Match-up - Boston Bruins (12-8-0) @ Columbus Blue Jackets (6-11-1) Road/Home records - 4-4-0 -------------- 3-5-1 TV - NESN, FS-O Puck drop - 7:00 p.m. ET Season series - 0-0 Last 10 - Bruins: 7-3-0 ------------ Blue Jackets: 2-7-1 Projected starting goalies - Niklas Svedberg vs Sergei Bobrovsky
Projected lines for the Bruins via DailyFaceoff.com:
Milan Lucic - David Krejci - Seth Griffith Matt Fraser - Patrice Bergeron - Reilly Smith Chris Kelly - Carl Soderberg - Loui Eriksson Simon Gagne - Greg Campbell - Daniel Paille
Dennis Seidenberg - Dougie Hamilton Joe Morrow - Kevan Miller Matt Bartkowski - Torey Krug
Injured: Brad Marchand, Zdeno Chara, David Warsofsky, Adam McQuaid.
Projected lines for the Blue Jackets:
Boone Jenner - Ryan Johansen - Nick Foligno Scott Hartnell - Artem Anisimov - Cam Atkinson Matt Calvert - Alex Wennberg - Jack Skille Brian Gibbons - Adam Cracknell - Jared Boll
Jack Johnson - Dalton Prout Kevin Connauton - James Wisniewski Jordan Leopold - David Savard
Injured: Brandon Dubinsky, Nathan Horton, Mark Letestu, Ryan Murray, Fedor Tyutin, Cody Goloubef.
Game notes:
- The Blue Jackets have a tough task tonight trying to bounce back from a blowout loss against one of the better teams in the East in Boston, but they do have a few things going their way. First and foremost, Jack Skille and Matt Calvert are both expected to return and will provide more legitimate forward depth for a team that's been decimated by injuries all year. On the flip side, the Bruins are expected to be without two key players in Chara and Marchand. It won't be a cake walk by any stretch, but this is a winnable game for a Columbus team that really needs to start piling up points in bunches.
- I'm looking forward to seeing what Jenner can do on the top line with Johansen and Foligno. Both of those guys are averaging over a point per game while Jenner has five points and 20 shots in seven games since returning, so he should be a nice fit with that group. His speed and 200-foot game will be a nice compliment, for sure.
- Hartnell doesn't have any points in his last four games, but he's registered 15 shots and has had plenty of chances. Perhaps a couple new linemates and getting to face secondary defensive units is just what he needs to bust out of this mini-slump.
- The Blue Jackets really need to tighten up defensively if they're going to start winning games. Since Sergei Bobrovsky has returned to the lineup he's faced 37 and 40 shots, both in games decided in regulation. He's a very good goaltender, obviously, but Columbus won't win many games allowing that many chances.
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