Game 82 is here.
But first, about last night - the Columbus Blue Jackets clinched a playoff spot for the third consecutive season after a 3-2 shootout win over the New York Rangers. If the season was over right now, the Blue Jackets would square off with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
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| OTTAWA SENATORS |
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29–46–6 (64 points) ROSTER / SCHEDULE |
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7 P.M. – SATURDAY, APRIL 6, 2019 CANADIEN TIRE CENTRE OTTAWA, CAN |
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FOX SPORTS OHIO FOX SPORTS GO |
That's not the case, though, and in their final game of the regular season, the Blue Jackets would love to get two more points and perhaps sneak back into the WC1 spot (and avoid Tampa Bay). However, they'll need outside help to do that. The focus will have to be solely on Ottawa, even though there will be other crucial games occurring around the league tonight.
The Senators are dead last in the Eastern Conference, and come into this game after losing 5-2 to Buffalo on Thursday night. On paper, it should be a win for the Blue Jackets, but Columbus will still have to put together a 60-minute performance. There's no such thing as a guaranteed win in the NHL.
The Blue Jackets are 2-0 against Ottawa this year. On New Year's Eve in Nationwide Arena, the Blue Jackets bested the Senators, 6-3. Then, on February 22nd, the Blue Jackets traveled to Ottawa and won, 3-0, in Matt Duchene's first game as a Blue Jacket.
Here's a look at tonight's projected lines for the Blue Jackets:
Forwards
Panarin–Duchene–Atkinson
Dzingel–Dubois–Anderson
Texier–Jenner–Bjorkstrand
Foligno–Nash–Dubinsky
Defenseman
Werenski–Jones
Nutivaara–Savard
Kukan–Harrington
Storylines
- We'll see Duchene and Ryan Dzingel take on their old team tonight, and we'll also see our old friend Anthony Duclair in a Senators jersey. Duchene and Dzingel both wanted to leave Ottawa, and Duclair wasn't a great fit in Blue Jackets head coach John Tortorella's scheme, so all three parties moved to greener pastures. Duclair has notched 8 goals and 6 assists in 20 games for the Senators. The Blue Jackets will have to watch out for his speed tonight.
- Sergei Bobrovsky was pulled last game, but it wasn't his fault that the Blue Jackets got shelled by the Bruins. The Russian goaltender has been playing some of the best hockey of his career recently, and the Blue Jackets (for the most part) have been playing great hockey in front of him. If Columbus can carry the play tonight, lessening the burden on Bobrovsky would not be a bad thing.
- The Blue Jackets won a critical game in New York last night that clinched them a playoff spot. If they grab two points tonight, and the Carolina Hurricanes lose to the Flyers, the Blue Jackets will take over the WC1 spot. Tonight's game is still huge.
