NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Yesterday morning, Nashville Predators coach Barry Trotz offered an analysis of the Blue Jackets' two-goal win Friday night that seemed loaded with subtext.

Trotz used the word emotional multiple times to describe how the Jackets played in their home opener on an evening they honored their late owner's memory with a robust effort against an opponent that has dominated them.

Unspoken in his assessment was a lingering question: Could the Jackets repeat the performance without the inspirational additives?

The answer was a resounding no. The Predators scored the game's first four goals in the building where Blue Jackets' momentum comes to die and cruised to a 6-3 victory. A Sommet Center crowd of 13,259 saw order temporarily restored in this lopsided rivalry.

Forward Martin Erat scored twice and the Predators chased starting goalie Fredrik Norrena midway through the second period. The Predators have won 16 of the past 18 meetings against the Blue Jackets and improved to 9-0 in the Sommet Center since April 3, 2006.

Columbus got goals from Jason Chimera, Marc Methot, the first of his NHL career, and Rick Nash. But the Jackets, who build a 4-0 lead Friday, were never seriously a threat in this one.

"There are no excuses; we need to have the same jump every game," Nash said. "We're professional athletes. We didn't have (the jump) and there are no excuses."

Norrena was equally direct.

"I didn't stop anything," he said.

Making his first start of the season, he allowed four goals on 11 shots before being relieved by Dan LaCosta. LaCosta made his NHL debut after being called up to replace injured Pascal Leclaire.

Norrena's puck-handling gaffe on a Predators short-handed goal late in the first period was particularly deflating and upped the Nashville lead to 3-0.

"We didn't give up many scoring chances, but when we did they were doozies," said Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock, whose team was outshot 30-26.

A night after the Jackets paid tribute to franchise patriarch John H. McConnell, they returned to the unsteady defensive form that has produced 21 goals against in five games. Their own-zone coverage was spotty. The defensive duo of Rostislav Klesla and Fedor Tyutin was a combined minus-7.

"We're making too many coverage mistakes," Hitchcock said. "We're not a very good checking team right now."

Columbus' corps of talented rookies -- Derick Brassard, Jake Voracek and Nikita Filatov -- also had a quiet night. They were scoreless and combined for just two shots. Filatov played sparingly after Nashville made it 2-0.

The Jackets were simply below the bar in all zones and all situations, allowing a short-handed goal and a four-on-four goal and going 0 of 4 on power plays.

The Predators opened the scoring at 6:30 as David Legwand won an offensive-zone faceoff and drove to net to redirect a Shea Weber point shot past Norrena.

Norrena had little chance on the first goal, and could not locate the puck through a Klesla screen at 10:41 as Erat ripped a shot from the left circle inside the near post.

The goalie misplayed a routine dump-in at 16:07, enabling Scott Nichol to retrieve the puck behind the net and center it to Joel Ward for an easy goal.

Chimera and Methot scored in the second period to cut the deficit to 4-2, but the Predators put it out of reach with two goals early in the third period.

treed@dispatch.com