The Columbus Blue Jackets are coming off an overtime victory against the Boston Bruins and are currently on a twelve game point streak despite multiple players being out due to injury - including the starting goaltender and top goal scorer from last season - and they are climbing back into the playoff hunt.
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| SAN JOSE SHARKS |
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18–21–3 (39 points) ROSTER / SCHEDULE |
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1 P.M. – SATURDAY, JANUARY 4 NATIONWIDE ARENA COLUMBUS, OH |
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FOX SPORTS OHIO FOX SPORTS GO |
Meanwhile, the sharks are in the middle of a disappointing season, to say the least. They came into the off-season looking like they were going to take the next step forward after making it to the Western Conference Finals but instead fell flat.
The Blue Jackets look like they are starting to get players back from injury as Milano finally made his way back into the line-up and picked up a goal. Along with Milano's return: Bemstrom, Atkinson, and Nutivaara could all slot back into the line-up sooner than later and once that happens the club will have a tough time deciding who to send back to the AHL.
Here's a look at tonight's projected lines for the Blue Jackets:
Forwards
Nyquist–Dubois–Robinson
Foligno–Wennberg–Gerbe
Lilja–Jenner–Stenlund
Scott–Nash–MacInnis
Defenseman
Werenski–Jones
Gavrikov–Savard
Carlsson–Harrington
Starter: Merzlikins
Storylines
- Elvis' first encore. Elvis famously never gave an encore, but Merzlikins looks to make his encore performance memorable for the home crowd.
- Keep the streak alive. The twelve game point streak is impressive in its own right, but the amount of starters out makes it more so. The point streak isn't the only streak they will look to extend tonight though.
- Don't forget who they are. Just because the Sharks are playing poorly does not mean the Jackets can count them out. There is still a lot of talent on the team and it only takes a couple of mistakes before the hole is too deep to climb out.
