Columbus Blue Jackets fizzle as Tarasov struggles in loss to Seattle Kraken: 5 takeaways
After a strong offensive start, the Columbus Blue Jackets sputtered to a flat finish Saturday night at sold-out Nationwide Arena.
Despite getting two goals from defenseman Ivan Provorov on his 27th birthday, the Blue Jackets (13-21-9) surrendered three on-goal leads in front of a standing room only crowd of 18,588 that watched the Kraken (19-14-9) win their ninth straight game with a 7-4 victory.
"The first period, we were playing the right way," Provorov said. "We were playing hard, we were playing fast, and from the start of the second, we tried to do a little bit too much of 'East-West,' and turning back and bringing the puck back. It slowed the game down, and that didn't really work out for us. It worked out for us previous games. It didn’t work out for us today."
Seattle hasn't lost in regulation since Dec. 10 against the Minnesota Wild, going 11-0-2 in that stretch. The Blue Jackets have lost consecutive games in regulation for the first time Nov. 18-19 in their final two defeats in a franchise-record tying nine-game losing streak.
“That’s a good tracking team," Blue Jackets coach Pascal Vincent said of the Kraken. "That’s how they made the playoffs last year ... well, part of the reason. Their track is unreal, so 'East-West' is not a good solution, and part of it is, now it’s the second half. ... It’s a big boys’ game, and those plays that worked in the past, in previous leagues, are not going to work here.”
With Eeli Tolvanen's empty-net goal late in the third, the Kraken’s seven-goal performance ties for the most goals the Blue Jackets have allowed this season. Jared McCann led the way for Seattle with two goals. Jordan Eberle, Brian Dumoulin, Ty Kartye and former Blue Jackets winger Oliver Bjorkstrand netted the others.
Kirill Marchenko and Emil Bemstrom scored the third and fourth goals for the Blue Jackets, who started goalie Daniil Tarasov in net. The Blue Jackets are scheduled to host the Vancouver Canucks at 1 p.m. Monday.
Here are five takeaways:
Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Daniil Tarasov torched by Seattle Kraken in latest ‘assessment’ start
Starting for the fourth straight game and fifth time in the Jackets’ past six games for what Vincent said were evaluation purposes, Tarasov was lit up by the Kraken.
He allowed two goals in the first period, two in the second and two more in the third on just seven shots, as Seattle recovered from a slow start to surge ahead in the game's final 30 minutes. Tarasov faced 35 shots while allowing his season-high in goals in one game.
"The result is not good enough," Tarasov said. "Just keep battling, just keep trying to find the good ... my good form. I just want to be sharp and help the guys. I have to apologize for this performance on this Saturday night in front of this full crowd."
The previous two days after practices, goaltending was the hot-button subject. More specifically, the Jackets’ promotion of Tarasov to the starting role for about two weeks over Elvis Merzlikins became a point of contention. Merzlikins, who spoke Friday, said he and the Blue Jackets’ front office have mutually agreed to find him a “new scenario” elsewhere.
What that actually means is a little foggy, but it sure sounds like the Blue Jackets are working to find a trade partner.
Vincent, meanwhile, said on Friday that Tarasov is getting the majority of starts to provide data that could eventually be used to make an assessment on whether he can handle being the team’s top goalie for the long-term.
Allowing six goals, including two on seven shots in the third, was a tough data point to stomach.
"I’m really (appreciative) of this opportunity," Tarasov said. "It means a lot. The last two, three games, I was not that good. Unfortunately, it’s a lot of mistakes in my game in the last two games. Just keep it going, take the lesson from the last two starts. It’s kind of tough losses, but you should take some lessons from this and just keep going."
Vincent said after the game that Tarasov is struggling and the coaching staff would make a decision on which goalie will start Monday against the Canucks after doing video analysis. Merzlikins, who'd been scratched in four of the previous five games, back up Tarasov against the Kraken.
Columbus Blue Jackets still struggling to build on leads
More than halfway through the season, the Blue Jackets’ haven’t corrected a season-long issue that has led to many of their losses thus far. Simply put, they can’t hold leads of any margin and struggle to build momentum after taking one-goal leads.
Against the Kraken, they frittered away leads of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 before Seattle finally caught-and-passed them for good in the second period. It’s a problem with a two-way street.
The first part is positive with their ability to score goals, generate offense and take multiple leads in games. The second is a huge reason they fell out of the playoff chase in the Eastern Conference in November. This season-long affliction continues to be a roadblock in the Jackets’ effort to mature and develop into a playoff contending team sooner than later.
"It’s part of the game," Provorov said. "I mean, to be a good team, you got to be able to hold on to leads and be able to win games. And, so far, we haven’t been able to figure that out."
Non-call hurts Columbus Blue Jackets again in loss to Seattle Kraken
The game turned in Seattle’s favor about midway through the second period on goals by Kartye and Bjorkstrand to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead.
Kartye’s goal knotted it 3-3 at 9:45 and Bjorkstrand’s capped a power play that began with a controversial non-call by referee Chris Schlenker following a big shoulder-to-shoulder hit by Blue Jackets center Cole Sillinger on Kraken center Matty Beniers.
The hit itself was penalized as boarding minor, which was debatable, but it happened right in front of the Seattle bench and prompted Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn to instigate a fight. Dunn threw his gloves off first landed a punch to the face just as Sillinger shed his gloves, putting him on the defensive for the entire scrap.
Sillinger, who got the worst of the fight, was penalized two minutes for boarding along with a five-minute fighting major. Dunn was only assessed five for fighting and wasn’t assessed an instigating minor, which gave the Kraken the power play that led in Bjorkstrand’s goal.
"I'm not going to comment too much on the situation," Sillinger said. "I like the hit. I think it was a shoulder-on-shoulder. Obviously, when you hit someone, you never mean for them to get injured or fall like the way he did. From what I felt, it was shoulder-on-shoulder. In today’s day in the game, you hit a player like Beniers, you’re going to have to answer the bell."
That wasn't the biggest issue though. Giving the Kraken a power play right after the tying goal was a key momentum shift against the Blue Jackets despite Dunn providing a textbook example of an instigating penalty that neither Schlenker nor his fellow referee, Justin Kea, felt the need to call.
Given the NHL’s well-earned reputation for inconsistent officiating calls, that wasn’t a surprising decision.
Blue Jackets try to showcase Adam Fantilli, Kent Johnson combination
After stints of on-ice time together against the New York Islanders and the St. Louis Blues, Adam Fantilli and Kent Johnson were on the same line against the Kraken Saturday night, a line Vincent expected success from, saying he’s seen the “good combination” between the pair and Jack Roslovic in practice.
To Fantilli, being paired with Johnson, a fellow Michigan hockey alum, is a perfect match.
“Might be more of a pass-first mentality, I’m a bit more of a shot-first mentality,” Fantilli said. “Those things tend to go together well usually, and I think we were able to find quite a bit of chemistry last time we played together.”
Saturday, Fantilli was the player to set up the first score, assisting Provorov’s first of two goals against the Kraken. Vincent’s line of Johnson, Fantilli and Roslovic got its share of opportunity to build chemistry, sharing the ice for 6:59 — second longest of any line Saturday — and creating seven shot chances.
“It’s a big trust thing,” Fantilli said. “Like I obviously have trust in my abilities and I have trust in KJ’s ability. So they hope to build chemistry off that, him knowing that I’m going to do my job and me knowing that he’s going to do his, helps us get to those areas, helps us produce and helps us just continue to get better as a line.”
Why David Jiricek did not play for the Blue Jackets vs. Kraken
David Jiricek did not see the ice for the Blue Jackets Saturday night.
Per Vincent, the second-year defensemen was a healthy scratch against the Kraken after posting two shots, a hit and a blocked shot against the Winnipeg Jets Tuesday.
“Nothing major, but just little things here and there,” Vincent said of Jiricek. “We wanted to give him a good day of practice today, again. We’re working on some technical parts of his skating, his mechanics of skating. Just for some of those young guys once in a while to take a deep breath and reevaluate your position, having some meetings with the coaches and having a good understanding of where he's at, it’s not a bad thing. That’s what we’re doing right now.”
Jiricek has played in 36 games for the Blue Jackets in 2023-24 and is averaging nearly 15 minutes on ice per game.
Vincent replaced Jiricek with Andrew Peeke, who recorded an assist on Provorov’s second goal of the game and finished with a +3 plus/minus rating in his 13:07 on ice. Vincent called Peeke the “ultimate teammate,” who had played in 13 games this season but had been a healthy scratch the previous five.
“His ability to stay a true professional without creating any distractions in the room is off the charts for me,” Vincent said. “That’s great leadership.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets fumble multiple leads in loss to Kraken: 5 takeaways
