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| PITTSBURGH PENGUINS | ||
40-31-10 (90 pts; .556%)
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7:00 P.M. – THURSDAY, APRIL 13 NATIONWIDE ARENA COLUMBUS, OH |
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TELEVISION: Bally Sports Ohio ESPN+ (Out of Market) |
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| PROJECTIONS: | ||
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| ODDS OF CBJ WIN PER MONEYPUCK: 36% | ||
| ODDS OF CBJ WIN PER THE 538: 41% | ||
| CAESAR'S SPORTSBOOK: PIT -190 | ||
This is gonna be a weird one.
Two teams that aren't heading for the playoffs meet Thursday night when the Columbus Blue Jackets host the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Pens were eliminated from playoff contention Wednesday night with a New York Islanders victory, bringing an end to Pittsburgh's 16 straight postseason appearances.
While that would typically be music to the ears of Blue Jacket fans, it means that the Penguins have little to play for in their season finale.
And while that, too, would normally put a smile on the face the Columbus faithful, this is a game that the Blue Jackets are absolutely, definitely better off losing.
Here's what else to know when the puck drops at Nationwide Arena:
| CBJ | SEASON STATS | PIT |
|---|---|---|
| 2.60 | GOALS FOR | 3.20 |
| 4.03 | GOALS AGAINST | 3.21 |
| -1.43 | GOAL DIFFERENTIAL | -0.01 |
| 18.3% | POWER PLAY | 21.2% |
| 75.6% | PENALTY KILL | 79.2% |
| 29.2 | SHOTS FOR | 34.3 |
| 35.4 | SHOTS AGAINST | 32.8 |
| 44.9% | 5V5 CF% | 52.0% |
| 48.7% | FACE-OFF % | 52.1% |
| PENS: LAST THREE GAMES | ||
| THU, 4/6 | vs. Wild | W 4-1 |
| SAT, 4/8 | @ Red Wings | W 5-1 |
| TUE, 4/11 | vs. Blackhawks | L 4-1 |
| PENS: TEAM LEADERS | ||
| GOALS | Jake Guentzel | 35 |
| ASSISTS | Sidney Crosby | 58 |
| POINTS | Sidney Crosby | 91 |
TALKING POINT: PENS
- Pittsburgh's playoff streak of 16 seasons was the longest in all of major American professional sports. It'll be only the second time in the career of Sidney Crosby that he doesn't experience playoff hockey, and the first since his rookie year.
TALKING POINT: CBJ
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Thursday was scheduled to be the last night of the NHL's regular season, but a snowstorm in Buffalo earlier in the year will see the Sabres (also eliminated) come to town Friday night. The two games are critically important for the Blue Jackets, because picking up even one point could cost them a guaranteed top-three pick and cut in half their chances of winning the Connor Bedard sweepstakes. It is entirely okay for fans of the Blue Jackets to root against their team in these last two games.
- The club will dress only 11 forwards and go with seven defensemen for the game. It will be the NHL debut's for forwards Mikael Pyythia and Tyler Angle, as well as blueliners Stanislav Szovil and Samuel Knazko.
PROJECTED CBJ LINES
Updated: 7:05 a.m. // Subject to Change
| LW | C | RW | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Johnny Gaudreau | 7 | Sean Kuraly | 86 | Kirill Marchenko |
| 19 | Liam Foudy | 91 | Kent Johnson | Mikael Pyyhtia | |
| 39 | Tyler Angle | 21 | Josh Dunne | 52 | Emil Bemstrom |
| 46 | Joona Luoto | — | ——— ——— | 41 | Hunter McKown |
| LD | RD | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Stanislav Svozil | 2 | Andrew Peeke | |
| 75 | Tim Berni | 27 | Adam Boqvist |
| 6 | Billy Sweezey | 75 | Tim Berni |
| Samuel Knazko | — | ——— ——— | |
| Starting Goalie | Back-Up | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Michael Hutchinson | 32 | Jon Gillies |
