RECAP: CBJ 1, CHI 4

Those looking for evidence the Blue Jackets will be deeper up front only needed to look at three guys in their final preseason game Saturday at United Center.
Mark Letestu, Lukas Sedlak and Markus Hannikainen each have NHL experience, including xx seasons for Letestu, but all three were among a playing group that featured mostly players who will either start out with the Cleveland Monsters or scrapping for playing time in Columbus.
It's not so much a reflection on them as much as it's a sign that coach John Tortorella could be better equipped to play his fourth line more often this season.

"I think it's good to have," said Sedlak, who played played left wing on the second line in the Jackets' 4-1 loss to the Blackhawks. "We have a little deeper team this year, I think. So, obviously, I'm going to try and push guys and they're going to push me. We're going to get better for sure."
There might not be another choice.
Tortorella has already said he's going to have a shorter leash for guys who aren't playing productive minutes, because he feels confident there will be more options knocking on the door behind them.
As it looks after the final two preseason games this weekend, the third and fourth lines to start the season appear to be stacked with guys who can score goals - including a third line of power forwards that features Boone Jenner at left wing, Brandon Dubinsky at center and Josh Anderson at right wing.
The fourth line against Pittsburgh had speedy wingers Anthony Duclair and Sonny Milano and two-way veteran center Riley Nash in the middle. Should they click as a unit, that could prompt a couple things to happen.
First, it might create a fourth line that plays more of a puck-possessing skill game and puts the puck in the net more often. Second, it could mean guys like Sedlak and Hannikainen might be on the outside of the main playing group.
More often in the NHL, teams are going with this kind of setup if they can find the right players to pull it off. The days of a hard-hitting, enforcer-laden fourth lines are quickly vanishing. It's about skill now, for all four lines.
"It's different hockey," Sedlak said. "You don't have as much fighting. You don't need the big guys to fight. You don't need big guys to hit hard. It's more about the speed, and now we can use those guys on the fourth line too. You have your best guys killing penalties, so it's not like four lines only killing penalties. It's a little different hockey than a couple years ago."
It's why a guy like Letestu, who still has years left in his legs at age 33, is heading to Cleveland with the intent of relocating his scoring touch.
"I have a task ahead of me," said Letestu, who was released this past week from his professional tryout offer with the Florida Panthers and signed a one-year, two-way contract with Columbus. "I've got to go there [to Cleveland], be a leader like I'm supposed to be and puck in the net on a consistent basis for confidence I've got to get back."
That approach now applies to every forward in the Blue Jackets' lineup, with Tortorella looking to roll all four lines without much difference from one to the next.
AS FOR THE GAME …
It went about how most expected it would once the rosters were released for each team. The Blackhawks had their full NHL lineup, the Blue Jackets had mostly prospects, other Monsters, Alex Wennberg and a handful of NHL teammates - including goalie Joonas Korpisalo.
It wasn't pretty.
The Blackhawks scored two goals in each of the first two periods, taking a 4-0 lead after 40 minutes, and polished it off in the third. Kevin Stenlund scored the lone goal for the Blue Jackets on a power play, cutting it to 4-1 in the third period, but that was the only offensive highlight to note.
Chicago outshot Columbus 36-17 and Korpisalo allowed four goals on 27 shots - ceding the net to J-F Berube in the second period.
SLAP SHOTS
Wennberg and defenseman Markus Nutivaara also played Friday against the Penguins, logging a back-to-back to end the preseason.
Afterward, Wennberg said he's ready to play games that count.
"I'm just excited for this preseason to be over and get to the real season," he said. "This is why you play the game, this is why you have the preseason games and camp. There's a lot of excitement for the real season to start."
Also, there's eagerness to forget about the preseason.
"I mean, I wanted to play a little bit better, maybe produce a little more offense and stuff like that, but I'm not going to overthink it," said Wennberg, who finished the preseason with a goal and assist in five games. "When the season starts, I've got to be better. So, for me, playing these couple games and trying different alignments is good, as well, to try it out. With me, it feels great. Obviously, I want to play better, but when the season starts I'm going to be better.
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Stenlund's goal was his second of the preseason, giving him two goals, three assists and five points in four games.
The Blue Jackets could go through their final round of roster cuts Sunday and Stenlund feels he's ready to tackle the NHL if Columbus decides to keep him around. He's also prepared to be assigned to the Monsters.
"I scored a lot of points [in the preason], obviously, and I think I did a pretty good job overall," said Stenlund, who also led the Blue Jackets to victory in the 2018 NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City, Mich. "We'll see what they say. Hopefully it was enough, but if not, I'm just going to keep going and keep working in Cleveland."
Either way, his confidence has gotten a boost in the month of September. Heading into his first full professional season in North America, after playing in preseason games against some NHL stars, the Swedish-born center is excited to keep going.
"I feel I can compete against guys like [Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews] and everyone else on the ice," said Stenlund, who also played a game in Pittsburgh against Sidney Crosby. "I feel confident. My confidence is good. It doesn't matter if I'm staying or going to Cleveland. Just keep going."
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It's been quite a month for defenseman Michael Prapavessis, who played his fourth preseason game Saturday in Chicago.
The 22-year old from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) first joined the Blue Jackets as a free-agent invite for the prospects tournament and earned a free-agent invite to NHL training camp there. After that, he earned an AHL contract with Cleveland, based off his play in early preseason games.
Thursday, the Jackets took the next step and signed him to a two-year NHL entry-level contract - all after the Dallas Stars, who drafted Prapavessis in the fourth round of the 2014 NHL Draft, opted to let him become a free agent.
"You don't want to rest on your laurels too long," said Prapavessis, who finished the preseason with three assists. "It's a good accomplishment. I'm glad it's worked out the way it has, but at the end of the day it's not the end goal - which is becoming an established NHLer and making it in that league. I still have a lot of work to do."
That comes straight from the Blue Jackets, who now want him to take the next steps in his development this season.
"That's what management has told me," he said. "I kind of came in with low expectations but now I'm here and now I really need to work on my game. The works really starts now, so I have a lot of work to do."
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The Blue Jackets finished the preseason with a 3-5-0 record after the loss to Chicago. It's the first time since 2005, 12 seasons, they've finished with a sub-.500 preseason record.