The Columbus Blue Jackets hit the road to take on the Buffalo Sabres.
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| BUFFALO SABRES |
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25–24–8 (58 points) ROSTER / SCHEDULE |
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7 P.M. – THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13 KEYBANK CENTER BUFFALO, NY |
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FOX SPORTS OHIO FOX SPORTS GO |
The Sabres are 3-1-1 in their past five games, including a win over the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday. The Sabres beat the Jackets in OT on February 1st - the Jackets first game after the All-Star break - and would like to do so again tonight to stay above .500.
Meanwhile, the Jackets are coming off two tough losses to the Avalanche and Lightning and a victory tonight would bring some confidence back to the squad.
Fans received their first peek of Foudy in the NHL against the Lightning and he played well including 2 shots on goal, a hit and a takeaway in his debut. He will have another shot at the NHL tonight and will look to build off his performance against the Tampa.
Here's a look at tonight's projected lines for the Blue Jackets:
Forwards
Foligno–Dubois–Bjorkstrand
Nyquist–Jenner–Foudy
Milano–Nash–Bemstrom
Gerbe–Stenlund–Robinson
Defenseman
Werenski–Nutivaara
Gavrikov–Savard
Peeke–Harrington
Goaltender: Merzlikins
Storylines
- Bouncing Back. The Blue Jackets have lost two games in a row for the first time since the end of December and with another back-to-back series, the Jackets need to pick up a win or see themselves fall behind.
- Time to Step Up. Ryan Murray practiced with the team this week, but likely won't be back soon and with the loss of Jones on the backend, the defense needs a couple of players to step up in order to offset the loss of Jones. Meanwhile, Atkinson's return has been delayed for 2-3 weeks, so the offense - which has performed admirably with the losses they have suffered - will need to play a 200-foot game to help the defense and produce more on offense.
- Between the Pipes. Merzlikins may have lost his past two games - the first time he has lost two in a row since taking over as the starting goaltender - but in those losses he has performed admirably, which led to him being named the NHL's first star of the week last week. For the Jackets to continue to win, it will be up to Elvis to cover-up the defensive breakdowns.
