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Columbus Blue Jackets searching for answers after shutout in Ottawa

The Blue Jackets haven’t scored in two games, lost their third straight game Sunday in Ottawa and need to find answers quickly.

KANATA, Ontario — Less than 24 hours after a frustrating meltdown in the third period in Toronto turned a close game into a 5-0 loss, the Blue Jackets’ pain continued Sunday at Canadian Tire Centre. 

Kept off the scoreboard for a second straight game, an early 2-0 deficit that led to goalie Daniil Tarasov being replaced by Elvis Merzlikins was more than enough in the Ottawa Senators‘ 4-0 victory. The loss dropped the Blue Jackets’ record in the second half of back-to-backs to just 1-10-0 this season, which will be a major area to examine if they miss the postseason.

“We’re fighting for the playoffs,” Blue Jackets defenseman Ivan Provorov said, “Every game matters. Every point matters. So, I don’t think that should be a difficult thing to get yourself going for a back-to-back.” 

Adam Gaudette, Nicholas Matinpalo and David Perron gave Ottawa a 3-0 lead and Shane Pinto sealed it into an empty net late in the third.

Linus Ullmark made 29 saves for the shutout.

The loss was the third straight for the Blue Jackets (34-33-9), who haven’t scored a goal since captain Boone Jenner put them up 3-2 at 7:56 of the second period in a 7-3 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday at Nationwide Arena. That’s a span of 152:24 without a goal, allowing the Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs and Senators to score 13 consecutive goals against a goaltending combination of Merzlikins (11 goals allowed) and Tarasov (two goals allowed).

The loss drops the Blue Jackets even further out of the playoff hunt in the Eastern Conference with just six games remaining — including a rematch against the Senators on Tuesday in Columbus. Starting the game, the Jackets were 11th in the conference standings in a tie with the Detroit Red Wings at 77 points each, but the New York Islanders moved past both to 78 points with a 4-1 victory over the Washington Capitals.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are now closing in on the Blue Jackets with 74 points, while the Buffalo Sabres are five points back of them at 72 and just six points behind Columbus are the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers in the last two spots of the East standings.

The Blue Jackets are now 4-11-1 in 16 games since taking control of the first wild-card spot in their conference with a 5-3 victory over the Red Wings on March 1 at Ohio Stadium — a maddening plummet from a point when it felt like they might be headed to the postseason. Their precipitous drop has been almost as remarkable as their impressive buildup before it. 

Sunday’s game was another tough one to swallow.

Ottawa dominated the first few minutes of the game, swarming the Blue Jackets zone and taking a quick 2-0 lead on goals at 2:24 by Gaudette and 4:26 by Matinpalo — who netted the first goal of his NHL career (37 games). 

The second goal prompted Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason to make a quick goaltending change from Tarasov to Merzlikins, who started 22 hours earlier in a 5-0 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. The switch in goalies snapped the Blue Jackets awake, but their slumber was only half the issue. 

They also had to contend with Ullmark,  the Senators’ top goalie, playing net for Ottawa. Despite putting together a stretch late in the first to close a wide gap in shots to a reasonable number, the Blue Jackets weren’t able to get the puck past Ullmark in the first two periods and still trailed 2-0 starting the third.

Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social 

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