Game Preview: Blue Jackets, Ducks Face Off In Second Half Of A Columbus Back-To-Back

ANAHEIM DUCKS

29–33–14 (72 points; .474%) LINE: ANA -140

8:30 P.M. – SUNDAY, APRIL 17TH HONDA CENTER ANAHEIM, CA

Bally Sports Ohio ESPN+ (Out of Network)

The west coast swing continues for the Columbus Blue Jackets, as Patrik Laine and company are set for the second half of a southern California back-to-back when they face the Anaheim Ducks at 8:30 p.m. Sunday.

Columbus came up short Saturday night in Los Angeles, where the Kings picked up a 2-1 win. The loss came on the heels of two consecutive wins for the club, a pair of games in which the Blue Jackets scored ten total goals. 

The loss may not be the worst thing in the world. After a Washington Capitals win earlier in the evening, Columbus was officially eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoff race. With only the bottom 11 teams eligible to win the #1 pick (in what will presumably by the Shane Wright sweepstakes), the Blue Jackets find themselves with the 12th worst record. If they want the chance (albeit, just a 3.1% chance) at the top pick, they'll need to fall one more spot in the standings. The team below them right now in the standings, four points behind the Blue Jackets? Anaheim, of course. 

A Columbus win would put the Blue Jackets six points up with the Ducks only having five games remaining on the season. Columbus, meanwhile, has six games left after Sunday. So a Blue Jackets win would make it very difficult (but not impossible) for them to finish below Anaheim in the standings. 

RE: DUCKS

Beginning on Halloween, the Ducks won eight consecutive games to start off with an impressive 10-4-3 record. Their longest winning streak since? Just two games. Anaheim returns home for Sunday's game having concluded a four-game, east coast road trip that ended with back-to-back overtime losses to the Florida teams. 

Anaheim has given up three goals or more in 14 of their last 15 games, including six straight. The Ducks offense has waned, too, scoring more than three goals just twice in that same time span. Troy Terry (34 goals; 60 points) and Trevor Zegras (20 goals; 55 points) are 1-2 in both goals and points for the club, and they're the only two Anaheim skaters who have 40 or more points on the season. To compare, the Blue Jackets have six players with at least 44 points. 

Sonny Milano, the former Blue Jacket who briefly showed flashes of brillance after the trade to Anaheim, has struggled. He has a 13-18-31 statline in 60 games this season, but has just one point (a goal) in his last 15 games and hasn't picked up an assist in 21 straight games — nearly six hours of ice time. Players with an assist more recently than Milano include both Elvis Merzlikins and Jean-Francois Berube.

STORYLINES

• INCREASED ICE TIME FOR THE YOUTH
  With 13 goals and 13 assists, Cole Sillinger — who yes, is *still* 18 years old —  has the potential for a 15-15-30 rookie season. Saturday's game was the first time in 11 games that Sillinger didn't eclipse his season average of 13:37 for time on ice, and there's no reason to believe he won't see plenty of minutes over the final two weeks of the season. Kent Johnson doesn't have a point yet in his first two games, but has looked steady and it's a matter of time. Nick Blankenburg's end-of-season tryout will yield plenty of minutes for the former Michigan Wolverine, and here's to hoping 20-year-old Yegor Chinakhov can get back in the lineup before the season ends, as he continues to battle an upper-body injury.
   
• LET'S GO DUCKS?
  As mentioned above, this is a conundrum for the organization. They may not openly admit it — and would probably say just the opposite publicly — but certainly, with the playoffs now impossible, the club would be better served with a 3% chance of getting Wright than a 0% chance. One spot in the standings could change the trajectory of the franchise for the better. Is a meaningless two points against Anaheim on the road worth the risk?

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