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CBJ G47@ New York Islanders - Point Streak Chase |
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The Columbus Blue Jackets continue their road trip as they clash with the New York Islanders. Any win or overtime loss will extend the Blue Jackets’ point streak to eight straight games.
Since I last wrote, the Jackets’ win streak came to an end after a shootout loss to the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
CBJ PG45 v San Jose Sharks — Six in the Six
The Columbus Blue Jackets extend their win streak to six straight with a 4-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks.
Period I
The hosts scored two goals in four minutes and six seconds to have the cannon pop and fans into the contest.
The home point scoring streak extended for Zach Werenski with 18 games as he assisted in the Adam Fantilli goal for his 11th of the regular season.
Kent Johnson potted the second goal for his 12th of the campaign from Sean Kuraly. This would eventually stand as the game winner.
Period II
James van Riemsdyk tipped in the Damon Severson for the winger’s eighth goal of the season. Johnson had his second point of the contest. This is the final goal Columbus would score in a goaltender; but not the last time the cannon would be lit.
Period III
San Jose would shutdown the shutout hopes as veteran Tyler Toffoli would shoot one by Merzlikins for his 17th with the Sharks; rookie Macklin Celebrini had the only apple.
JvR had his second of the game and eighth of the year from Kirill Marchenko.
Players to Watch
San Jose — Jake Walman skated 23:05 for the Sharks; having three hits and two shots on Merzlikins.
Columbus — Zach Werenski had the primary assist in the opening goal to extend his point streak to 18 consecutive.
Goaltenders
San Jose — Alexander Georgiev allowed three goals on 33 shots faced for a 0.909 save percentage.
Columbus — Elvis Merzlikins allowed just one goal in 18 shots faced
CBJ Three Stars of the Games
1. Kent Johnson — GWG (12); assist (14)
2. James van Riemsdyk — 2 goals (8)
3. Zach Werenski — assist (36); 18 game home point scoring streak
CBJ PG46 @ New York Rangers — Shootout; Shutout: and One Streak Ends as Another Continues
Not much in the entertainment value for this game as Adam Fantilli had a slashing minor penalty; and Mika Zibanejad had two minor penalties. Columbus had 27 shots in 65 minutes to New York’s 26. Each goalie, Igor Shesterkin and Daniil Tarasov would split the shutout. This would be Tarasov’s first career shutout; despite allowing the Vincent Trocheck shootout winner.
CBJ Three Stars of the Games
1. Daniil Tarasov — first career shutout
2. Kirill Marchenko — most minutes as forward
3. Damon Severson — 3 SOG; 2 hits;
G47 Preview
The Islanders are riding at a 500 stretch as they welcome the Jackets in their first meeting at UBS this season. Rental Brock Nelson has been red hot with seven points in his previous five contests. Goalie Marcus Hogberg continues to contribute in the crease for the Isles with a 0.952 save percentage in six games this season. With that said, Roy has decided to start with Sorokin.
The Jackets are looking to keep themselves in the playoff hunt as they have points in their last seven games. Their six game win streak snapped at the Garden, but they have not lost both points in a road game in the new calendar year. Merzlikins gets the nod after having the last win in the crease.
Keys to Win
1. Capitalize on Special Teams — New York has the worst special teams in hockey. This could be a way to convert in their barn.
2. Take Possession Away — despite the special teams performance, the Islanders have the best playoff percentage with a 55% success rate.
3. Push the Offense — the Isles have a 27th ranked offense, while the Jackets have the 6th ranked.
Projected Lineups
New York Islanders
Anders Lee -- Brock Nelson -- Mathew Barzal
Maxim Tsyplakov -- Bo Horvat -- Kyle Palmieri
Anthony Duclair -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Casey Cizikas
Matt Martin -- Kyle MacLean -- Pierre Engvall
Adam Pelech -- Ryan Pulock
Isaiah George -- Noah Dobson
Dennis Cholowski -- Scott Mayfield
Ilya Sorokin
Marcus Hogberg
Scratched: None
Injured: Semyon Varlamov (lower body), Mike Reilly (heart surgery), Simon Holmstrom (upper body), Hudson Fasching (upper body), Alexander Romanov (upper body)
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dmitri Voronkov -- Adam Fantilli -- Kirill Marchenko
James van Riemsdyk -- Cole Sillinger -- Kent Johnson
Zach Aston-Reese -- Luca Del Bel Belluz -- Mathieu Olivier
Mikael Pyyhtia -- Sean Kuraly -- Kevin Labanc
Zach Werenski -- Dante Fabbro
Denton Mateychuk -- Ivan Provorov
Jake Christiansen -- Damon Severson
Daniil Tarasov
Elvis Merzlikins
Scratched: Jordan Harris, Jack Johnson
Injured: Yegor Chinakhov (upper body), Justin Danforth (lower body), Sean Monahan (wrist)
Players to Watch
New York — Brock Nelson — this could be the last time Columbus sees Nelson as the next time these teams clash is after the deadline. Nelson has 28 points in 43 games.
Columbus — Kirll Marchenko — Marchy is one point away from his first ever 50 point season.
Predicted Final Score
NYI — 2
CBJ — 4
Gambling Corner
New York is a -170 favorite; Columbus is a +142 for an upset per NHL Draft Kings.
Columbus Blue Jackets Blogger • 
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