PREVIEW: Blue Jackets start busy road weekend in Detroit

Over the last nine games, the Blue Jackets are 2-4-3 and have scored just 2.67 goals per game.

Perhaps that isn’t a huge surprise, though, because the team has been without one of its top scorers. Patrik Laine hasn’t played since Oct. 20, when he was on the receiving end of a hit that led to a suspension for Calgary defenseman Rasmus Andersson, due to an upper body injury.

The good news for Columbus, then, is that Laine skated this week and took part in the team’s full practice Friday, and he's set to return this afternoon against Detroit. 

"Overall I'm feeling good and had some good skates the last week or so," Laine said. "It's not fun to watch on the bike when guys are playing, especially when we've been in a tough stretch here."

It would be a nice boost to the Blue Jackets, who have found finishing chances to be a challenge at times this season. Columbus could have gotten off to a lead bigger than its 2-0 advantage in the first period Thursday vs. Dallas, but Mathieu Olivier was stopped on a breakaway and Adam Fantilli hit the post before the Stars rallied for five straight goals to take a 5-2 victory.

That performance fits a pattern for the Blue Jackets of late, as the team has played pockets of really good hockey and also had stretches where it can’t get much going.

“The way it went in Florida, we wanted to come out hot and we did,” Fantilli said. “I thought we capitalized on our chances early. We came out with pace and we were playing the way we wanted to play. Somewhere along the line, we got away from it quick and they buried a couple.

“A couple of breakdowns are fixable. You never love to see it, but I know we’re going to come out strong again on Saturday and try to bounce back.”

Head coach Pascal Vincent was left to rue a few mistakes by players that made it far too easy for the Stars to capitalize, but on the whole he saw some good things on the tape when he watched it Friday.

“It’s never as bad as you think it is or never as good as you think it is,” Vincent said. “I watched the game again, and we did a lot of good things. Individual mistakes cost us three goals yesterday. We can fix those mistakes easily. Yeah, we’re facing some adversity, but that’s what the NHL Is all about.”

Know The Foe: Detroit Red Wings

Head coach: Derek Lalonde (Second season)

2022-23 Stats: Goals per game: 3.57 (7th) | Scoring defense: 3.21 (17th) | PP: 23.3 percent (9th) | PK: 77.8 percent (17th)

The narrative: Credit the Red Wings for consistency – after a historic stretch of 25 consecutive playoff seasons that ran through 2015-16, Detroit has missed the playoffs in seven straight campaigns. The Yzerplan, so named after team legend and current executive vice president and general manager Steve Yzerman, has yet to really get off the ground, with many expecting the Wings to have to battle to make the postseason this year. That’s in part thanks to a difficult Atlantic Division that features defending conference champion Florida, recent powers Tampa Bay and Boston, a talented Toronto squad and emerging young teams like Buffalo and Ottawa.

2023-24 leaders: Dylan Larkin leads the way yet again, as the Red Wings captain coming off a 79-point season tops the squad with 17 points including five goals and 12 assists. The offseason acquisition of Alex DeBrincat has paid dividends, as he leads the team with nine goals among his 14 points. Moritz Seider is off to a strong start with a 1-10-11 line, while Lucas Raymond (4-6-10) and new center J.T. Compher (3-7-10) each have double digits in points.

In net, Ville Husso’s second season in Detroit has been a struggle with a 5-3-1 record, 3.57 GAA and .890 save percentage, while James Reimer has a 1.80 GAA and .933 save percentage.

What's new: It’s another season of new faces in Detroit, with high-priced sniper DeBrincat highlighting an offseason of acquisitions that also includes forwards Christian Fischer and Daniel Sprong, defensemen Justin Holl and Shayne Gostisbehere, and goalie James Reimer. That perhaps added to some early-season energy, with Detroit starting 5-1-0 before a recent 2-4-2 skid in which the team has been outscored 30-20 (3.75-2.50 per game).

Trending: The Wings captured the opening matchup of the season, downing Columbus by a 4-0 final Oct. 16 in Nationwide Arena. That gives Detroit three wins in four games the past two years, which has to feel good for the Wings, who had watched Columbus post a 17-5-1 mark over the previous six seasons.

Former CBJ: None

3 Stats to Know

• With 670 games played, captain Boone Jenner is five games away from tying Rick Nash for the franchise record. He has moved into third place this season in franchise annals in both goals (177) and points (338).
• Kirill Marchenko has 24 goals in his first 70 games with the Blue Jackets, tied for third all-time with the club with Brandon Saad and trailing only Geoff Sanderson (31) and Scott Hartnell (25).
• Milestone watch: With 171 career assists, Zach Werenski is two away from tying Seth Jones for most career assists by a defenseman in franchise history. … Laine is one goal from 200 for his NHL career (199-182-381, 466 GP). … Andrew Peeke is two games away from playing in his 200th NHL game. … Jack Roslovic is two points from 200 and two games from 400 for his NHL career (73-125-198, 398 GP). … Gaudreau is five games from 700 for his NHL career.

Who’s Hot

Dmitri Voronkov has a 2-3-5 line in his first seven games, becoming just one of four CBJ players in franchise history to have at least five points in their first seven career NHL contests along with Werenski, David Vyborny and Jakub Voracek. … Jenner is 11th in the NHL in faceoff win percentage (58.7) and has goals in three of the last four games. … Kirill Marchenko is riding a four-game point streak (3-1-4), the longest of his NHL career. … Roslovic has eight points in the last 10 games (2-6-8). … Columbus ranks second in the NHL penalty kill percentage since Oct. 20, killing off 27 of 29 (93.1 percent) power-play chances over the last 10 games. The Blue Jackets have not given up a power-play goal in 15 chances in the last six contests.

This Day in CBJ History

Nov. 11, 1997: Team officials announce that the name of the Columbus NHL franchise will be the Blue Jackets, celebrating patriotism, pride and the rich Civil War history in the state of Ohio and, more specifically, the city of Columbus.

Nov. 11, 2011: Columbus swaps a pair of defensemen, trading Kris Russell to St. Louis for blueliner Nikita Nikitin. Nikitin would go on to play 158 games over three seasons with Columbus, posting a 12-44-56 line.

Nov. 11, 2017: In what is tied for the longest shootout in franchise history, Jack Johnson scores in the ninth round of the skills competition to push the Blue Jackets to a 2-1 win at Detroit. Artemi Panarin scored in regulation and also to tie the shootout in the second round, followed by 13 consecutive saves before Johnson’s winner past Jimmy Howard.

Roster Report

Projected Lineup (subject to change)

Johnny Gaudreau – Boone Jenner – Patrik Laine
Dmitri Voronkov – Adam Fantilli – Kirill Marchenko
Jack Roslovic – Cole Sillinger – Emil Bemstrom
Alexandre Texier – Sean Kuraly – Justin Danforth
Zach Werenski – Erik Gudbranson
Ivan Provorov – Damon Severson
Adam Boqvist – Andrew Peeke
Spencer Martin
Elvis Merzlikins

Scratches: Yegor Chinakhov, Mathieu Olivier, Jake Bean

Injured reserve/Injured Non-Roster: Daniil Tarasov (knee, week to week)

Roster Report: Laine returns for the first time since Oct. 20, while Bemstrom goes in as well; Chinakhov and Olivier are expected to be out. Boqvist, meanwhile, goes in for Peeke after a long spell as a healthy scratch, while Martin gets a second straight start.