“It’s just one game.” “There are 51 more.” “Can’t make too much of it.” Tell that to the 19,115 in the building tonight. John Tortorella wouldn’t take the bait earlier in the week, but even he relented after Thursday night’s game that there was obviously a different vibe inside Nationwide Arena. The barn was jam-packed, […]

John Tortorella has been around long enough to know that, over the course of an 82-game schedule, there are going to be lapses and tests. He wants his team to win every game, making him no different from any other coach, but he was waiting for the Blue Jackets to be challenged in a third […]

Referee Ian Walsh may have done the Blue Jackets a favor. Late in the first period, he incorrectly assessed a four-minute high-sticking penalty to Alexander Wennberg and then assigned it to Jack Johnson – but the thing is, it wasn’t a Columbus stick committing the foul in the first place. Milan Lucic’s stick clipped Connor […]

The Blue Jackets had been in a similar situation to the one they faced tonight with 20 minutes remaining. Their first period was dominant, again. They made a few mistakes in the second period, which allowed the Avalanche to work their way back into the game. Here they were in a 2-2 game going into […]

John Tortorella admitted he had some concerns about how the Blue Jackets would start this game. After 20 minutes had elapsed, those concerns had just about dissipated. Less than a week ago, Columbus went into Amalie Arena and outplayed the Lightning en route to a 5-3 win, and Tortorella figured the visitors would come into […]

The Blue Jackets were not happy with how they started Sunday’s game. As John Tortorella said afterward: “You never know what the hell’s going to be happen in a 12:30 game.” The first team to awaken usually has a leg up, but today, the Capitals’ quick start was quickly nullified by the Blue Jackets’ gradual […]