Match-up - Columbus Blue Jackets (24-26-3) @ New York Islanders (36-18-1) Road/Home records - 12-12-1 -------------- 19-6-0 TV - MSG+, FS-O Puck drop - 7:00 p.m. ET Season series - 1-0 Islanders Last 10 - Blue Jackets: 5-5-0 ------------ Isles: 6-4-0 Projected starting goalies - Curtis McElhinney vs Jaroslav Halak
Projected lines for the Islanders via DailyFaceoff.com:
Anders Lee - John Tavares - Josh Bailey Mikhail Grabovski - Frans Nielsen - Ryan Strome Nikolay Kulemin - Brock Nelson - Cal Clutterbuck Matt Martin - Casey Cizikas - Colin McDonald
Nick Leddy - Johnny Boychuk Brain Strait - Travis Hamonic Thomas Hickey - Lubomir Visnovsky
Projected lines for the Blue Jackets:
Scott Hartnell - Ryan Johansen - Nick Foligno Matt Calvert - Brandon Dubinsky - Cam Atkinson Alex Wennberg - Artem Anisimov - Jack Skille Corey Tropp - Mark Letestu - Jared Boll
Jack Johnson - David Savard Kevin Connauton - James Wisniewski Fedor Tyutin - Cody Goloubef
Injured: Boone Jenner, Jeremy Morin, Brian Gibbons, Nathan Horton, Ryan Murray, James Wisniewski, Sergei Bobrovsky.
What to watch:
1) The Islanders are 1st in score-adjusted Fenwick, average over three goals and almost 34 shots shots per game. They have a lot of offensive weapons and will get plenty of chances, especially against a tired team, so the Jackets will need an excellent goaltending performance tonight.
2) I'm not really on board with the Jackets trading Cam Atkinson, but if the Jackets are going to do it he's picking the right time to heat up. Atkinson has three goals, four points and 11 shots in his last four games. A lot of teams are watching him and his hot play won't do anything but up his value.
3) Artem Anisimov was exceptional against Philadelphia, having been on the ice for 22 shot attempts for Columbus, and just five against at even-strength. He obviously scored the winner, too, and now has points in consecutive games.
4) If New York has a weakness (besides Halak when he tries to play the puck) it's their penalty kill. Columbus has one of the more lethal PP units in the league, and will probably need special teams to contribute in a big way if they're going to have a chance.
5) Don't look now but Jared Goal has a goal and two assists in his last four games, giving him five points in 51 games on the year. I think the Jackets were nuts to give him a three-year deal, and I don't expect this to last, but at least he's contributed something of late. Columbus' bottom-6 has been a problem all year.
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