The Chase is your morning report on where the Blue Jackets stand in the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs race. What happened, what's next, and who to cheer for.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are back in action tonight when they welcome the Boston Bruins (7 p.m. NBCSN) to Nationwide Arena and attempt to win their sixth straight game down the stretch.
The Blue Jackets are 1–0–1 against the Bruins this season, taking the last meeting in Columbus, 7-4, thanks to Boone Jenner's first career hat trick, on March 12.
Tonight's noteworthy, too, because it very well may be the final regular season home game for Sergei Bobrovsky and Artemi Panarin in a Blue Jackets uniform.
In NHL action Monday night, the Florida Panthers topped the Washington Capitals, 5-3, and Toronto edged the New York Islanders, 2-1, lending the Blue Jackets a bit of a hand in their pursuit of a top three spot in the Metropolitan Division.
Here's where we stand on Tuesday, April 2.
| GP | GR | W | L | OT | PTS | ROW | STRK | L10 | Make Playoffs [#] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| METROPOLITAN | ||||||||||
| (x) WASHINGTON CAPITALS | 80 | 2 | 47 | 25 | 8 | 102 | 43 | L1 | 6–3–1 | 100% (NC) |
| (x) NY ISLANDERS | 80 | 2 | 46 | 27 | 7 | 99 | 42 | L1 | 5–5–0 | 100% (NC) |
| PITTSBURGH PENGUINS | 79 | 3 | 43 | 25 | 11 | 97 | 41 | W1 | 6–2–2 | 99.74% (+0.05) |
| ATLANTIC | ||||||||||
| (p) TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING | 79 | 3 | 60 | 15 | 4 | 124 | 54 | W1 | 8–2–0 | 100% (NC) |
| (x) BOSTON BRUINS | 79 | 3 | 47 | 23 | 9 | 103 | 45 | L2 | 5–5–0 | 100% (NC) |
| (x) TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS | 79 | 3 | 46 | 26 | 7 | 99 | 46 | W1 | 4–4–2 | 100% (+0.21) |
| WILD CARD | ||||||||||
| COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS | 79 | 3 | 45 | 30 | 4 | 94 | 44 | W5 | 7–2–1 | 92.37% (+0.41) |
| CAROLINA HURRICANES | 79 | 3 | 43 | 29 | 7 | 93 | 41 | L1 | 5–5–0 | 78.01% (+0.71) |
| MONTREAL CANADIENS | 79 | 3 | 42 | 29 | 8 | 92 | 40 | W1 | 6–3–1 | 29.89% (-1.37) |
p - Clinched President's Trophy; x - Clinched Playoff Spot
With their win over the Islanders last night, the Maple Leafs locked down a playoff spot, just the fifth secured in the Eastern Conference this season.
The Blue Jackets and Pittsburgh Penguins can join them tonight. The Pens will punch a ticket with a Montreal loss in regulation this evening, while the Jackets can confirm their spot with a win against the Bruins and a regulation loss by the Canadiens, thanks to Columbus' hefty edge in ROW, the first tie-breaker after points.
The Jackets find themselves one point up on Carolina for the first wild card spot, and two points up on the Canadiens (while also owning the tie-breaker) for the final wild card spot. Columbus is three points back of Pittsburgh for third in the Metro.
Tonight's Game(s) of Interest
| Home | Away | Who to Cheer for |
|---|---|---|
| COLUMBUS (45–30–4, 94p) | BOSTON (47–23–9, 103p) | The boys in blue. |
| TORONTO (46–26–7, 99p) | CAROLINA (43–29–7, 93p) | Maple Leafs. Carolina losing would go a long way towards locking down WC1. |
| MONTREAL (42–29–8, 92p) | TAMPA BAY (60–15–4, 124p) | Lightning. Montreal loss and a CBJ win locks a playoff spot for Columbus. |
| DETROIT (31–38–10, 72p) | PITTSBURGH (43–25–11, 97p) | Red Wings. Metro 3 is still alive! |
Carolina and Montreal, the two teams trailing the Jackets closely for wild card positioning, have tough outs this evening, with the Hurricanes traveling to Toronto, and the Canadiens hosting the dominant Tampa Bay Lightning. Again, a Montreal loss and a Blue Jackets win tonight secures a playoff berth for Columbus.
Pittsburgh travels to Detroit, who have been anything but great this season, though the Red Wings are hot, having won five in a row.
Of note: You can watch every remaining regular season game across the league on NHL.com for free now.
Blue Jackets Playoff Odds
| Make It In | 2nd Rnd | Conf. Finals | SC Finals | Win SC | Win Metro | 2nd Metro | 3rd Metro | WC1 | WC2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
92.37% +0.41 |
41% -5.0 |
20.6% -2.9 |
8.9% -1.4 |
4.1% -0.5 |
0% NC |
1.5% +0.8 |
10.9% +1.4 |
53% -1.9 |
27% +0.1 |
Odds courtesy of MoneyPuck.com
We're not really sure why Money Puck's model saw the Blue Jackets' odds of advancing in the Eastern Conference playoffs take a hit, what with the Jackets off last night, but they are finally in double digits for odds to take the third spot in the Metro. Tonight is a big, big night on that front.
Today's stress ball: Ever wonder how game day graphics are made?
