The Columbus Blue Jackets are finally coming home after enduring a five-game road trip that saw them cross multiple time zones. They left some key standings points on the table.
The Blue Jackets went 1-3-1 on their road trip that saw them go to New York, Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton and then Seattle. The game against the Islanders was the second of back-to-back games as was the game against the Kraken.
Normally accruing just three of 10 possible points is cause for concern. But there was some good too. That’s where we start this week’s edition of Blue Jackets’ News & Rumors. What do we make of this completed road trip?
Road Trip Reflections
The Blue Jackets should feel both good and awful about this road trip. They were able to show in spurts what kind of a team they can be. They also showed that they have a long way to go when it comes to handling themselves in big moments in games.
An argument could be made that the Blue Jackets should have had a better record out of this trip than what they accomplished. If they hold late leads against the Islanders and Oilers, they come home with three wins out of five. That makes any road trip a successful one.
The Blue Jackets allowed two goals to the Islanders late in regulation to lose 3-2. Then they allowed a tying goal while on the power play to lose a point against the Oilers. Those three points could come back and haunt them at the end of the season.
Despite the shortcomings, the Blue Jackets played well at different times. Their issue now is to do that consistently.
The second period in Edmonton sticks out as one of the Blue Jackets’ most dominating periods of the season. They had the puck a lot and gave the Oilers nothing.
Most of the game in Seattle was good in not allowing much to the Kraken. On the second half of back-to-backs, they outshot the Kraken and had chances to win in regulation. Matt Murray was strong playing for an injured Joey Daccord.
The Columbus Blue Jackets celebrate after a goal scored by center Adam Fantilli against the Seattle Kraken. (Steven Bisig-Imagn Images)
Even in Calgary, down 2-1, the Blue Jackets pushed. But costly mistakes leading to odd-man rushes became their downfall. Those mistakes carried over to Vancouver and cost them that game too despite playing well in stretches.
Adam Fantilli was moved to the top line with Dmitri Voronkov and Kirill Marchenko for the final three games of the trip. Fantilli recorded five points in those three games. He scored the only goal in regulation for the Blue Jackets Tuesday night.
Winning in Seattle was big for a couple of reasons. It gave the Blue Jackets some momentum heading home. They grinded out that game while dealing with illness and injury. It also kept them in the mushy-middle of the Eastern Conference standings by keeping them above hockey .500.
The best way to describe this past road trip was it had good, bad and ugly in it. The good was having some dominant stretches in games. The bad was only getting three of 10 points. The ugly was the way they lost in New York and Edmonton.
The Blue Jackets can definitely build from this road trip. But they cannot let points slip away in the manner in which they did.
Faceoffs, Better?
You read that right. The Blue Jackets have been much better in the faceoff circle at the start of the 2025-26 season.
The Blue Jackets in the last three seasons prior to this one have been 23rd, 27th and 27th in the NHL at faceoff winning percentage. They were never higher than 48.6%.
This season? The Blue Jackets have won 51.7% of their faceoffs. That’s 11th in the NHL. Given the long, documented history of center struggles, this is a sign of just how much the center depth has improved.
Blue Jackets PR shared a stat that they are just one of three teams who have five or more players win more than 50% of their faceoffs (minimum 75 draws) this season.
#NHLStats: #CBJ are 1 of 3 teams in the NHL with 5 or more players that have won 50.0 pct. or more of their faceoffs taken (min. 75 draws), joining Ottawa (6) and Boston (5).
Jenner – 56.0
Coyle – 53.8
Lundestrom – 53.3
Monahan – 53.2
Fantilli – 52.1
— CBJ Public Relations (@BlueJacketsPR) November 12, 2025
It’s a combination of factors in play. Captain Boone Jenner, although he’s been on the wing recently, is still good at winning draws. Sean Monahan is consistent there too.
But it’s the new guys Charlie Coyle and Isac Lundestrom who have helped level this part of the Blue Jackets’ game up. Both are over 53% for the season.
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Then there’s what Fantilli has done. In now his third NHL season, Fantilli has jumped 11% from 41.2% to 52.1%. The extra work he’s done has paid off.
The Blue Jackets’ top-four centers (if you count Lundestrom) are all over 52% at the dot. While faceoffs aren’t the end all, they do ensure the Blue Jackets start with possession more often than they don’t. For a team trying to take the next step, this is important progress.
Fantilli’s continued development coupled with a more veteran presence down the middle have helped solidify an area of the Blue Jackets’ game that has eluded them for many seasons. Even if someone is kicked out, they have the ability to win important draws no matter who is in there.
Side Dishes
The Blue Jackets finished the road trip with an illness going through the room. It cost Cole Sillinger and Miles Wood a game. It may have cost Elvis Merzlikins the start in Seattle according to Jody Shelley. We’ll see if it’s still going around Thursday and how that might impact the lineup. They hold a full morning skate in advance of their rematch with the Oilers.
Jenner had to leave the game Tuesday night. No word as of this writing what the severity of his injury is.
Kent Johnson was scratched Tuesday night. No word to if it was related to the illness or if he was a healthy scratch. The Blue Jackets ran all 23 skaters in warmups Tuesday to see who was able to play.
Jake Christiansen only played seven minutes against the Kraken. He missed the entire second half of the game. As of this writing, no roster moves have been made.
Thursday night’s game with the Oilers is on ESPN+ exclusively. John Buccigross is on the call.
