Playing in its 56th game, the Columbus Blue Jackets have settled in as being an inconsistent hockey club. It’s their identity.
 
Thus coming off a win against Nashville Tuesday, the Jackets fell 4-1 to the Los Angles Kings in front of 13,709 in Nationwide Arena Thursday night.
 
“After 50-something games, you are what you are,” Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock said. “To me, constancy comes with the intensity level you play at on a consistent basis. You can’t drop your guard in this league—it’s too good of a league.”
 
The last time Columbus has won two in a row was a three game winning streak Jan. 7-11. It was followed with a three-game losing streak and the team has alternated wins and losses ever since.
 
The Jackets came out on fire, recording the first seven shots and outshooting the Kings 11-2 at one point. They also failed at two power play attempts in the first eight minutes. Los Angles got a goal moments later after the second penalty kill and never looked back.

“(LA) hung in there for the first 10 minutes and just absorbed our push,” Jackets forward R.J. Umberger said. “Then they got a goal and they pushed us and got momentum and we just let them do it. We didn’t respond.”
 
Anze Kopitar scored twice, while Matt Greene and Ryan Smyth scored for the Kings, who have won four straight. Jonathan Quick had 29 saves.
 
“Quick was the reason we were still at 0-0 after a couple of their power plays,” Kings coach Terry Murray said. “Sometimes what you need from your goaltender on the road is to play very intense.”
 
Antoine Vermette scored the lone goal for the Blue Jackets. Steve Mason stopped only 14 of 18 shots he faced.
 
Greene hit a slap shot from the blue line that was deflected by a Jacket and beat a screened Mason on the low glove side at 11:05. It was the Kings’ third shot of the game.
 
“We had a great start, we just couldn’t follow it up for the rest of the game,” Mason said. “From a team standpoint, it wasn’t a good game.”
 
Kopitar scored from the slot on rush to put the Kings up 2-0 late in the second. It was his 100th career goal.
 
Smyth and Kopitar (power play) scored just over five minutes apart to double the score at 4-0 midway though the third. LA only had three shots on goal in the final 20 minutes.
 
Vermette ended Quick’s shutout bid at 10:38 of the third scoring off a loose puck off the stick of Kristian Huselius.
 
“I’m’ surprised at how we played the last 40 minutes,” Hitchcock said. “I was surprised that we didn’t respond. LA picked it up on the checking side, but we got discouraged and lost our intensity.”
 
The Jackets play in St. Louis Saturday and Colorado Tuesday before returning home for five straight games before the Olympic break. Columbus hosts Dallas on Feb. 3 at 7 p.m.
 
dave.seaman@columbuswired.tv
Twitter: @DaveSeaman94