Gameday #59: Ragdolls

Monday, March 2, 2026 – 7:00 PM ET
Madison Square Garden – New York, New York
TV: FDSNOH; Radio: 97.1 FM

Columbus Blue Jackets (29-21-8, 66 points, 5th Metro, 10th East)

at

New York Rangers (23-29-7, 53 points, 8th Metro, 16th East)

Previously

An early 2-0 lead turns into a 4-3 OT loss to one of the teams we’re chasing. Not great!

Notes

The Rangers are bad, and have thrown in the towel on the season. This is a game the Blue Jackets should win. Key word being “should.” That word always feels like a trap with this team, yeah?

Someone once told me “expectations are future resentments.” Not sure why that just popped into my head.

The Jackets actually played pretty well in the two games since the break, but not good enough to get the 2 points they need from each game. The latest excuse is that they’re not getting enough power play opportunities. I sort of feel like this is loser talk, but Aaron Portzline ran the numbers and the discrepancy is pretty staggering since 2016-17 (which includes some seasons where the Jackets were Actually Good):

The Colorado Avalanche have had nearly 600 more power play (2,776) in that span than the Blue Jackets (2,192). The Avs and Florida Panthers (2,723) have had more than 500 more man-advantages than Columbus, while three other clubs — Tampa Bay (2,683), Ottawa (2,643) and Nashville (2,610) — have at least 400 more attempts than Columbus.

There are 14 clubs, almost half the NHL, that have 300 or more power plays than the Blue Jackets since the start of the 2016-17 season. The club just above the Blue Jackets, the Islanders, has had 104 more power plays.

What do you think?

Stats

Projected Lineups

Columbus Blue Jackets

New York Rangers