PREVIEW: Blue Jackets, Islanders meet in crucial Metro contest

As the Blue Jackets wake up today on Long Island to play the second half of a back-to-back against the Islanders, the good news is their legs should feel pretty good.  

Columbus has been getting contributions from up and down the lineup over the last few games, and that has allowed head coach Rick Bowness the luxury to evenly distribute minutes throughout the team. 

It’s certainly nice from a hockey standpoint to have four lines that can get the job done, but that also will come in handy tonight as the Blue Jackets get right back at it in New York. With the Blue Jackets holding a lead throughout the third period of yesterday’s 5-2 win over the Kraken, head coach Rick Bowness was able to avoid taxing anyone too much, with Zach Werenski’s 24:07 – more than two minutes below his season average – leading the way. 

“That’s huge going into tomorrow night,” Bowness said. “We didn’t have to shorten the bench. A couple guys, you have three power plays and some guys are missing minutes, but when we’re healthy, we’re just gonna roll four lines. Now we’re at that point we trust them against anybody they put out. That is huge. To be able to roll six (defensemen) when you’re going into this, a tough stretch with a lot of games and travel, you need to have your four lines going and your six D.” 

The win over the Kraken – which extended the team’s winning streak to four and point streak to 12, tied for the third-longest in team history – also again highlighted the team’s depth up and down the lineup. Danton Heinen started the scoring against Seattle, marking that line’s fourth goal in the last three games, while the trio of Cole Sillinger, Charlie Coyle and Mathieu Olivier was on the ice for three goals against the Kraken. 

In all, the Blue Jackets have scored 16 goals over the past three games, with 12 different goal scorers getting on the board.  

“It’s crazy,” forward Kent Johnson said after his line also got on the board with his second-period goal. “I feel like every line can really play and produce, and it’s definitely the deepest team by far that I have been on in this league, so it’s great.” 

The Blue Jackets have also been creating offense from defense, as Bowness put it after Saturday’s game. Columbus allowed just 17 shots on goal to the Kraken, marking the third time in the last six games the Blue Jackets have kept the opposition below 20 shots on goal. In that span, the Blue Jackets haven’t let a team get to 30 shots on goal, and they are allowing an average of just 21.5 shots per game. 

“There’s not much space out there for them,” Sillinger said. “I think just being above them, being on the same page, everyone wants time and space with the puck, and when you’re in their face it certainly is frustrating. I just think we’re doing a really good job of buying into that and making sure everyone looks the same as far as our lines and our D pairs and everyone is on the same page.”

Scratches: Dmitri Voronkov, Miles Wood, Jake Christiansen, Egor Zamula  

Injured Reserve: D Brendan Smith (knee surgery, out three to four months as of Jan. 8)      

Roster Report: Bowness will meet with the media to discuss the lineup Sunday afternoon, but it seems likely at least Greaves will get the nod in net in the second half of the back-to-back.  

This Day in CBJ History  

March 22, 2007: Sergei Fedorov scores the deciding shootout goal against his former team, tallying in the sixth round as the Blue Jackets claim a 2-1 victory at Detroit.  

March 22, 2013: Columbus extends its point streak to a then-franchise record 12 games (8-0-4) with a 5-1 victory over Calgary. Nick Foligno scores twice while Jared Boll, Artem Anisimov and Colton Gillies also tally.  

March 22, 2016: Columbus scores two extra-attacker goals late on the way to a 3-2 shootout win vs. Philadelphia at Nationwide Arena. Boone Jenner scores shorthanded with 1:04 to go and Cam Atkinson ties the game at 2 with eight seconds left on the clock before Jenner notches the only goal of the shootout in the fifth round.

March 22, 2018: The Blue Jackets tie a franchise record with their eighth straight home victory, with Sergei Bobrovsky stopping all 33 shots against in a 4-0 victory vs. Florida. Columbus outscores opponents 31-13 over the eight-game span. 

The Numbers Game  

With his second consecutive game with three assists, Zach Werenski moved into sixth place in CBJ single-season annals with 75 points. With 20 goals and 55 assists – four short of tying the franchise record – he is tied for third among NHL defensemen in goals and places second in points. Werenski has points in 27 of his last 32 games (11-34-45) as well as 38 of the last 46 (16-48-64). He leads NHL defensemen in multipoint games (24, tied for ninth overall in NHL) and is one shy of Artemi Panarin’s team record set in 2018-19. ... Adam Fantilli has eight goals in the last 13 games and posted a 9-13-22 line in the last 19 games. He’s riding a six-game point streak (3-5-8). ... Kirill Marchenko is one assist from 100 in his NHL career and one point from 200. He has points in 13 of the last 17 games (7-10-17), is second in the NHL with six shootout goals and has scored on 10 of 15 career shootout attempts, the best mark among all active players (minimum 10 attempts). ... Charlie Coyle has 11 goals and 30 points in the past 25 games as well as a 7-18-25 line in the last 20 contests, placing him eighth in the NHL in points in that span. ... Conor Garland has five goals in the last seven games. … Jet Greaves is 11-0-2 in his last 14 appearances with a 2.34 GAA, while Elvis Merzlikins is 8-2-2 in his last 13 with a 2.50 GAA. ... Mathieu Olivier has 10 goals in the last 18 games. … Blue Jackets defensemen have scored 52 goals this season, the most in the NHL and a new franchise record. … Columbus leads the league by scoring first in 43 of 69 games. ...  The Blue Jackets are 6-1 in shootouts this year. ... Boone Jenner has 209 career goals, four behind Cam Atkinson for second in team history.  

Know The Foe: New York Islanders  

Head coach: Patrick Roy (Third season)    

Team stats: Goals per game: 2.87 (22nd) | Scoring defense: 2.81 (6th) | PP: 16.8 percent (26th) | PK: 81.1 percent (9th)     

The narrative: Former Blue Jacket Mathieu Darche’s first season as general manager in New York has been a success, as a team that finished sixth in the Metro a season ago has been one of the surprises of the league. The Islanders started to build for the future by making three first-round draft picks this summer, including No. 1 overall choice Matthew Schaefer after winning the draft lottery, and his impressive rookie season has helped lead the Islanders into the playoff mix as we hit the stretch run of the season. 

Scoring leaders: Mat Barzal has helped lead the team’s recent charge, posting an 8-26-34 line in the last 29 games to now lead the Isles on the season with 64 points, including 18 goals. Schaefer’s put together an incredible season for an 18-year-old rookie, notching 22 goals and 51 points to place second among NHL defensemen in goals and become the youngest NHL defenseman ever to reach 50 points. Bo Horvat has a team-high 28 goals in 56 games, while four others (Emil Heineman, 20; Simon Holmström, 17; Jean-Gabriel Pageau, 15; Anders Lee, 15) have at least 15 tallies. 

In net: Coming off four consecutive top-10 finishes in the Vezina voting, Ilya Sorokin could win it this year, as he leads the NHL with six shutouts while going 25-17-2 with a 2.59 GAA and .911 save percentage. David Rittich has proved to be a shrewd pickup to serve as the No. 2, as the veteran Czech netminder is 14-9-3 with a 2.69 GAA and .898 SV%.  

What's new: The Islanders have dropped two straight, including a 7-3 loss at Montreal last night, but had won four of five before that. Columbus’ red-hot streak, though, has moved the Blue Jackets two points ahead of New York heading into tonight’s game, with the Jackets also having a game in hand. The Islanders have been without forwards Pierre Engvall and Kyle Palmieri, defenseman Alexander Romanov and goalie Semyon Varlamov long term, but they’ve found a mix that works.  

Trending: Columbus is 1-1-1 against the Islanders this year, including an overtime loss in the last meeting Feb. 28 in Nationwide Arena. The Blue Jackets dropped the opening game on Long Island this year by a 3-2 score on Nov. 2, and Columbus has just one win in eight games since UBS Arena opened. 

Former CBJ: Anthony Duclair has a 12-15-27 line, while Adam Boqvist has played in 21 games with an assist.