Edmonton made the game interesting but ultimately couldn’t complete a comeback against the Blue Jackets after falling behind in the second period.

Columbus opened the scoring for the first two goals and were matched by Leon Draisaitl for the next two. Columbus pulled ahead in the second period, and got the game winning fifth goal to start the third.

Edmonton was able to get two more goals, but Columbus held down their defence just long enough to secure the win.

The Oilers continue to show that they’re a team that can lay on the gas when needed, but they seem to only push the envelope when they’re under immense pressure. Edmonton’s offence was stagnant until they were down 2 goals in the second, and down 3 in the third.

Weak, unforced turnovers by the defence laid the groundwork for a bad game, and a poor performance by Calvin Pickard sealed the Oilers’ fate for Thursday night. The Columbus netminder Jet Greaves wasn’t spectacular either – posting an 0.862 save percentage, but it was stronger than Pickard’s 0.800 (which is barely worse than his season average, 0.836).

It should be noted that Edmonton was an inch away from having the game tied up early in the second which got called offside, and a clear tripping penalty was missed on Draisaitl late in the third period; the game was closer than it looked even when Edmonton was behind.

On the other hand, Pickard made about as many saves as the post, and the ESPN crew were keen to point out that the score would have been 7-2 half way through the match if every shot that hit a post had gone in.

Kudos to the effort in the third period in almost tying up the game, but tonight’s game in Ohio was too little, too late. Edmonton will look to get back into the win column Saturday night.