The Colorado Avalanche kept waiting for the puck to finally get into the back of the goal, but it never happened on Thursday night in a 2-0 defeat against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The loss ends a four-game winning streak for the Avalanche.

Columbus took the early lead in the first period with a goal from Nikita Nikitin and followed up with an insurance goal in the second period from Fedor Tyutin. From there, the Blue Jackets depended on defense to get a rare victory for the Western Conference's worst team.

Colorado managed to get 32 shots on goal during the game, but Blue Jackets goaltender Steve Mason saved them all. It's the first time that the team has been shut out since a 1-0 loss at home against the Minnesota Wild on Feb. 2. The Avalanche continue to be on the fringe of qualifying for the playoffs as the season nears its close.

For more coverage, visit our Avalanche blog Mile High Hockey and our Blue Jackets blog Jackets Cannon.