; Takeaways
Saturday, Nov. 16:Blue Jackets at Canadiens | 7 p.m. | FanDuel Sports Network Ohio | 97.1 The Fan
Monday, Nov. 18:Blue Jackets at Boston Bruins | 7 p.m. | FanDuel Sports Network Ohio | 97.1 The Fan
Thursday, Nov. 21:Blue Jackets vs Lightning | 7 p.m. | FanDuel Sports Network Ohio | 97.1 The Fan
Saturday, Nov. 23:Blue Jackets vs Hurricanes | 7 p.m. | FanDuel Sports Network Ohio | 97.1 The Fan
Wednesday, Nov. 27:Blue Jackets vs Canadiens | 7:30 p.m. | FanDuel Sports Network Ohio | 97.1 The Fan
Friday, Nov. 29:Blue Jackets vs Calgary Flames | 3 p.m. | FanDuel Sports Network Ohio | 93.3 The Bus
November Record:1-5-1, 8th place, Metropolitan Division