The Blue Jackets coach Rick Bowness knows, and their skating legs, took an evening off at Nationwide Arena.
Instead, the team that showed up for Bowness March 28 in a sloppy 3-2 loss to the San Jose Sharks was the one that got Dean Evason and former assistant coach Steve McCarthy dumped in a surprise Jan. 12 coaching shakeup that worked glowingly.
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More: San Jose Sharks stun sloppy Columbus Blue Jackets. Replay
After Denton Mateychuk scored the game’s first goal 31 seconds into it, the Blue Jackets (38-24-11) struggled to establish their stifling forecheck, struggled to maintain possession and got massively outplayed in the second period.
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Nash Sadler, 8, of Ontario reacts after Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner (38) skated up to him before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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Nash Sadler, 8, of Ontario reacts after Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner (38) skated up to him before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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A fan receives a free bucket hat before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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Bucket hats sit on a table for fans before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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Fans walk into the stadium with their bucket hats before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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Fans take a photo with the cannon before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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Fans watch the Columbus Blue Jackets warm up before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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Columbus Blue Jackets center Boone Jenner (38) interacts with fans before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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Fans and family members watch the Columbus Blue Jackets warm up before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
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A fan receives a free bucket hat before the NHL game against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
They followed that up by losing a 2-1 lead in the third period, a common trait under Evason, before losing the game on Igor Chernyshov’s one-timer with just 1:25 left in regulation.
Rather than forcing it to overtime, the Jackets got lulled to sleep at a key moment and lost to a more desperate team despite playoff odds in the Western Conference dwindling for the Sharks (33-31-7).
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“We didn’t have our legs,” Bowness said. “It’s as simple as that. We just didn’t have our legs, and what these guys have to learn is that when you don’t have your legs, you try to simply the game a little bit. Even though we didn’t have our legs, we were still trying to make plays that just weren’t there.”
As for the Sharks?
“They had their legs,” Bowness said. “Give them credit. They played a fast game. We were caught in-between all night.”
San Jose Sharks left wing William Eklund (72) trips on the stick of Columbus Blue Jackets center Charlie Coyle (3) in the third period of the NHL game at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
Old habits sting Columbus Blue Jackets in loss to San Jose Sharks
They looked like the Blue Jackets of old, who showed enticing skill in flashes but couldn’t put it all together until Bowness arrived. They also looked a bit like the Montreal Canadiens on March 26 at Bell Centre in Montreal, where the Blue Jackets skated circles around them.
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The difference?
Montreal still eked out a 2-1 win in that game while the Jackets gave away another point or two against San Jose, blowing a third-period lead for the 20th time before leaving Chernyshov open for the shot that won it. Blue Jackets defenseman Erik Gudbranson, who’s 6 feet 5, 222 pounds, attempted to block it by dropping to a knee in the shooting lane, but the puck just got past him to beat goalie Elvis Merzlikins inside the left goal post.
Hockey games are often decided by mere inches off great shots and attempts that ring off the pipes, but those inches often favor the harder-working team. Not always, as the Jackets learned the hard way in Montreal, but that’s usually the case.
“We didn’t have what we usually have tonight,” Gudbranson said. “We didn’t have what we’ve had (recently), and you can’t let those two go in at the end. That hurts.”
Columbus Blue Jackets center Charlie Coyle (3) skates with the puck against San Jose Sharks center Michael Misa (77) in the first period of the NHL game at Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 28, 2026 in Columbus, Ohio.
It was an ugly loss, stung worse than losing to the Canadiens and put the Blue Jackets in the unenviable position of rooting for other teams to lose. The Pittsburgh Penguins, Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators all delivered with losses, but that doesn’t change the Blue Jackets’ precarious spot teetering on the edge of the playoffs in the Eastern Conference’s second wild card.
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They now have 24 hours to shake off the San Jose loss and reset, because a hugely important back-to-back finale is up next March 29 against the Boston Bruins, who padded their playoff hopes by defeating the Minnesota Wild 6-3 at TD Garden. The Bruins are in the East’s first wild card and will arrive at Nationwide Arena with a handful of former Blue Jackets looking to give Columbus more hockey misery.
Joonas Korpisalo, the Jackets’ former goalie who defeated them Feb. 26 in Boston, is expected to start for the Bruins. Sean Kuraly, a veteran depth center who’s from Dublin and wasn’t re-signed last summer, will seek a repeat performance of his winning goal in that game. Andrew Peeks, a former Blue Jackets defenseman, is also with the Bruins, who’ve won four of their past five games and have a 9-4-3 record since returning from the NHL’s 2026 Winter Olympics break.
Facing Boston is a tall hurdle for the Blue Jackets, so they’d better locate those missing legs.
“They played desperate hockey,” forward Cole Sillinger said of the Sharks. “They’re fighting for their playoff lives over there, too, and they were on a six-game skid. So, obviously, they come into our building, they needed one tonight, and I just thought when they were winning more puck battles, that’s unacceptable.”
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Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets must rebound from sloppy loss to San Jose Sharks