Good news for the Habs: Columbus continues to fall out of the playoff race

It’s been a long time since the Montreal Canadiens’ fans have been watching the playoffs race so closely.

In recent years, it’s been more about the chances of getting the first overall pick that were being checked regularly, and in a religious manner after every night in the National Hockey League.

But this season, things are completely different, as the Habs are right in the heart of the playoffs race, which means everyone is watching the standings in a religious manner, but this time from top to bottom and not the other way around.

In short, every night in the NHL is important to watch, as almost every night, a direct opponent of the Habs in the playoffs race is in action.

And last night, despite there being only one game on the schedule, it was a game to watch, as the Columbus Blue Jackets, who are just three points behind the Habs, were in action.

The @penguins put up six goals on home ice! pic.twitter.com/sEjfqB4azX

— NHL (@NHL) March 22, 2025

What’s even more amazing for the Habs is that the Penguins’ winning goal was scored by a 28-year-old Montrealer, Bokondji Imama.

Bokondji Imama scores his first goal as a Penguin! pic.twitter.com/wpfvbNfwf1

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) March 22, 2025

This is Imama’s second career goal, and his first with the Penguins.

In short, a guy from Montreal came to render great services to the Habs.

Also worth noting is that Imama dropped the gloves with Mathieu Olivier.

Mathieu Olivier and Bokondji Imama drop the mitts at centre ice for a heavyweight bout pic.twitter.com/uCfAg7JwOy

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) March 21, 2025

And from Columbus’ side, well, things continue to fall apart, as the Blue Jackets are now on a six-game losing streak, during which they’ve scored only seven goals.

And if we look at the entire month of March, the Blue Jackets have only two wins in ten games.

In the standings, this gives the Habs a nice priority over the Blue Jackets, as Martin St-Louis’ team has three more points than Columbus, and also has a game in hand.

In short, Habs fans can only rejoice at seeing a direct opponent in the playoffs race take itself out of the competition with such a horrible streak.

Finally, the most dangerous opponent for the Habs right now is the New York Islanders, who could climb into the playoffs as early as today if they win against the Calgary Flames this afternoon, and the Habs lose in regulation to the Colorado Avalanche tonight.

Every night is therefore crucial right now, and the Habs can’t afford to make any mistakes or slip up.

The Blue Jackets are proof of that, as the Habs could never afford such a losing streak.

Overtime

– The Blue Jackets’ captain, Boone Jenner, scored his first goal of the season last night. He had missed almost the entire season due to an injury.

Columbus goal!

Scored by Boone Jenner with 05:53 remaining in the 1st period.

Assisted by Denton Mateychuk and Ivan Provorov.

Pittsburgh: 2
Columbus: 1#CBJvsPIT #LetsGoPens #CBJ pic.twitter.com/bTmNCcO4S5

— NHL Goals (@nhl_goal_bot) March 21, 2025

– Here are the top scorers from last night.

– On the schedule today in the NHL: 14 games.