Game Preview: Blue Jackets Aim For Homestand Split As Mathew Barzal And The New York Islanders Come To Columbus

By Ed Francis on November 25, 2022 at 7:05 am
Columbus looks to get back to their winning ways when Mathew Barzal and the New York Islanders come to town.
© Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
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Islanders
NEW YORK ISLANDERS
13–8–0 (26 points; .619%)
ROSTER / SCHEDULE

8:00 P.M. – FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25
NATIONWIDE ARENA
COLUMBUS, OH

BALLY SPORTS OHIO
ESPN+ (Out of Market)

The sixth and final game of a season-long homestand for the Columbus Blue Jackets is Friday night when they battle the New York Islanders in a Metro division match-up.

A win by the Blue Jackets will give the team a split of the six-game set. They won the first two with a combined 11 goals against the Philadelphia Flyers and Montreal Canadiens, but have dropped two of the last three — including a 3-1 loss to those same Canadiens on Wednesday night.

Here's what to know when the Isles visit Nationwide Arena on Black Friday:


CBJ SEASON STATS NYI
2.95 GOALS FOR 3.29
4.26 GOALS AGAINST 2.62
13.0% POWER PLAY 21.3%
77.8% PENALTY KILL 84.1%
30.0 SHOTS FOR 31.8
36.9 SHOTS AGAINST 33.5
44.2% CF% (EVEN) 48.3%
51.1% FACEOFF % 50.1%
PROJECTIONS
ODDS OF CBJ WIN PER MONEYPUCK 52%
ODDS OF CBJ WIN PER THE 538 47%
CAESAR'S SPORTSBOOK BETTING  NIYI -190
ISLES: LAST THREE GAMES
WED, 11/23 vs. EDMONTON W 3-0
MON, 11/21 @ TORONTO W 3-2 OT
SAT, 11/19 @ DALLAS L 5-2
ISLES: TEAM LEADERS
GOALS BROCK NELSON 9
ASSISTS MATHEW BARZAL 21
POINTS MATHEW BARZAL 23

TALKING POINTS: NYI

  • The Islanders played their best game of the season Wednesday night. Not only did they shutout the Edmonton Oilers by a 3-0 score, they did so in versatile fashion: a power play goal, a short-handed goal, and an even-strength tally. 
     
  • But more impressive than all that? Goaltender Ilya Sorokin, who stopped all 49 Edmonton shots for the most saves in a shutout in his NHL career. Don't let the 27-year-old get hot: It was the sixth time in his career that Sorokin made 40+ saves. Four of those games were shutouts, and he's 6-0-0 in those six 40+ save efforts. 
     
  • With an 84.1% kill rate, New York trails only San Jose (91.4%) and Boston (85.7%) in penalty kill efficiency. The Blue Jackets are out of the basement in power play percentage, but at 13.0% and less than one percent out of again being last, the Islanders four-man unit is potent enough to potentially put Columbus back at 32nd. 
     
  • The Islanders bring a balanced offensive attack to Nationwide Arena. No skater has ten goals — Brock Nelson leads the team with nine — but seven players have scored at least five goals and three more are at four. Top center Mathew Barzal finds 'em all, though. With 21 assists, he's second in the league in helpers and trails Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche by just one.  

CBJ STORYLINES

  • HERE'SSSSS JOHNNY  CARSON
    Carson Meyer is expected to make his season debut for the Blue Jackets. The Powell native had a stat line of 1-2-3 in 13 games with his hometown club last season, and has been impressive this season in the AHL with the Cleveland Monsters, posting a stat line of 6-12-18 in 15 games. Meyer comes in for Emil Bemstrom, who was demoted to the Monsters. 
     
  • HERE'SSSSS JOHNNY?
    Johnny Gaudreau had a four-game point streak snapped in Wednesday's loss. Columbus is 1-5-1 in the seven games Gaudreau has been off the scoreboard, but 4-0-0 in his four multi-point games. As Johnny Hockey plays, the Blue Jackets play. 
     
  • BABY STEPS
    This is nothing to boast about, but it's at least worth noting that the Blue Jackets have only given up three or less goals in consecutive games twice this season. The first time was in a pair of wins October 18th and 20th against Vancouver and Nashville. The second? These last two games. In all four referenced games, they've allowed three goals per contest, so again — it's not stellar. But it is the best Columbus has managed through the first quarter of the season.

PROJECTED LINES
Updated: 7:05 a.m. // Subject to Change

LW C RW
13 Johnny Gaudreau 38 Boone Jenner 91 Kent Johnson
59 Yegor Chinakhov 34 Cole Sillinger 14 Gys Nyquist
19 Liam Foudy 96 Jack Roslovic 72 Carson Meyer
50 Eric Robinson 7 Sean Kuraly 24 Matheiu Olivier
LD RD
4 Vladislav Gavrikov 47 Marcus Bjork
23 Jake Christiansen 44 Eric Gudbranson
15 Gavin Bayreuther 2 Andrew Peeke
Starting Goalie Backup
70 Joonas Korpisalo 40 Daniil Tarasov
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