When Thursday's game against the Florida Panthers is over, the Columbus Blue Jackets will be halfway through the expedited NHL season.
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| FLORIDA PANTHERS |
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16–5–4 (36 points) ROSTER / SCHEDULE |
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7:00 P.M. – THURSDAY, MAR. 11 NATIONWIDE ARENA COLUMBUS, OH |
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FOX SPORTS OHIO FOX SPORTS |
The way things are going right now, it can't end soon enough.
Columbus will look to gain a split of the two-game set against Florida as the two teams battle it out at Nationwide Arena, but even with a win, they're quickly reaching the point of playing for pride, not a playoff spot.
Winners of only three of their last 11 games, the Blue Jackets are still technically just six points out of a potential playoff spot. But the Dallas Stars, who sit four points behind Columbus in the standings, have played a half dozen fewer games and by points per game, are projected to finish multiple games ahead of the Blue Jackets in the standings.
To be six points out and trending up is one thing, but Columbus is trending down - and several key players are on a cold streak. None more notable, perhaps, than Patrik Laine. The 22-year-old is without a point in his last seven games - a span of over two hours and 10 minutes on the ice. To boot, he's also averaging less than three shots a game during that span.
Defensively, the Blue Jackets have allowed nine games over their last two games. That is, however, despite a pair of solid games between the pipes from Joonas Korpisalo. Elvis Merzlikins is back and available, but no matter who plays, the Columbus blue line needs to play better in front of their netminder.
Here's a look at tonight's projected (and subject to change) lines for Columbus:
Columbus Blue Jackets Projected Lines
| LW | C | RW | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 71 | Nick Foligno | 38 | Boone Jenner | 13 | Cam Atkinson |
| 29 | Patrik Laine | 96 | Jack Roslovic | 28 | Oliver Bjorkstrand |
| 16 | Max Domi | 20 | Riley Nash | 52 | Emil Bemstrom |
| 50 | Eric Robinson | 42 | Alexandre Texier | 11 | Kevin Stenlund |
*lines are subject to change
| LD | RD | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Zach Werenski | 3 | Seth Jones |
| 53 | Gabriel Carlsson | 58 | David Savard |
| 44 | Vladislav Gavrikov | 15 | Michael Del Zotto |
| Goalie | Backup | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | Joonas Korpisalo | 90 | Elvis Merzlikins |
Storylines
- THEY LOST TUESDAY, BUT: It was one of their better games of the season. Sergei Bobrovsky turned in a classic performance that the 5th Line saw so many times when he wore a Jackets jersey. Columbus missed a couple of key chances, but it was a one goal game into the final moments until the Panthers empty-net goal gave them the 4-2 victory. If Columbus plays as well Thursday night as they did Tuesday night, they'll be in good position to pick up two points.
- BLOCK THE NOISE: Columbus is in the proverbial "no-man's land" when it comes to what they'll do at the deadline. They're not Detroit-level bad, but the playoffs are a long shot, and the trade talk has started. Specifically, Nick Foligno's name was mentioned this week as being of interest to the Toronto Maple Leafs, and perhaps other teams as well. For now, however, the Blue Jackets need to tune out all of the outside chatter, and take things one game at a time.
- IT'S THURSDAY; THAT'S GOOD NEWS: The Columbus Blue Jackets really like playing on Thursday. They've won five of their last six contests that have played on a Thursday, and 11 of their 25 points on the season have come from games on a Thursday. They're averaging 1.38 points per game on Thursday's, compared to 0.73 points per game on any other day of the week.
