The Columbus Blue Jackets finally return home after a five-game road trip that saw them cross multiple time zones. They left some important ranking points on the table.
The Blue Jackets went 1-3-1 on their road trip that took them to New York, Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton and then Seattle. The game against the Islanders was the second of consecutive games, as was the game against the Kraken.
Normally, achieving only three out of ten possible points is cause for concern. But there was also something good. That’s where we start this week’s edition of Blue Jackets’ News & Rumors. What do we think of this completed road trip?
Reflections on the road trip
The Blue Jackets should feel both good and terrible about this road trip. They were able to show in a short time what kind of team they can be. They also showed that they still have a long way to go when it comes to handling themselves in big moments in games.
An argument could be made that the Blue Jackets should have had a better record on this journey than what they accomplished. If they hold late leads against the Islanders and Oilers, they’ll come home with three wins out of five. That makes every road trip a success.
The Blue Jackets allowed two goals to the Islanders late in regulation, losing 3–2. Then they allowed an tying goal on the power play to lose a point against the Oilers. Those three points could come back and haunt them at the end of the season.
Despite the shortcomings, the Blue Jackets played well at several times. Their problem now is to do that consistently.
The second period in Edmonton ranks as one of the most dominant periods of the season for the Blue Jackets. They had the puck a lot and gave the Oilers nothing.
Most of the Seattle game was good as not much was allowed to the Kraken. In the second half of the back-to-backs, they defeated the Kraken and had chances to win in regular rules. Matt Murray played strong for the injured Joey Daccord.
Even in Calgary, down 2-1, the Blue Jackets kept pushing. But costly mistakes that led to strange-man rushes became their downfall. Those mistakes carried over to Vancouver and cost them that game as well, despite playing well in the stretches.
Adam Fantilli was moved to the top line along with Dmitri Voronkov and Kirill Marchenko for the final three games of the trip. Fantilli scored five points in those three games. He scored the lone goal in regulation for the Blue Jackets on Tuesday night.
Winning in Seattle was big for a number of reasons. It gave the Blue Jackets some momentum heading home. They finished that game while dealing with illness and injuries. It also kept them in the mushy middle of the Eastern Conference standings by keeping them above hockey’s .500 mark.
The best way to describe this past road trip was that it had the good, the bad and the ugly. The good thing was that there were some dominant pieces in games. The bad was only three out of ten points. The ugly was the way they lost in New York and Edmonton.
The Blue Jackets can certainly build on this road trip. But they can’t let the points slip away the way they did.
Faceoffs, better?
You read that correctly. The Blue Jackets were much better in the faceoff circle at the start of the 2025-26 season.
The Blue Jackets have been 23rd, 27th and 27th in the NHL in faceoff winning percentage over the past three seasons prior to this season. They were never higher than 48.6%.
This season? The Blue Jackets have won 51.7% of their matchups. That’s 11th in the NHL. Given the long, documented history of center struggles, this is a sign of how much center depth has improved.
Blue Jackets PR shared a statistic that they are just one of three teams with five or more players winning more than 50% of their faceoffs (minimum 75 ties) this season.
#NHLStats: #CBJ are 1 of 3 teams in NHL with 5 or more players who have won 50.0 pct. or more of their faceoffs (min. 75 draws), along with Ottawa (6) and Boston (5).
Jenner – 56.0
Coyle-53.8
Lundestrom – 53.3
Monahan – 53.2
Fantilli – 52.1— CBJ Public Relations (@BlueJacketsPR) November 12, 2025
It is a combination of factors that play a role. Captain Boone Jenner, despite being on the wing lately, is still good at winning draws. Sean Monahan is consistent there too.
But it’s new guys Charlie Coyle and Isac Lundestrom who have helped take this part of the Blue Jackets’ game to the next level. Both are over 53% for the season.
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Then there’s what Fantilli did. Now in his third NHL season, Fantilli is up 11% from 41.2% to 52.1%. The extra work he has put in has paid off.
The Blue Jackets’ top four centers (if you include Lundestrom) are all above 52%. While faceoffs aren’t the end all be all, they do ensure the Blue Jackets start possession more often than they don’t. For a team trying to take the next step, this is significant progress.
Fantilli’s continued development, combined with a more experienced presence under center, has helped strengthen an area of the Blue Jackets’ play that has eluded them for many seasons. Even if someone is kicked out, they have the opportunity to win major draws regardless of who is in it.
Side dishes
- The Blue Jackets ended the road trip with an illness sweeping the room. It cost Cole Silinger and Miles Wood a game. According to Jody Shelley, it may have cost Elvis Merzlikins his start in Seattle. We’ll see if it still goes ahead on Thursday and what impact that might have on the lineup. They will have a full morning skate ahead of their rematch with the Oilers.
- Jenner had to leave the game on Tuesday evening. At the time of writing, there is no word on the severity of his injury.
- Kent Johnson was scratched Tuesday night. No word on if it was related to the disease or if he was a healthy scratch. The Blue Jackets had all 23 skaters warm up on Tuesday to see who could play.
- Jake Christiansen played just seven minutes against the Kraken. He missed the entire second half of the game. At the time of writing, no schedule changes have been made.
- Thursday night’s game with the Oilers will be exclusive to ESPN+. John Buccigross is on the phone.
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