As Blue Jackets continue to straggle, NHL-best Avs present a major challenge

DENVER — It seems a bit ridiculous to work out the “playoff math” for a club that’s in last place in the Eastern Conference, but it’s beneficial to understand what the Columbus Blue Jackets are up against the rest of the way.

Yes, the Blue Jackets are “only” 7 points behind the Buffalo Sabres, who hold the second wild-card spot in the East. But the Sabres, who have been one of the NHL’s hottest clubs since early December, are on pace to finish with 97 points.

To meet that pace at the finish line, the Blue Jackets would need to earn 54 points in their final 39 games, or a record in the neighborhood of 25-10-4.

The most immediate issue with that, of course, is that the Blue Jackets have shown only sporadic bursts of being close to the club that narrowly missed the postseason one year ago. There’s not much time to get that fixed.

And on Saturday comes the most significant challenge the NHL has to offer.

The Blue Jackets play the Colorado Avalanche at 4 p.m. (ET) in Ball Arena. The Avs (32-4-7) are on pace to set an NHL record for most standings points in a season, and they have yet to lose in regulation at home (18-0-2).

When the Blue Jackets hosted the Avs on Oct. 16 in Nationwide Arena, the Jackets actually felt they played pretty well for most of the game … and they lost 4-1. Colorado just had too much jam that night.

“They’re clearly the best team in the league,” Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason said. “The record shows it. They’re doing a lot of amazing things up to this point, right?

“Listen, we don’t care who we’re playing tomorrow. We better be desperate, right? I mean, we put our skates on the same as they do. So let’s go compete our asses off and see where we sit.”

The Blue Jackets had a short practice Friday at the University of Denver’s Joy Burns Arena, after which Evason confirmed Elvis Merzlikins, who hasn’t started a game since Dec. 20, will get the nod Saturday versus the Avs.

It makes sense given the schedule and the recent goalie rotation, which hasn’t been much of one.

Greaves, who has ascended to the starter’s role, has started the last eight games, the longest run of his NHL career. Also, the Blue Jackets face a road back-to-back — they play in Utah on Sunday — to end the trip.

Still, it figures to be a daunting task for Merzlikins to face the Avs after nearly three weeks without facing live pucks.

There’s also this: Among the NHL goaltenders with enough playing time to qualify for the league leaders, Merzlikins is 54th out of 61 with an .877 save percentage and 61st (last) in goals-against average (4.04).

The Blue Jackets will have to defend better than they have all season, certainly better than they defended in Thursday’s 5-3 loss in Las Vegas.

To that end, Evason elevated the Blue Jackets’ top defensive forward, Charlie Coyle, to the No. 1 line, where he skated at right wing with center Adam Fantilli and winger Kirill Marchenko, who switched to the left side.

Coyle, who finished last season with the Avalanche after being traded by Boston at the trade deadline, knows what the Blue Jackets are up against this season.

“Maybe I know a little bit more what to expect,” Coyle said. “But we all know what they bring and how they’re doing this year, how fast they are, how much firepower they have.

“It’s going to be a really good opportunity for us, a great test. We have no choice but to bring our ‘A’ game (Saturday), and that’s going to bring out the best in us.”

The Blue Jackets acquired Coyle and forward Miles Wood from the Avalanche over the summer in exchange for fourth-line youngster Gavin Brindley and two draft picks. Wood, who suffered a lower-body injury on New Year’s Eve, won’t play Saturday.

The Blue Jackets’ No. 2 line, which has been missing in action most of the season, was the most productive in Thursday’s game versus Vegas. Boone Jenner had a goal and an assist, Kent Johnson ended a 15-game goal drought and Sean Monahan had two assists.

Monahan, who has been playing through an injury all season, did not skate Friday in Denver, but he’s expected to play Saturday, Evason said.

Now the Blue Jackets need to get Fantilli going. He’s gone 10 games without a goal, the second-longest streak of his young career.

“We’ve watched some video and chatted, and, you know, he’s a guy who’s very aware of it,” Evason said. “But when he has success, he does the right things more on the defensive end than the offensive end, and that allows his skill set to come forward.

“He needs to get back to that, to getting inside and not being so outside, not so perimeter. He’s aware of it, and we expect him to do that, and we expect him to produce when he gets those opportunities.”