By Dave Hart
LocalSportsJournal.com
Blue Jackets 5, Red Wings 3 – The Columbus Blue Jackets held on to beat the Red Wings on their home ice on Tuesday night.
The Blue Jackets led 4-1 with 10 minutes left in regulation, but the Red Wings cut their deficit to one goal at 4-3 with 3:30 left in the third period.
The Red Wings are currently on a three-game losing streak.
Cam Atkinson led Columbus with two goals and an assist, while Boone Jenner added a goal and an assist and Brandon Dubinsky chipped in with two assists.
Justin Abdelkader, Andreas Athanasiou and Tomas Tatar each scored a goal for Detroit while Mike Green chipped in with three assists.
Detroit’s goaltender Jimmy Howard took the loss, stopping 27 of 31 shots before getting pulled multiple times for an extra skater.
The Red Wings are now 32-23-11 on the season, good for 75 points and fourth place in the Atlantic Division. They are two points ahead of Philadelphia for the final playoff spot with 16 games remaining.
Detroit will host the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.
Record: 32-23-11 75 pts
4th Place in Atlantic Division (8 pts behind Tampa Bay)
8th Place in Eastern Conference (27 pts behind Washington)
2 pts ahead of Philadelphia for the last playoff spot
Magic # to clinch 25th straight playoff berth: 33 pts
Magic # to clinch Atlantic Division title: 39 pts
Magic # to clinch Eastern Conference title: 60 pts
Misery # towards elimination from a playoff berth: 35 pts
Misery # towards elimination from Atlantic Division title: 25 pts
Misery # towards elimination from Eastern Conference title: 6 pts
Next Game: 03/10/2016 vs. Winnipeg Jets 7:30 p.m. @ Joe Louis Arena Arena
Stats: Goals- Justin Abdelkader (16), Andreas Athanasiou (5), Tomas Tatar (18). Assists- Mike Green 3 (22), Pavel Datsyuk (24), Gustav Nyquist (21). Goaltender- Jimmy Howard L (8-10-5) 27 saves on 31 shots.
