Our worst fears have come true. The Blue Jackets have stumbled out of the gate after the Olympic break, losing two crucial games against teams they are trying to catch in the standings-both in regulation.
After winning 7 consecutive games heading into that break, the magic seems to have worn off. It's not that the team has played poorly. In fact, they have played very well in both games. The issue is, they haven't been able to find the back of the net enough to outpace their still-leaky defense.
A big part of that problem is the lack of a second scoring line. In the two games they played last week, the Jackets scored five goals. Four of those goals were scored by the top line, with the other belonging to fourth liner Isac Lundestrom.
That's not the kind of production that is going to win you many hockey games. Especially not when the games really start to tighten up. You need a second scoring line. Preferably, a third line that can chip in some offense as well.
The team's usual second line is currently dismantled. Dmitri Voronkov, Sean Monahan, and Kent Johnson have been split up as Rick Bowness tries to find the right formula to get the team going again.
On paper, that line should work. But, in action, they have not yet found their way. Part of that certainly falls onto the shoulders of the team's highest paid forward (Monahan), who has just 10 goals and 27 points in 54 games this season.
It's not Monahan that has been shuffled out of the mix, however. It's Voronkov, who was demoted to the fourth line last game. And, it's Johnson, who was a healthy scratch. For this team to find its way into contention, they need these guys to rediscover their games.
Two openings in the top-six, with nobody staking their claim.
The top line for this team is more than capable of playing and producing positive results against any competition, on any given night. The problem is, they haven't gotten enough support, so it's become easier for teams to match up against them and shut them down.
So, it makes sense that a lot of this team's best results this season, have come because another line has stepped up and found offense. For example, at the start of their 7-game win streak, look at the production of the third line in games 2, 3, and 4 of that stretch (played on 1/24, 1/28, and 1/30).
Then, in the fifth game, Kent Johnson was the game's first star as they beat the Blues in St Louis. The last two wins of that streak were both shutouts, where the entire team pitched in to defend early leads.
It's pretty obvious that the missing ingredient for this team right now is the lack of secondary scoring. With Danton Heinen, Sean Monahan, and, I'm sorry to say it, Boone Jenner holding down the second line, this team is going to struggle offensively. That is just not a group built to drive offense.
They need Johnson and Voronkov to find their offense down this stretch run, if they are going to continue to contend for a playoff spot. These guys together should give this team a serious scoring bite. Lately, that has not been the case.
If yesterday's practice lines are any clue, we won't see that happen tonight. Johnson looks to be a healthy scratch again, while Voronkov remains with the fourth line. We'll see if that changes in our game preview later on.
Hopefully, Rick Bowness can get them straightened out soon. The last thing this team needs is to have them blossom elsewhere, like this guy has done.