For all of the issues that the Columbus Blue Jackets have had defensively this year – both in net and in their d-zone coverage – they've been quite good when down a man. So good, in fact, that they have the league's best penalty kill since November 1.
That's quite the turnaround for a unit that had a rough start to the season, as they ranked near the bottom of the league standings after their first 11 games. On the morning of November 1, they ranked 26th, killing off just 71.3% of their penalties.
Since then, over the course of 41 games, the Blue Jackets have successfully killed off 93 of 106 penalties, good for an 87.7% clip. For some perspective, the Arizona Coyotes have the best success rate over the course of the full season at 85.3%.
That run also includes a stellar performance tonight in Colorado, as the Avalanche were held scoreless (and had just two shots) on four power play opportunities. Since the calendar turned to 2019, they've killed off 34 of 35 penalties.
