Third-period collapse, offense cold, and more: 3 reasons why Winnipeg Jets lost 4-1 to Columbus Blue Jackets

The Winnipeg Jets saw their two-game winning streak snapped on Sunday night as they lost 4-1 to the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Canada Life Centre. Kyle Connor notched the Winnipeg Jets’ lone goal, a power play marker, to open the scoring at 11:51 of the second period.

From there, it was all Columbus as Kent Johnson scored twice, with Dmitri Voronkov and Sean Kuraly adding the others for the Blue Jackets.

So, let’s take a look at the three main reasons why the Winnipeg Jets lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday night.

3 reasons why Winnipeg Jets lost to Columbus Blue Jackets

#3 The Jets could not match the Blue Jackets’ more physical game

The Winnipeg Jets played a solid game against Columbus. However, it was the physical aspect of the game where the Blue Jackets had a decided edge over the Jets. In particular, the 28-13 difference in hits was significant enough to disrupt the Jets’ overall game.

That disruption was highly evident in the third period when the Blue Jackets scored three times to take the game. It’s worth pointing out that the Blue Jackets also outshot the Jets 28-25 and blocked more shots 24-16. Those numbers made a significant difference on the scoreboard.

#2 Comrie did not have his best outing

Winnipeg Jets backup goalie Eric Comrie got the start against Columbus after Connor Hellebuyck played the night before. While he had a reasonably solid performance, it wasn’t his best outing.

Comrie gave up three goals on 27 shots for a .889 SV%. While the numbers are not terrible, Comrie’s performance was not nearly good enough to make up for the lack of offense from the Jets.

The Jets missed Connor Hellebuyck’s penchant for stealing games. However, that was not the case on Sunday night, and the Jets dropped a tough loss.

#1 Third-period collapse by the Jets

The Jets and Blue Jackets headed into the second intermission tied a one. The game remained tied until the 7:15 mark of the third when Johnson scored his first of the night. Then, a little over two minutes later, Johnson added his second to give the Blue Jackets a 3-1 lead.

The Jets tried to mount a comeback but were unable to get anything going. Kuraly landed an empty-netter to seal the win, giving the Blue Jackets the two points.

While the Jets outshot the Blue Jackets 11-9 in the third period, the overall outcome did not favor Winnipeg. The Jets lacked any sort of momentum down the stretch. Perhaps the Jets were out of gas after playing the Chicago Blackhawks the night before.

The Winnipeg Jets will play their third game in four nights as they host the Boston Bruins on Tuesday night.