Columbus Blue Jackets ride a 4-for-4 power play to sink the Tampa Bay Lightning at Benchmark International Arena

The Columbus Blue Jackets moved to 33-21-10 with 5 points, and the the Tampa Bay Lightning carried a 39-20-4 record with 2 points after a 5-2 finish at Benchmark International Arena.

First period

The Columbus Blue Jackets opened the scoring line with 0 goals in the first period while putting 31 shots on net in the game.

The the Tampa Bay Lightning produced 1 goal in the first period and finished with 18 shots in the game.

The Jackets ended the night at 44 percent on faceoffs as the Lightning posted 56 percent.

Second period

The Blue Jackets struck for 3 goals in the second period as the team power play went 2-for-4 on 5 shots.

The Lightning scored 1 goal in the second period while the Bolts power play went 0-for-3 on 5 shots.

Columbus finished with 9 takeaways and 17 giveaways, while Tampa Bay logged 2 takeaways and 11 giveaways.

Third period

The Blue Jackets added 2 goals in the third period, including 1 empty-net goal to close out the scoring.

Elvis Merzlikins earned the win with 16 saves on 18 shots against and a 100 percent save rate.

Zach Werenski posted 2 assists in the previous game, and his 22:59 time on ice reflected a heavy workload in that outing.

Adam Fantilli recorded 1 assist with 5 shots in the previous game, and Sean Monahan contributed 2 assists in that outing.

Tampa Bay’s goaltending line finished with 26 saves on 31 shots against while allowing 1 empty-net goal.

The Jackets registered 21 hits and 15 blocked shots, and the Lightning answered with 29 hits and 8 blocked shots.

This Columbus Blue Jackets vs Tampa Bay Lightning recap also notes 13 penalty minutes for Columbus and 15 penalty minutes for Tampa Bay.

The post-game thoughts Columbus Blue Jackets centered on 16 percent shooting on 31 shots and a plus-minus of 5 for the team.

The Columbus Blue Jackets post-game interviews followed a night where the Lightning ended at 11 percent shooting and a minus-6 plus-minus.

The Columbus Blue Jackets vs Tampa Bay Lightning result analysis starts with Columbus producing 14 total points on 5 goals and 9 assists while Tampa Bay finished with 5 total points on 2 goals and 3 assists.

The Blue Jackets are scheduled to play the the Florida Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise on 3/12/2026 at 7:00 PM EDT, with viewing on ESPN+, SCRIPPS, and FDSOH.

Keep it locked for the next game breakdown, and share this article with other CBJ fans.