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PITTSBURGH PENGUINS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25TH 7:00 P.M. PPG PAINTS ARENA PITTSBURGH, PA |
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The first back-to-back of the season wraps up Saturday night when the Columbus Blue Jackets travel to Pittsburgh to do battle with the Penguins.
The first leg was less-than-stellar, with the Blue Jackets losing on home ice 5-1 to another division rival, the Washington Capitals.
The game was 0-0 until the closing minutes of the second period, but was 3-1 in favor of the Capitals when Blue Jackets forward Mathieu Olivier picked up a five-minute major penalty for elbowing with 7:25 remaining and momentum in Columbus' favor.
The call all but sealed the Blue Jackets fate.
Head coach Dean Evason voiced his displeasure.
"That's not a 5-1 hockey game," said Evason. "It was such a great game. It really was. We come in after the first period, and we're just like, 'Man, this is fast. It's great. Guys are playing hard. Just stay out of the bloody thing. Let the players figure it out.'
"And they're not allowed to do that. Because of what happened. It's frustrating as hell.”
Columbus will look to convert that frustration into momentum Saturday night.
Here's what to know when the Blue Jackets travel to PPG Paints Arena:
| CBJ | SEASON STATS | PIT |
|---|---|---|
| 2-1-0 | ROAD / HOME | 2-1-0 |
| 2.86 | GOALS FOR | 3.50 |
| 3.00 | GOALS AGAINST | 2.38 |
| 16.7% | POWER PLAY | 33.3% |
| 60.0% | PENALTY KILL | 76.0% |
| 31.7 | SHOTS FOR | 24.9 |
| 32.1 | SHOTS AGAINST | 29.8 |
| 52.2% | FACE-OFFS | 50.2% |
| PITTSBURGH: LAST THREE GAMES | ||
| SAT, 10/18 | @ Sharks | W, 3-0 |
| TUE, 10/21 | vs. Canucks | w, 5-1 |
| THU, 10/23 | @ Panthers | W, 5-3 |
| PITTSBURGH: TEAM LEADERS | ||
| GOALS | Sidney Crosby | 6 |
| ASSISTS | Evgeni Malkin | 10 |
| POINTS | Evgeni Malkin | 12 |
| ODDS & PROJECTIONS | ||
| CBJ WIN PER MONEYPUCK: | 48% | |
| CBJ ODDS PER BETMGM: | +100 | |
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In net for the PENGUINS on Saturday night will be Arturs Silovs, who has a .919 save percentage and 2.25 goals against average in his four starts so far this season. Pittsburgh has started out with wins in six of their first eight games, including a current four-game winning streak. Somehow, in the year 2025, it's more of the same when you look at the Penguins team leaders: Sidney Crosby leads the way with six goals, while Evgeni Malkin is the clubhouse leader in assists (10) and points (12).
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Friday's game was frustrating, but the benefit of a back-to-back is that it's a chance to get right back out there — something the Blue Jackets are assuredly looking forward to. “THE PLAYERS KNOW HOW HARD THEY PLAYED,” said Evason. “They know how well they played, and they know they just need to keep doing that and we’ll get rewarded.”
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While not confirmed as of early Saturday afternoon, the expectation is that the Blue Jackets (especially on a back-to-back) will continue their goalie rotation, meaning ELVIS MERZLIKINS would be in net for Columbus.
- Here are the complete LINEUP PROJECTIONS based on Friday night's game:
| LW | C | RW | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Dmitri Voronkov | 23 | Sean Monahan | 86 | Kirill Marchenko |
| 38 | Boone Jenner | 19 | Adam Fantilli | 91 | Kent Johnson |
| 4 | Cole Sillinger | 3 | Charlie Coyle | 24 | Mathieu Olivier |
| 27 | Zach Aston-Reese | 21 | Isac Lundestrom | 59 | Yegor Chinakhov |
| LD | RD | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Zach Werenski | 5 | Denton Mateychuk |
| 9 | Ivan Provorov | 78 | Damon Severson |
| 15 | Dante Fabbro | 44 | Erik Gudbranson |
| Starting Goalie | Back-Up | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 90 | Elvis Merzlikins | 73 | Jet Greaves |
