This is a big one tonight at Nationwide Arena, folks.
The San Jose Sharks (36-17-8) come to town after visiting Pittsburgh's PPG Paints Arena and dismantling the Penguins 4-0 on Thursday night, extending their road winning streak to six games. They'll be looking to do the same to another Metro opponent in the Columbus Blue Jackets (34-23-3), who are coming off of a 3-0 win in Ottawa on Friday night.
Back in November, the Blue Jackets dealt the Sharks a 4-1 loss with goals from Anthony Duclair, Josh Anderson, Nick Foligno and Seth Jones. They'll be looking to do some similar damage tonight.
Projected Lines:
Panarin - Duchene - Atkinson
Bjorkstrand - Dubois - Duclair
Foligno - Jenner - Anderson
Robinson - Nash - Dubinsky
Defensemen:
Werenski - Jones
Nutivaara - Savard
Harrington - Kukan
Goaltenders:
Bobrovsky/Korpisalo
Storylines
- Tonight, Matt Duchene will make his home debut. There aren't too many players of his caliber in the league, and Nationwide Arena will be electric for his first home game in a CBJ sweater. Look for the Panarin-Duchene-Atkinson line to have a big impact on the outcome.
- Momentum is key, and the Blue Jackets were able to snap a brief two-game skid in Ottawa last night. It'll be important for them to build off of it tonight against a very good Sharks team.
- The Blue Jackets are an excellent 19-10-1 on the road, but a very average 15-13-2 at home. Obviously, they haven't had the kind of home record that a team of their caliber should. As the CBJ hit the stretch run, they need to improve their home record — significantly. Hopefully, that'll start with a big two points tonight.
