Murray vs. Bobrovsky
Stanley Cup Champion vs. Perennial Cellar Dweller
Sullivan vs. Tortorella
Crosby vs. Dubinsky
Pittsburgh vs. Columbus
The best two team in the Metro division square off tonight when the Pittsburgh Penguins travel to Columbus to take on the Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena. The Blue Jackets enter this game as the hottest team in the league winning 10 straight games. Despite the strong play many pundits still don’t believe the Jackets are for real. They claim the Jackets are riding the percentages to a high PDO and have been beating up on bad teams. This is a chance for the Jackets to earn some respect across the league.
Pittsburgh comes into this game hot as well with an 8-0-2 record in their last 10. They are fresh off of crushing the Rangers 7-2. Sidney Crosby continues to show why he's the best player in the World leading the league in goals and points per game. The Penguins have three of top 10 scorers in the league in Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel. It is going to be a tough test for the Jackets to try and contain all that speed and skill. The Jackets are going to do what they can to throw these players off their games. You know players like Brandon Dubinsky are going to push above and beyond the outer limits of the rules, so it will be up to the refs to take control of the game early and not let it get out of hand.
The big story for the Jackets entering tonight is the health of Cam Atkinson. Atkinson injured his foot blocking a shot on Tuesday and is questionable for the game. He is tied with Kessel for eighth in league scoring with 33 points. He has been the Jackets best offensive player this season leading the team in points by seven, and goals by one. He has absolutely deadly on the power play where he has scored six of his 14 goals, and has 15 of 33 points. Those 15 power play points are tied for the league lead with Cladue Giroux. Atkinson is a big part of why the Blue Jackets power play has been so successful this season. If he has to miss the game or is less than 100% it’s a big loss for the Jackets.
The Jackets though, are a team built on depth so losing one player; even their best player doesn’t hurt as much at it would other teams. Someone will step up and take that spot and the team will keep on rolling.
Another key factor is this game will be how the Jackets defence handles these superstar forwards. Jack Johnson and David Savard have been revelations this season with their strong play and good possession stats. This would be a bad time for them to fall into old habits. The Jackets as a team have to make sure they get the puck out of their zone with control. They cannot afford to be dumping it out and chipping it off the glass. Pittsburgh will just keep coming at them in waves if they do that. They have to continue doing what they have been doing, with strong breakout passes, and carrying the puck out of the zone.
By doing that the Jackets can get themselves better set up offensively where they get can get the puck below the goal line and let their cycle go to work. The best way to keep the Penguins offense in check is to make them play defence. If the Jackets can do that they will put themselves into a position to win. If not they will be relying on Sergei Bobrovsky to steal them two points.
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