Blue Jackets exposed by stronger teams over the weekend, what did we learn?

After an impressive start to the year, the Blue Jackets were exposed by a couple of the hottest teams in the NHL over the weekend. In two games against the Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals, they lost by a combined 13-4 score. What did we learn?

On Friday night, the Winnipeg Jets came to Columbus flying high with a 9-1-0 record. The Jackets were able to keep this one close for the first half of the game, but as time wore on, the gap in skill and depth was obvious. The Jets scored three times in the final 21:09 to blow a 3-2 game open, leaving the Jackets in the dust and winning it by a 6-2 score.

Nik Ehlers led the way with a 4-point night (including a hat-trick), but the difference in this game was the depth of both teams. Winnipeg attacked in waves and it seemed like no matter what line was on the ice, they were having their way with the Jackets. Winnpeg's size and experience really stood out, especially as the teams started to tire as the game went on.

Back to back burns the Jackets for the first time this year...

The schedule makers did the Blue Jackets no favors this weekend, throwing them into a back-to-back game against the Washington Capitals just 22 hours later; which included travel to DC. It was almost certainly going to be a tough night on Saturday, and the Jackets looked travel weary and disjointed from the start.

The Caps scored early - their first coming just 56 seconds into the game - and often, taking a whopping 5-0 lead into the first intermission. While the Jackets were able to recover and at least hold serve for the remaining 40 minutes, the damage was already done. Washington won this one easily, with a 7-2 final.

Jackets were exposed in their own end...

For the first time this season, we saw flashes of the team that struggled in their own end last season. I thought they did some good things in both games, but they were clearly out-matched by both the Jets and Capitals in their defensive zone. Too many cross-ice passes, and too much time for shooters.

On Friday, it felt like a team that was worn down from a bigger, stronger, faster team. Elvis Merzlikins was brilliant, which explains why it felt like a closer game than 6-2. On Saturday, they just didn't look ready to play - and unlike on Friday, they weren't getting saves from their goaltender; so this one felt more like a blowout. Far from Daniil Tarasov's fault, however. He was left out to dry.

What did we learn?

Not much, outside of what we already expected. For the first time, this looked like a young team being matched up against two of the best teams in the league. It's honestly impressive that this is the first time they've been exposed. Overall, it's a weekend to forget in the early part of the season. Truly a "burn the tapes" situation, and hopefully the California trip is just what this team needs to get back on track.