COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Columbus Blue Jackets battled hard but ultimately fell 3-2 to the New Jersey Devils on Monday night, a frustrating loss highlighted by special teams struggles and a failed late comeback.

The Blue Jackets started strong, demonstrating offensive pressure by outshooting the Devils 16-8 in the first period. Despite this effort, the team went down 1-0 after Timo Meier opened the scoring with just one second left on a first-period power play.

Columbus clawed back in the second period when Kirill Marchenko tallied his fourth goal in three games, knotting the score at 8:49 with a breakaway.

However, the team’s ongoing issues with special teams continued to prove costly. Dawson Mercer restored the Devils’ lead at 11:09 of the second period, scoring with only four seconds l

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