The week that was.
For the Columbus Blue Jackets, things started well with an exciting 4-3 shootout victory over the best team in the league, the Vancouver Canucks on Martin Luther King Jr. Day one week ago today.
Vancouver fell to 26-0-1 when leading after two periods.
That was only the start of the excitement.
After that Jan. 15 win, goaltender Elvis Merzlikins stole the show after stealing two points from the Canucks.
Upon shutting down Vancouver's prolific offense in the third period, overtime, and the shootout, Merzlikins spoke with a passionate vigor in his postgame press conference with Bally Sports Ohio's Dave Maetzold.
"I'm mad and I am pulling out the monster out of me"
— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) January 15, 2024
Elvis Merzikins is ready to RAGE. pic.twitter.com/WlGfz4lh6D
Merzlikins' anger stemmed from the weeks prior, sitting as a backup to Daniil Tarasov. Following the win over the Canucks, he said he had requested a trade, which president John Davidson said later was not the case when he was on with 97.1's Rothman & Ice last week.
#CBJ Hockey Prez John Davidson tells @971RandI hes talked with Elvis agent & thinks things are calmed down. Says Elvis must get past his demons. JD says Elvis has not asked for trade & team not shopping him.
— Clay Hall (@claywsyx6) January 18, 2024
Confusing much?
The Blue Jackets had three days off between Monday's win and Friday's game, a 4-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils.
Friday's game started on the right foot, with surging Cole Sillinger scoring his eighth goal of the season and what would have been his ninth goal taken away in the third period after a successful offsides challenge by Lindy Ruff.
The Blue Jackets have won all of two games in a row only twice this season.
As the Jackets led 1-0 after the opening frame, things quickly fell apart in the second period, allowing four straight goals against a Devils team with designs on making a deep playoff run and have struggled a bit to this point in the season.
Merzlikins, for all his talk of being the No. 1 goalie for the Blue Jackets, struggled with -1.39 GSAx per MoneyPuck. The goals weren't all on Merzlikins but it was a poor performance after all the off-the-ice drama and Monday's win.
Earlier on Friday, Spencer Martin was claimed off waivers by the Carolina Hurricanes. The move allows the Blue Jackets to carry an extra skater as they embark on this week's Canadian road trip, and it puts the Blue Jackets back into a two-goalie rotation between Merzlikins and Tarasov.
On Wednesday, we wrote about the Merzlikins drama as ESPN's Ray Ferraro and TSN's Darren Dreger delved into the topic.
"Isn't it amazing that (drama in Columbus) just seems to stick there?"– TSN.com
It's not the first time this season the Blue Jackets have been spoken about on the national level, and as this season has played out, any time they're being talked about, it's not typically for good things.
The following quote stuck out and encapsulates the franchise of late.
"Isn't it amazing that (drama in Columbus) just seems to stick there?" Ferraro said. "It's one after another, and it really can't be. It makes me think if they're really going to change the culture there, they've got to change everything."
What do those in charge of the franchise think of what's playing out on the ice and what's being said about their team off the ice?
This season feels like the last for general manager Jarmo Kekalainen. After the message put out by ownership before the season, everyone has to be on notice in the wake of the Mike Babcock debacle and resulting play on the ice.
Being a Stanley Cup contender this season was probably never in the cards but what is the path forward for this team?
Adam Fantilli, Cole Sillinger, Kent Johnson, Kirill Marchenko, Dmitri Voronkov, and David Jiricek all represent the bright spots for the club and where they hope to go. They're once again in the mix for a top lottery pick in the draft, but while the team builds, are they picking up any momentum with this core?
It's hard to know what the Blue Jackets have in Pascal Vincent, mainly because the roster isn't good enough to compete seriously. Vincent brings accountability to the forefront. And there might be strides the team has taken as the season chugs along.
Defensively, they're bad (3.73 GA/GP), even though Vincent has talked up improvement in that regard. Offensively (2.96 GF/GP), they've been better at putting the puck in the net, although since Jan. 1, they are 31st (2.00) in the league.
#CBJ coach Pascal Vincent spoke yesterday of the team's defensive improvement, analytically, of late. Per @NatStatTrick, the Jackets are second in the NHL in expected goals against per 60 at 5x5 since Jan. 1.
— Jeff Svoboda (@JacketsInsider) January 18, 2024
"What is really exciting is our defensive numbers are improving. We
Overall, the team is learning how to win, but the talent gap is still wide enough with the hodgepodge roster Kekalainen has assembled.
The New York Islanders fired Lane Lambert after 127 games behind the bench on Saturday and replaced him with Patrick Roy. Roy was a name that was at least mentioned regarding the Blue Jackets before the season.
We can only hope the Blue Jackets young core is learning from the right people currently in charge.
