The Columbus Blue Jackets are looking for a win after losing in an excruciating shootout to the Minnesota Wild. They'll take on a San Jose Sharks club that is fighting for position within the Pacific Division in the Western Conference.
The Sharks are on a three-game losing streak on their eastern swing. Much like the defense of the Blue Jackets, the Sharks have one of the most active groups in the NHL.
VIDEO: John Tortorella
Blue Jackets Projected Lineup
| # | Player | Stats | # | Player | Stats | # | Player | Stats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Artemi Panarin | 50 GP, 13-28-41 | 10 | Alexander Wennberg | 36 GP, 5-14-19 | 71 | Nick Foligno | 50 GP, 9-12-21 |
| 28 | Oliver Bjorkstrand | 50 GP, 8-18-26 | 18 | Pierre-Luc Dubois | 50 GP, 10-12-22 | 77 | Josh Anderson | 48 GP, 15-10-25 |
| 11 | Matt Calvert | 38 GP, 6-9-15 | 17 | Brandon Dubinsky | 32 GP, 3-9-12 | 13 | Cam Atkinson | 34 GP, 7-8-15 |
| 38 | Boone Jenner | 43 GP, 4-8-12 | 45 | Lukas Sedlak | 37 GP, 4-3-7 | 36 | Jussi Jokinen | 4 GP, 0-0-0 |
| # | Player | Stats | # | Player | Stats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Zach Werenski | 46 GP, 11-11-22 | 3 | Seth Jones | 50 GP, 8-25-33 |
| 7 | Jack Johnson | 50 GP, 2-5-7 | 65 | Markus Nutivaara | 43 GP, 3-13-16 |
| 46 | Dean Kukan | 2 GP, 0-1-1 | 58 | David Savard | 49 GP, 3-6-9 |
| # | Player | GS | W-L-OL | GAA | SV% | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 72 | Sergei Bobrovsky | 41 | 22-15-4 | 2.45 | .921 | 4 |
| 70 | Joonas Korpisalo | 9 | 5-4-0 | 2.85 | .912 | 0 |
Three Storylines
- Kickstarting the Offense: The lines have been jumbled around once again. Most notably, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Josh Anderson are skating with Oliver Bjorkstrand on his off-wing. Outside of Artemi Panarin, the offense is stagnant. This may not do much with changing the lines, but they are looking for anything to happen and hoping that it kickstarts the offense.
- Who can? Kukan: While he hasn't been a world-beater in the shot differential department, defenseman Dean Kukan has been smooth skating and has looked the part. He had his first career NHL point against the Minnesota Wild. He is filling a weird role for the Blue Jackets as they can't seem to find a sixth defenseman they like with Ryan Murray out.
- Blood In The Water: The San Jose Sharks have not played well the past three games. The losses to the Red Wings and Penguins were notable for how bad they were. The loss of center Joe Thornton may be having more of a short-term effect than anyone could have anticipated. They weren't going to play on the same level, but they have at times look lost.
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