In Columbus, Elvis Merzlikins made 30 saves for the Blue Jackets and the Nashville Predators lost a chance to punch their playoff tickets in a 4-2 loss on Wednesday. 
“It’s hard to get into the playoffs,” Predators head coach John Hynes said. “We have to do a job. Like we’ve talked about, when there’s big games there’s tough losses. Is this a tough loss? Yeah, we all feel it, but it’s how you’re able to respond to this.”
Oliver Bjorkstrand (second goal fo the game) and Mikhail Grigorenko scored in the third period for the Blue Jackets to turn a 2-2 tie game into the 4-2 final.
“We’re trying to have fun,” Merzlikins said. “We give everything we have for these last games. Next season will be a fresh start, and I won’t ever remember this season.”
Tanner Jeannot and Calle Jarnkrok were the Nashville strikers.
“It’s exciting that we’re still in the driver’s seat here, I believe,” Nashville’s Colton Sissons said. “Two huge games against Carolina. It’s an exciting time of the year.”
Jack Roslovic also scored for Columbus.
“It’s a grind mentally,” Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella said. “We just want to play the games the right way, we always try to win the game, so it was nice to get the win. Our defense has played good for a couple games now, very responsible, and they have great chemistry.”
Juuse Saros made 23 saves in the loss.
“We worked hard,” Jeannot said. “We had some sustained pressure out there, just some mini-breakdowns, and they made us pay for it. … We’ve got refocus, put it behind us and get ready for Carolina.”
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