Eight days ago it seemed that it would be just a matter of time before the Montreal Canadiens would be postseason bound. They had a commanding eight point lead on the Columbus Blue Jackets for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Canadiens had 87 points, compared to 79 points for the Blue Jackets.
Over the last eight days, things have changed rapidly. The Blue Jackets have won five games in a row, and the Canadiens picked the worst time ever to have a three game losing streak. All of a sudden, the Blue Jackets are two points back of the Canadiens for the final playoff spot up for grabs in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Canadiens can clinch the eighth spot in the East with a win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday. However, if the Canadiens happen to lose in regulation tonight, the Blue Jackets clinch a playoff spot on Thursday with a regulation win over the New York Islanders.
Why are the Blue Jackets having great success lately?
The Blue Jackets are scoring at a high rate and receiving fantastic goaltending. The Blue Jackets star in between the pipes has been Jet Greaves of Cambridge, Ontario. Greaves was the National Hockey League’s First Star of the Week from April 7-13. In that time, he had a record of three wins, zero losses, one shutout, a goals against average of 1.00, and a save percentage of .968.
Greaves was unbelievable on the weekend against the Washington Capitals. He made 52 saves on 53 shots in wins on two consecutive days. Greaves had 22 saves in a 7-0 Blue Jackets shutout win on Saturday and 30 saves on 31 shots in a 4-1 Blue Jackets win over the Capitals on Sunday. The only Capitals player to beat Greaves was Alexander Ovechkin, who scored his 896th NHL goal all-time. Also during the streak, Greaves made 39 saves on 41 shots in a 3-2 Blue Jackets win over the Buffalo Sabres on April 10, and recorded his second career NHL shutout on Tuesday in a 3-0 Blue Jackets win over the Philadelphia Flyers.
To begin the streak, the Blue Jackets beat the Ottawa Senators 5-2 on April 8. Columbus goaltender Elvis Merzlikins of Riga, Latvia made 33 saves on 35 shots. He has since been out with an upper body injury, allowing Greaves to play, who has made the most of his opportunity.
Offensively, Adam Fantilli of Nobleton, Ontario has six goals in five games. Meanwhile, Kent Johnson of Port Moody, British Columbia and Sean Monahan of Brampton, Ontario have seven points in five games (each have two goals and five assists).
