The Blue Jackets certainly played well enough to win this game.
But their issues tonight in a 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders weren't the pomp and circumstance of a return to the Nassau Coliseum or the crowd noise or any of that. Bad teams make those excuses.
The Blue Jackets took a 2-0 lead in the second period on a pair of goals from Markus Hannikainen and Pierre-Luc Dubois, coming only 1:47 apart. From there, though, it was a game controlled by the Islanders as the Blue Jackets couldn't get out of their own way.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE JACKETS | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| ISLANDERS | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
New York tied the game on goals 3:24 apart to make it 2-2 heading into the third period, and the Blue Jackets just could not get anything going. They had a power play that lasted only four seconds before Nick Foligno wiped it out with an interference penalty, and they did nothing with an extra attacker in the dying minutes of regulation.
Sergei Bobrovsky played well but didn't get much help, as the Islanders had their share of grade-A chances in the second and third periods. Cam Atkinson picked up the primary assist on Dubois' goal, which extended his points streak to 10 games – the second-longest in franchise history behind Ryan Johansen (13).
Injury Update
Ryan Murray blocked a shot with his foot in the third period and went down the tunnel. He did not return to the game.
Next Up
The Blue Jackets head back to Columbus to face the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night at Nationwide Arena.
