The Blue Jackets might get defenseman Seth Jones back after a three-game absence caused by an upper-body injury. Jones will take warmup with Columbus and will be a gametime decision. Columbus, which had fallen just outside the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference, has moved into third place in the Metropolitan Division with a 5-3 victory against the New York Rangers on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.
Their goal now is to keep climbing.
Columbus began the day Wednesday just four points back of the Washington Capitals for first place in the Metro and tied at 87 points with the Pittsburgh Penguins, who started the day second in the division based on fewer games played.
The Blue Jackets have won the first two games of the season series against the Panthers, but this game has the makings of a great game. Since Feb. 10, both Florida and Columbus have collected 29 points, which is tied for second-most in the NHL in that span.
The Panthers keep knocking on the door of the postseason, sitting just one point back of the New Jersey Devils for the East's second wild card with two less games played, and they still have three games-in-hand on Columbus.
It's not a "must-win" for either side, but a win could go a long way for each one.
"It's a really big road trip for us here," Columbus coach John Tortorella said Tuesday, after road wins in Boston and New York on back-to-back nights. "[We] get out of here before the [winter] storm comes, give them a day off [Wednesday] and get ready for Florida."
SERIES RECORD
2017-18 Season: (2-0-0). This is the final game in the series, which the Blue Jackets can sweep with a victory. Columbus won, 7-3, on Nov. 2 at BB&T Center in Sunrise, Fla., and then won, 3-2, on Jan. 7 at Nationwide Arena.
All-time (W-L-T-O): 17-7-0-2 overall; 10-2-0-1 at Nationwide Arena
WHO'S HOT
Panthers: Aleksander Barkov had two assists in the Panthers' 7-2 shellacking of the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. He has 19 points (six goals, 13 assists) in the past 14 games.
Blue Jackets: Artemi Panarin scored three goals against the Rangers for his second career hat trick. He also had an assist in a four-point game and has 22 points in the past 16 games (10 goals, 12 assists), logging points in 14 of them.
SPECIAL TEAMS
POWER PLAY
Florida
Columbus
PENALTY KILL
Florida
Columbus
SCOUTING REPORT
EYES ON: THE PANTHERS
EYES ON: THE BLUE JACKETS
PROJECTED LINEUPS
BLUE JACKETS
Forwards
Artemi Panarin - Nick Foligno - Cam Atkinson
Sonny Milano - Pierre-Luc Dubois - Oliver Bjorkstrand
Boone Jenner - Alexander Wennberg - Thomas Vanek
Lukas Sedlak - Mark Letestu - Matt Calvert
Defensemen
Zach Werenski - Ryan Murray
Jack Johnson - Markus Nutivaara
Ian Cole - David Savard
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Joonas Korpisalo
Others: Scott Harrington, Taylor Chorney, Brandon Dubinsky, Markus Hannikainen, Seth Jones (upper body), Josh Anderson (knee), Dean Kukan
Injured reserve: None
PANTHERS
Forwards
Evgeny Dadonov - Aleksander Barkov - Nick Bjugstad
Jonathan Huberdeau - Vincent Trocheck - Denis Malgin
Jamie McGinn - Jared McCann - Frank Vatrano
Michael Haley - Derek MacKenzie - Colton Sceviour
Defensemen
Keith Yandle - Aaron Ekblad
Michael Matheson - Mark Pysyk
Alex Petrovic - MacKenzie Weegar
Goaltenders
Roberto Luongo
James Reimer
Others: Connor Brickley, Radim Vrbata, Maxim Mamin, Ian McCoshen
Injured Reserve: None
