Zach Werenski climbs higher, the Blue Jackets are watching the standings closer and the San Jose Sharks were overmatched: 3 takeaways

They didn’t get to six goals, but the Blue Jackets did move into the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference over the Boston Bruins by extending their season-high winning streak to six straight games Thursday at Nationwide Arena.

James van Riemsdyk scored twice and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the San Jose Sharks 4-1 to extend their win streak to six games — their longest since January 2020.

The Sharks were a step behind the Columbus Blue Jackets throughout the first period on Thursday ... 2006 at the then HP Pavilion in San Jose. He had 20:54 of ice time as the Sharks beat the St. Louis Blues 5-4 in overtime on a goal by Curtis Brown.

COLUMBUS -- James van Riemsdyk scored twice, and Zach Werenski extended his home point streak to 18 games for the Columbus Blue Jackets, who won their sixth straight game with a 4-1 victory against the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Thursday.

James van Riemsdyk scored twice, leading the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 4-1 victory over the visiting San Jose Sharks on Thursday night.

Jason Newland is the Site Editor and Reporter for the Columbus Blue Jackets team site with The Hockey News. A resident of Columbus, Jason has spent 10 years writing about the Blue Jackets and in his spare time hangs with his son Trevor, plays softball, and watches all sports. You can follow him at @F1reTheCannon.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic will become just the 21st defenseman in NHL history to play in at least 1,300 games Thursday when the San Jose Sharks face the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.

A strong first two periods helped the Blue Jackets survive a third-period push from the Sharks before van Riemsdyk found the empty net.

When the Columbus Blue Jackets face the San Jose Sharks at Nationwide Arena on Thursday (the puck drops at 7:00 PM ET), Kirill Marchenko and William Eklund will be two of the best players to keep an eye on.

After the Sharks play in Detroit on Tuesday, they finish the week-long trip with games against the Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Islanders, Boston Bruins, and Nashville Predators. Please check back for updates to this story. Click to share on Facebook ...