Jackets insist they haven’t quit
DETROIT — It was not a good look. The Blue Jackets didn't just lose backto-back games over the weekend to the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesar's Arena. They got housed, twice, against one of the NHL'S worst teams. The scores were 3-1 and 4-1, and the Jackets were outshot 63-39 in the two games.
No matter how motivated the Red Wings were after an embarrassing 7-1 loss Thursday to Nashville, no matter how close each game was on the scoreboard, neither could change the fact Detroit came into the weekend with 10 wins in 34 games.
These are not your father's Red Wings, or your grandfather's. There are no Lidstroms or Datsyuks on Detroit's roster, and the only Yzerman watches from the general manager's box.
The Blue Jackets needed to win these games, or at least come out with points. They did neither, gliding around like zombies on skates most of the time — a sight that caused many to openly question whether they've given up.
Defenseman Seth Jones said they haven't.
“There is absolutely no quit in this team, and that's up to each individual,” he said. “We're still going to fight every single time we're on the ice. We need to fight for every single inch, every single goal, every single blocked shot, every hit, because the little things are going to make us a better team. We're obviously not quitting on this season.”
With stops in Tampa and south Florida on deck, actions must speak louder than words, and soon.
"We can't go into games hoping to win," Jones said. "We have to be the aggressor in all these games, whether we win or we lose. We're not going to go out without a fight, I can tell you that.”
Here are more takeaways from another Motown letdown:
Missed opportunities
The Blue Jackets are a combined 3-7-1 against the Red Wings and Predators, a failure rate that surely will sting if they miss the playoffs by a handful of points.
The Red Wings are last in the Central Division and the Predators were labeled a “seller” just a few weeks ago. But the Preds are now on the rise, but the Blue Jackets went 1-5 against them earlier in the season.
Columbus went 1-2-1 in four games in Detroit and has three games left against the Red Wings in Nationwide Arena.
Enough talk
The Blue Jackets have talked a lot in team meetings, including one following Saturday's loss, but Jones said those confabs don't mean anything if they don't lead to better results.
“There's only so many meetings we can have and so many things we can talk
about, X's- and O's-wise, as a team,” he said. “It just comes down to personal, consistent effort from each individual and it comes down to wanting to win … having pride in your individual game and playing for the guy sitting next to you in the locker room.”
The failed challenge
Detroit scored the winning goal 2:51 into the third period when Michael Rasmussen charged into the crease and poked his stick under Elvis Merzlikins's pad to pop a loose puck into the net.
The play was upheld for a 2-1 lead after it was challenged for goaltender interference by Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella. The NHL didn't get into specifics about why the goal stood, citing only that “video review confirmed that no goaltender interference" had occurred. Tortorella was in no mood to discuss it afterward.
“Just got the (expletive) kicked out of us and you're talking about a goaltender interference,” he said. “I'm not trying to disrespect you. I don't care about that. I challenged it. We didn't get the challenge.” bhedger@dispatch.com @Brianhedger