from Aaron Portzline of Puck-Rakers at the Columbus Dispatch,

Saturday’s 3-0 win in Dallas may have been the most complete game the Blue Jackets have played under coach John Tortorella. Or at least the most complete game at a point in the season when it still matters.

The Blue Jackets looked fast in Big D. They played off each other and looked cohesive. They found the perfect balance, Tortorella said, between carrying the puck through the neutral zone (making plays) and dumping it into the zone (fore-check!).

Now comes the next challenge: Tuesday's game vs. the Los Angeles Kings in Staples Center.

“I’m anxious to see if we get too high, or if we handle ourselves the right way, as far as our readiness for the next game,” Tortorella said. “We’ve had meetings on it already. We’ve discussed it. And now we’ll go play and see where we go.”

Tortorella has been trying to determine how much he can trust his players’ professionalism since he arrived in Columbus a year ago. He has a reputation as a demanding coach, but Tortorella grants as many off days as any other coach. And he prefers to not have mandatory game-day morning skates.

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