PREVIEW: Blue Jackets finish first half in St. Louis

The Blue Jackets clearly didn’t have their legs in the first period Sunday, and that ended up being the difference in the game.

Seattle scored three times in the opening frame, dominating possession and putting the Blue Jackets in a hole they couldn’t emerge from. A pair of third-period goals by Yegor Chinakhov gave the Jackets hope, but a late empty-netter by Seattle set the final score at 4-2.

It wasn’t a huge surprise that the Jackets were a step behind early, considering it was the second half of a back-to-back and the fourth game in six days more than 2,000 miles from home. At the same time, head coach Pascal Vincent still wanted more from his team and said it’s up to the Jackets to find ways to fight through the heavy legs.

“I think there's always a way, and we talked about it before the game, keeping it simple,” Vincent said. “When the body gets tired, the brain shuts down. So we didn't keep it simple enough in the first period. We didn't win those races, those loose bucks.”

It might be a similar challenge tonight in St. Louis as the Jackets play for the fifth time in eight days. Monday was a long day of travel across two time zones toward home, and the last game of a long road trip – especially with the All-Star break beckoning – is a mental test as much as a physical one.

“You keep fighting,” Chinakhov said. “Yeah, just keep fighting and try to win every game, and that's it. Believe in yourself and believe in the team.”

Know The Foe: St. Louis Blues

Head coach: Drew Bannister (first season)

Team stats: Goals per game: 2.90 (25th) | Scoring defense: 3.15 (20th) | PP: 15.5 percent (25th) | PK: 78.0 percent (22nd)

The narrative: The 2019 Stanley Cup champions said goodbye to one of the most identifiable members of that run, head coach Craig Berube, after a 13-14-1 start to the season. They’ve gotten the jolt they’d hoped for as Bannister has skippered the Blues to a 13-6-1 run in his first 20 games as an NHL head coach. That’s put St. Louis in the mix for a playoff spot, which would be familiar territory – the Blues have made the postseason 10 times in the past 12 seasons.

Team leaders: At age 24, the once-promising Robert Thomas has fully blossomed, earning his first All-Star big thanks to team highs in goals (17), assists (35) and points (52). Pavel Buchnevich ties him for the team lead in goals with 17 among his 39 points, while Jordan Kyrou has a 14-23-37 line. Jake Neighbours (15), Brayden Schenn (13), Brandon Saad (13) and Kevin Hayes (10) are also in double digits in goals.

In net, Jordan Binnington has been the No. 1, starting 32 games with a 17-12-2 record, 2.97 GAA and .907 save percentage. Backup Joel Hofer has similar numbers (9-8-0, 2.89 GAA, .909).

What's new: The Blues immediately won five of six after Bannister’s hiring and have won five in a row heading into this game. The team has outscored teams just 60-58 in that span, though, so it’s not like the Blues have been blowing teams out of the water. Part of it is the team is prone to giving up big numbers; St. Louis has scored at least five goals seven times this year but given up that many on 14 occasions.

Trending: The Blue Jackets claimed a 5-2 win over the Blues on Dec. 8 in Nationwide Arena, a year after the Blues swept both games in the season series. Columbus is 0-2-1 in the last three games in the Gateway City.

Former CBJ: A 30-goal scorer with the Jackets, Saad is now in his 13th year in the league and in his third season with the Blues.

Roster Report

Projected Lineup (subject to change)

Johnny Gaudreau – Boone Jenner – Yegor Chinakhov
Kent Johnson – Dmitri Voronkov – Kirill Marchenko
Alexandre Texier – Cole Sillinger – Jack Roslovic
Justin Danforth – Sean Kuraly – Mathieu Olivier
Zach Werenski – Andrew Peeke
Ivan Provorov – Damon Severson
Jake Bean – Erik Gudbranson
Elvis Merzlikins
Daniil Tarasov

Scratches: Adam Fantilli (lower body injury), Emil Bemstrom, Nick Blankenburg

Injured reserve: Adam Boqvist (upper body injury suffered Jan. 25)

Roster Report: Fantilli won’t play after having his left leg cut by a skate Sunday night in Seattle. Bemstrom is also out, while Roslovic and Olivier enter the lineup and Merzlikins gets the net.

3 Stats to Know

• Yegor Chinakhov’s two-goal game Sunday in Seattle was his second of the season and fourth of his NHL career. He’s now registered 11 goals and 19 points in his last 21 games.
• The Blue Jackets have two of the four NHL rookies with at least 11 goals on the season Adam Fantilli (12) and Dmitri Voronkov (11). The others are Chicago’s Connor Bedard (15) and Minnesota’s Marco Rossi (13).
• Milestone watch: With 193 career assists, Zach Werenski is tied with Nick Foligno for third in franchise history.

Who’s Hot

Alexandre Texier scored shorthanded goals in consecutive games Thursday and Saturday, making him just the fourth player in CBJ history to do so. He joined Rick Nash (who did it twice), Cam Atkinson and R.J. Umberger. ... Voronkov has four goals in the last six games. He’s now fourth among NHL rookies in goals (11) and seventh in points (24). … Cole Sillinger has posted a 7-3-10 line and a plus-7 rating in the last 17 games. ... Johnny Gaudreau has a 3-12-15 line in the last 19 games. ... The team’s rookie stat line of 24-36-60 is first in the NHL in goals and second in points.

This Day in CBJ History

Jan. 30, 2009: Steve Mason makes 17 saves in a 1-0 win over Ottawa at Nationwide Arena. It’s just the fourth 1-0 victory in the history of the franchise at the time.

Jan. 30, 2010: Kris Russell scores in overtime as the Blue Jackets post a 3-2 win at St. Louis.

Jan. 30, 2011: Rick Nash plays in his fifth straight NHL All-Star Game, tallying notching a goal and an assist in the contest played in Raleigh, N.C.