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CBJ G72 @ Ottawa Senators — Blades of Glory |
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The Columbus Blue Jackets continue the second half of their back to back on the road and across the border to the Canadian nation’s Capitol to collide with the Ottawa Senators. How absurd of the league schedule to have two teams in the same conference faceoff this late in the season when puckdrop was back in October.
This will be the first of three meetings between the two teams in less than a two-week span, with lots on the line.
Out
Joonas Korpisalo and Mark Kastelic were packaged with a first rounder to Boston.
Parker Kelly signed with Colorado; Kevin Mandelose was dealt there. Erik Branstrom also signed there but was dealt to Vancouver before the season started and was dealt to the Rangers with JT Miller.
Jakob Chychrun was traded to Washington.
Mathieu Joseph was traded with a mid round draft pick to St. Louis for future considerations.
Boko Imama signed with Pittsburgh.
Dillon Heatherington, former Columbus draft pick, headed to San Diego on an AHL deal.
Egor Solokov was moved to Utah.
Roby Jarventie was traded to Edmonton.
Dominik Kubalik; Josh Currie; and Rourke Chartier headed to Europe.
Noah Gregor signed with Ottawa in the summer; but was dealt with Zach Ostapchuk and a second rounder to San Jose.
Josh Norris and Jacob Bernard-Docker were packaged to Buffalo.
In
Linus Ullmark was acquired via trade from Boston.
Nick Jensen was acquired with a third round pick from the Capitals.
Forwards David Perron, Michael Amadio, Adam Gaudette, Hayden Hodgson, and Nick Cousins signed as free agent with defenseman Jeremy Davies.
Forward Jan Jenik was acquired via trade from Utah to reunite with Staios.
Forwards Jake Chassion and Xavier Bourgault was acquired via Edmonton.
Forward Dylan Cozens; defender Dennis Gilbert; and a 2026 2nd rounder were acquired from Buffalo.
Forwards Fabian Zetterlund; Tristan Robbins; and a fourth rounder were acquired from San Jose.
Pre Game
Fans will want to be amongst the first to arrive to tomorrow’s game. The first 7,000 fans in attendance will receive their very own pair of Sens sunglasses to sport throughout the evening.
The Senators are two points behind the Devils with two games in hand as Ottawa is poised to make the playoffs for the first time since 2017. The Senators are 20-10-2 at home and are 7-3-0 in the last 10 games played. Ottawa is also a +2 in goal differential.
The Columbus Blue Jackets continue to fight an uphill battle for the postseason, as the Rangers; Canadiens; Islanders; and Penguins also remain in contention; Boston and Philadelphia are falling behind the back.
Keys to Victory
1. Physical with Physical — the Senators role out all four lines with grit and scoring, bodies will be banged along the walls and in pressure situations all evening long.
2. Back to Back — both teams are in the midst of the back to back grind of the NHL schedule. Ottawa heads to Pittsburgh after this.
3. Road Woes — the Blue Jackets are struggling on the road with a 12-20-4 record. Ottawa is strong at home like Columbus, catch every breath and take every opportunity.
Projected Lineups
Ottawa Senators
Brady Tkachuk -- Dylan Cozens -- Ridly Greig
Fabian Zetterlund -- Tim Stutzle -- Claude Giroux
David Perron -- Shane Pinto -- Drake Batherson
Matthew Highmore -- Adam Gaudette -- Michael Amadio
Jake Sanderson -- Artem Zub
Thomas Chabot -- Nick Jensen
Tyler Kleven -- Nikolas Matinpalo
Linus Ullmark
Anton Forsberg
Scratched: Dennis Gilbert, Travis Hamonic
Injured: Nick Cousins (knee)
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dmitri Voronkov -- Sean Monahan -- Kirill Marchenko
Boone Jenner -- Adam Fantilli -- Kent Johnson
Cole Sillinger -- Justin Danforth -- Mathieu Olivier
Zach Aston-Reese -- Sean Kuraly -- Luke Kunin
Zach Werenski -- Dante Fabbro
Ivan Provorov -- Damon Severson
Denton Mateychuk -- Erik Gudbranson
Elvis Merzlikins
Daniil Tarasov
Scratched: Jordan Harris, Jack Johnson, Christian Fischer, Yegor Chinakhov, James van Riemsdyk, Jack Williams, Jake Christiansen
Injured: Own Sillinger, Kevin Labanc
Players to Watch
Ottawa — Thomas Chabot — a battle of former 2015 first round draft picks in the defensive end; Chabot is a top d-man when healthy; and will look to make case against Werenski and Provorov tonight.
Columbus — Zach Werenski — Werenski is the Heartbeat of the team as Ollie points out this week on Chicklets, keep the Yasso train moving.
Predicted Final Score
CBJ — 3
OTT — 4
Overtime/Shootout
Gambling Odds
Ottawa rides a -192 favorites into this matchup; Columbus is sitting at a +160 per NHL Draft Kings’ Sportsbook.
Editor’s Note
Pre game blogs will come today and post games of both here and Vancouver tomorrow.
Meaningful hockey is on the horizon! More to come…
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