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TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING TUESDAY, MARCH 4 7:00 P.M. AMALIE ARENA TAMPA, FL |
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BOLTS: |
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After the highs of Saturday's huge win at Ohio Stadium, the Columbus Blue Jackets now shift their sights to a tough, four-game road trip that begins Tuesday night in Tampa against the Lightning.
Nearly 95,000 were in attendance for the weekend win over the Detroit Red Wings in the 2025 Navy Federal Credit Union Stadiums Series matchup, with the two points putting the Blue Jackets firmly in the first wild card spot as the regular season enters its final six weeks.
Tuesday's battle with the Bolts gives the Blue Jackets a chance to gain more valuable points in a tight race that involves not only the wild card, but perhaps a top three spot in the Metro Division, as well: Columbus trails the New Jersey Devils by just four points for third with two games in hand.
The top three teams in each division are guaranteed a playoff spot.
Good news for Columbus: Yegor Chinakhov, out since late November, was activated from Injured Reserve on Tuesday morning and will make his return to the lineup tonight.
"He's been grinding for a while to get back," said head coach Dean Evason. "He's been working. He's been practicing hard, he's been training hard, he looks good."
When asked what he was most looking forward to, Chinakhov gave a simple answer:
"Just to play hockey. I miss that."
The 24-year-old had seven goals and seven assists for 14 points in 21 games before getting hurt November 27th. His addition to the lineup adds yet another scoring threat to a lineup that had scored five or more goals in a franchise-record four straight games.
Chinakhov practiced with Boone Jenner and Kent Johnson at Monday's practice and looks to slot it on the second line Tuesday. Jenner was moved to center following last week's injury to Cole Sillinger, who was placed on Injured Reserve and is expected to miss a few weeks with a shoulder injury.
After stealing the show Saturday, Elvis Merzlikins again gets the start in net Tuesday. His 43 saves in the win at The Shoe were the second-most in an NHL outdoor game.
Here's what else to know when the Blue Jackets and Bolts meet for the third and final time this season:
| CBJ | SEASON STATS | TB | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10-16-4 | ROAD / HOME | 21-7-2 | ||
| 5th | 3.35 | GOALS FOR | 3.52 | 2nd |
| 25th | 3.25 | GOALS AGAINST | 2.62 | 5th |
| 18th | 21.6% | POWER PLAY | 26.2% | 5th |
| 25th | 75.3% | PENALTY KILL | 80.8% | t-10th |
| 15th | 28.7 | SHOTS FOR | 28.8 | t-13th |
| t-25th | 29.5 | SHOTS AGAINST | 28.6 | 18th |
| 27th | 47.2% | FACE-OFFS | 50.3% | t-17th |
| TAMPA BAY: LAST THREE GAMES | ||||
| THU, 2/27 | vs. Flames | W 3-0 | ||
| SAT, 3/1 | @ Capitals | W, 3-1 | ||
| MON, 3/3 | @ Panthers | L, 2-1 | ||
| TAMPA BAY: TEAM LEADERS | ||||
| GOALS | Brayden Point | 32 | ||
| ASSISTS | Nikita Kucherov | 60 | ||
| POINTS | Nikita Kucherov | 87 | ||
| ODDS & PROJECTIONS | ||||
| CBJ WIN PER MONEYPUCK: | 38% | |||
| CBJ ODDS PER FANDUEL: | +134 | |||
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RE: BOLTS
Before their 2-1 loss Monday night to the Florida Panthers, the Lightning had won eight straight games. They scored at least three goals in all eight wins and had four or more in six of them. Even in the loss, Tampa allowed two goals or less for a fifth straight game. ... Jonas Johansson appears in line to get his 13th start of the season. Primary netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy was in net Monday night. Johannsson is 6-5-1 this season in his starts, with a 3.24 goals against and .892 save percentage. ... Four Bolts have 27+ goals: Brayden Point has 32, Brandon Hagel is at 30, and Jake Guentzel and Nikita Kucherov are at 27. Kucherov's 87 points also ranks third in the league, trailing only Nathan MacKinnon (91) and Leon Draisaitl (90).
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BOONE AT CENTER
With Sillinger expected to miss several weeks, Jenner looks to be locked in at center for a while. It wasn't the original plan when he returned to the lineup — Columbus had him in at his most natural position of left wing — but the captain is excellent in the faceoff dot, an area the Blue Jackets have struggled in this season. It may not be the worst thing to have him taking draws.
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HEATERS
Several Blue Jackets are on point streaks: Kent Johnson has points in five straight, including four goals, and overall has picked up at least one point in 13 of his last 14 games. Adam Fantilli's empty-netter Saturday made it five straight with a point for him, too. Jenner has at least one assist in all four games since his return from injury, including two multi-assist games. Finally, James van Riemsdyk has four points in his last three games, including three goals.
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LINEUPS & PROJECTIONS
With Chinakhov back in the lineup, Mikael Pyyhtia comes out. James van Riemsdyk drops to the fourth line, where he briefly played after the return of Jenner and before the injury to Sillinger. Here are the complete lineup projections:
| LW | C | RW | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Dmitri Voronkov | 19 | Adam Fantilli | 86 | Kirill Marchenko |
| 59 | Yegor Chinakhov | 38 | Boone Jenner | 91 | Kent Johnson |
| 27 | Zach Aston-Reese | 17 | Justin Danforth | 24 | Mathieu Olivier |
| 21 | James van Riemsdyk | 7 | Sean Kuraly | 14 | Joseph LaBate |
| LD | RD | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Zach Werenski | 15 | Dante Fabbro |
| 5 | Denton Mateychuk | 9 | Ivan Provorov |
| 2 | Jake Christiansen | 78 | Damon Severson |
| Starting Goalie | Back-Up | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 90 | Elvis Merzlikins | 40 | Daniil Tarasov |
