The Chase is your morning report on where the Blue Jackets stand in the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs race. What happened, what's next, and who to cheer for.
After two days off to explore Vansterdam, the Columbus Blue Jackets are back in action tonight against the Canucks (9 p.m., FS-O). Vancouver is a bottom three team in the Western Conference, but they're 1–0 against the Jackets this year because of course they are. This season is stupid.
The four teams ahead of the Blue Jackets in the wild card or Metropolitan Division standings all earned wins last. The Islanders topped Philly, 4-2, Montreal put up a seven spot on the Sabres, Carolina dumped Minnesota, 5-1, and the Penguins slipped past the Stars, 3-2.
Not great.
Here's where we stand on Sunday, March 24.
| GP | GR | W | L | OT | PTS | ROW | STRK | L10 | Make Playoffs [#] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| METROPOLITAN | ||||||||||
| WASHINGTON CAPITALS | 75 | 7 | 43 | 24 | 8 | 94 | 39 | L1 | 6–3–1 | 99.68% (-0.09) |
| NY ISLANDERS | 75 | 7 | 43 | 25 | 7 | 93 | 39 | W1 | 6–4–0 | 99.39% (+1.15) |
| PITTSBURGH PENGUINS | 76 | 6 | 41 | 24 | 11 | 93 | 39 | W2 | 6–2–2 | 99.43% (+1.15) |
| ATLANTIC | ||||||||||
| (p) TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING | 76 | 6 | 58 | 14 | 4 | 120 | 52 | L1 | 8–2–0 | 100% (NC) |
| (x) BOSTON BRUINS | 75 | 7 | 46 | 20 | 9 | 101 | 44 | W4 | 7–3–0 | 100% (NC) |
| TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS | 75 | 7 | 44 | 25 | 6 | 94 | 44 | OT1 | 4–4–2 | 99.91% (-0.01) |
| WILD CARD | ||||||||||
| CAROLINA HURRICANES | 74 | 8 | 41 | 26 | 7 | 89 | 39 | W1 | 6–3–1 | 95.30% (+2.88) |
| MONTREAL CANADIENS | 75 | 7 | 40 | 28 | 7 | 87 | 38 | W3 | 5–5–0 | 62.28% (+2.28) |
| COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS | 74 | 8 | 40 | 30 | 4 | 84 | 39 | L2 | 4–5–1 | 43.72% (-5.62) |
| PHILADELPHIA FLYERS | 75 | 7 | 36 | 31 | 8 | 80 | 34 | L1 | 5–5–0 | 0.26% (-1.45) |
p - Clinched President's Trophy; x - Clinched Playoff Spot
It's no overstatement to say that tonight's game against the Canucks is the most important game of the Blue Jackets season. They're 0–2 on their trip out west, and a loss tonight could easily see them five games out of the second wild card spot with seven to play.
That's not an impossible stretch to cover, but at the moment, the Canes are entertaining the NHL with team celebrations, the Habs have Carey Price, and the Blue Jackets are down to issuing quotes about guys needing to step their games up.
Tonight's Games of Interest
| Home | Away | Who to Cheer for |
|---|---|---|
| VANCOUVER (27–39–8, 62p) | COLUMBUS (40–30–4, 84p) | The boys in white. |
| WASHINGTON (43–24–8, 94p) | PHILADELPHIA (36–31–8, 80p) | Caps. Philly can't claw its way back into the WC race. |
| NY ISLANDERS (43–25–7, 93p) | ARIZONA (36–32–7, 79p) | Coyotes. Always take the Western team in inter-conference matchups. |
| CAROLINA (41–26–7, 89p) | MONTREAL (40–28–7, 87p) | Hurricanes. CBJ don't need two teams 3-5 points up on them for the WC. |
The Jackets need two points. We've covered that. They need these two points like that girl from high school who's now an “Instagram model” needs likes.
Three other games matter tonight, but none significantly. The Caps can take another step towards locking down the Metro while all but eliminating the Flyers, Arizona beating the Islanders would be nice, and the Canes and Canadiens meet with a Carolina win in regulation preferred. Those two going to overtime – and each capturing a point – would suck, to put it mildly.
Blue Jackets Playoff Odds
| Make It In | 2nd Rnd | Conf. Finals | SC Finals | Win SC | Win Metro | 2nd Metro | 3rd Metro | WC1 | WC2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
43.72% -5.62 |
15.4% -3.9 |
7.1% -1.9 |
3.3% -0.9 |
1.5% -0.4 |
0% -0.1 |
0.4% -0.7 |
2% -2.1 |
8.2% -3.3 |
33.1% +0.6 |
Odds courtesy of MoneyPuck.com
All of that red you see in the Blue Jackets updated playoff odds from Money Puck reflect the wins from the Islanders, Canadiens and Hurricanes Saturday night.
Yep, it's bleak.
Today's stress ball: The Blues light the Islanders up for three goals in 1:15, proving the Bolts might just be mortal.
