Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson took part in a popular weekend tradition on Saturday. He attended a garage sale.

The NHL schedule-maker had a different name for it: Game No. 927, Toronto at Ottawa. The contest featured two teams out of the playoff hunt and willing to deal assets for the right price in advance of Wednesday's 3 p.m. trade deadline.

After browsing the likes of Antoine Vermette, Nik Antropov and Dominic Moore, Howson returned home Sunday and watched his team score one goal for the third consecutive game, a 3-1 loss in Vancouver. It was a western Canadian road swing that emphasized why the Jackets have been in the market for a scoring center or at least a top-six forward.

Whether he's able to negotiate a deal or not, the Jackets must find a way to score more than three goals in a week if they are to secure a playoff spot. They get another opportunity tonight against the Los Angeles Kings in Nationwide Arena.

"The challenge is not to let this become a pattern," said Howson, whose team is 20th in the league in scoring, averaging 2.6 goals per game. "That's a dangerous area to be scoring one or two goals a game."

Going 0 of 13 on the power play, as they did in the three games in Canada, also is a disturbing trend, but one a bit more familiar. Columbus ranks last in the NHL with the man advantage at 12.3 percent.

Rarely, however, have Jackets fans seen their team so offensively inept as against the Canucks. They were outshot 22-9 through two periods, and they also generated little in the latter half of a 4-1 loss in Calgary.

Sandwiched between those performances was a strong showing in a 1-0 win in Edmonton, but even that required the unlikely playmaking of Jared Boll and the breakaway skills of Raffi Torres.

"When you are not scoring goals, it's a reflection of some other things going on," coach Ken Hitchcock said. "I'm talking about areas of puck support, tenacity and competitive level."

Hitchcock remedies often include a noun, verb and some form of "compete." At this time of the season, with four points separating Western Conference teams No. 6 (Columbus) through No. 12 (St. Louis), nobody doubts Hitchcock's words.

The Jackets have road games against surging Nashville and Detroit later this week. In fact, after tonight, the Jackets play just one more game against an opponent (Tampa Bay) currently more than four points of out a playoff spot.

"If you want to reach your goal at this time of year, you have to play with that sense of urgency and aggression," Hitchcock said. "The temperature is going up and there's a competitive price to pay."

The road-weary Jackets didn't skate yesterday but met briefly. The coaching staff also huddled to discuss line combinations. One name that might be added is forward Fredrik Modin. Modin has missed the past seven games because of a knee injury.

Modin's strong play along the wall and veteran presence would be a boon. He knows there are no bold strokes that will get the Blue Jackets scoring goals again.

"At this time of year, when every team is so desperate, it's the little details that are important," Modin said. "In the last couple of games, we've not been as strong in those details."

treed@dispatch.com