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| VANCOUVER CANUCKS |
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6–12–2 (22 points; .350%) ROSTER / SCHEDULE |
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7 P.M. – FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 26 NATIONWIDE ARENA COLUMBUS, OHIO |
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BALLY SPORTS OHIO ESPN |
The Columbus Blue Jackets are having themselves a week.
It started with 3-2 loss against the Vegas Golden Knights, a game in which it seemed the Blue Jackets were sleepwalking sleepskating a majority of the time.
Monday, they put up seven goals in a 7-4 win over the Buffalo Sabres. Wednesday's game brought even more excitement, with Columbus picking up a home victory in a satisfying 3-0 shutout over Pierre-Luc Dubois and the Winnipeg Jets.
Perhaps they found some smelling sauce on the flight from Sin City to Buffalo.
With whatever it was that ailed them seemingly in the rearview mirror, the Blue Jackets now look for a third straight win for the second time in less than a month Friday, when the Vancouver Canucks come to town for the only time this season.
| BLUE JACKETS | CANUCKS | |
|---|---|---|
| 3.41 | GOALS FOR | 2.30 |
| 3.00 | GOALS AGAINST | 3.25 |
| 20.0% | POWER PLAY | 15.9% |
| 83.0% | PENALTY KILL | 63.1% |
| 31.5 | SHOTS FOR | 33.0 |
| 33.9 | SHOTS AGAINST | 32.5 |
| 51.2% | FACEOFF WINS | 52.5% |
| BLUE JACKETS | CANUCKS | |
| 63.6% | MONEYPUCK'S ODDS TO WIN | 36.4% |
| 60.0% | THE 538'S ODDS TO WIN | 40.0% |
| 34.6% | MONEYPUCK'S PLAYOFF ODDS | 6.2% |
| 34.0% | THE 538'S PLAYOFF ODDS | 7.0% |
| 106.1 | 82 GAME POINT PACE | 57.4 |
Know The Foe
Coming off a disappointing 2020-21 season, the Canucks were looking to reintroduce themselves in the league's first full season since 2018-19.
It's not going very well.
Vancouver is 1-6-1 in their last eight games. Five of the six losses have been by multiple goals, and they've given up at least four goals in all five of them. Fittingly, the Canucks one win since in that stretch was a 3-2 win against Winnipeg last Friday; the Jets have not won a game since.
Special teams have been a big part of the struggle for Vancouver. The Canucks are 24th in the league on the power play, and dead last in the penalty kill. Their 63.1% kill rate is more than two percentage points lower than the Jets, who are second worst and who the Blue Jackets power play went 1-for-3 against Wednesday.
Offensively, J.T. Miller has been the bright spot of the Vancouver forward corp. His 19 points on the season is five points higher than anyone else on the team. Miller is also dynamite on draws, winning nearly 59% of faceoffs this season. That's Boone Jenner territory.
With Bo Harvat and Elias Pettersson to go with Miller, Vancouver is above average at the center position. Production from the wingers has been a struggle though, a large reason behind the Canucks 28th-ranked goals per game average of 2.35.
Between the pipes, Thatcher Demko has been getting 80% of the starts. With a .906 save percentage and 3.07 goals against average, Demko has left something to be desires from the Vancouver goalie position.
On paper, this is a team that Columbus should be able to have some success against — particularly at home. But on paper and on ice aren't the same; just ask Winnipeg.
Storylines
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GET THE KIDS IN THE BOXSCORE
Rookies Yegor Chinakhov and Cole Sillinger have played well during over the last two weeks, so this may come as a bit of surprise: dating back to Monday, November 15th, neither rookie has picked up a point. That's 18 straight Blue Jacket goals without Chinakhov or Sillinger getting the score or an assist. With a Vancouver team struggling to keep the puck out of the net right now, it's a perfect night to see that streak come to an end.
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AN ELVIS ENCORE:
Elvis Merzlikins' 36 saves was a thing of beauty Wednesday, and the Blue Jackets number one goalie will look to keep it going Friday — and when Elvis gets going, it's hard to stop him. Of his seven career shutouts entering this season, four of them have come in back-to-back fashion, and three of them have come in front of the home crowd.
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NATIONWIDE ARENA ATMOSPHERE:
Speaking of the home crowd, Wednesday was electric at Nationwide Arena and it was clear that the team fed off the energy of the 5th Line. As the team continues to see success, as the extended weekend continues — and with "The Game" just hours away in another sport — the crowd in Columbus has plenty of reason to be amped. Look for a packed home barn and a lot of noise to give the Blue Jackets that extra oomph.
Projected Lines*
LW C RW 59 Yegor Chinakhov 34 Cole Sillinger 93 Jakub Voracek 14 Gustav Nyquist 38 Boone Jenner 28 Oliver Bjorkstrand 15 Gregory Hofmann 96 Jack Roslovic 16 Max Domi 50 Eric Robinson 7 Sean Kuraly 42 Alexandre Texier LD RD 8 Zach Werenski 22 Jake Bean 44 Vladislav Gavrikov 2 Andrew Peeke 5 Gavin Bayreuther 27 Adam Boqvist Starting Goalie Backup 90 Elvis Merzlikins 70 Joonas Korpisalo *subject to change
