Johansen, Tortorella differ on energy level in practice

WASHINGTON — Blue Jackets center Ryan Johansen had played only one period under coach John Tortorella before Tortorella called him out for his conditioning. On Friday night, the two didn’t even make it to faceoff before another disagreement surfaced. Tortorella said he would closely monitor Johansen’s ice time against the Washington Capitals after Johansen missed the previous two games complaining of fatigue.

“I don’t have any expectations. I’m going to play ’em,” Tortorella said. “I’m a little concerned, judging from (Thursday’s) practice, just the time off, just the struggle he’s had as far as his energy. I’m going to monitor that very closely during the game. … Hopefully, he’ll feel better after get a practice under his belt. We’ll see how it goes as the game goes on.”

Johansen declared himself “100 percent” healthy, first on Thursday and again on Friday. He seemed surprised to hear Tortorella describe practice as a “struggle.”

“I didn’t think it was that tough,” Johansen said. “No, I felt pretty good.”

Johansen also confirmed a recent report by the New York Post that Tortorella told Johansen he was “not in shape.” The comment was made after the first period of Tortorella’s first game behind the Blue Jackets’ bench on Oct. 22 at the Minnesota Wild.

“That was something that was said in the (dressing) room,” Johansen said. “That’s something that shouldn’t leave the room. You always hear these codes from teams and players in the league: What’s said in the room is said in there, and that’s between us. Whatever me and Coach talk about is between me and him.”

Asked how such a comment might have been leaked, Johansen said: “I have no idea.”

Tyutin scratched

Defenseman Fedor Tyutin, who played his 500th game for the Blue Jackets last week, was a healthy scratch against the Capitals.

Tortorella has been looking for a way to get defenseman Kevin Connauton in the lineup, he said, and the Blue Jackets’ play in their zone has been a struggle this season. But Tyutin comes as a mild surprise. This was his first healthy scratch since Dec. 6, 2010, when Scott Arniel was coach.

Connauton was paired with Dalton Prout.

Slap shots

Left wing Brandon Saad missed the game against Washington because of an illness, and his status for a game tonight against the Winnipeg Jets at Nationwide Arena is unknown. … Tortorella would not say who will start in goal against the Jets. Sergei Bobrovsky has started all four games under Tortorella, who has said he would like to get backup Curtis McElhinney a start soon.