Blue Jackets at Senators

BLUE JACKETS (11-22-2) at SENATORS (17-17-3)

Blue Jackets projected lineup
Johnny Gaudreau -- Kent Johnson -- Patrik Laine
Gustav Nyquist -- Jack Roslovic -- Emil Bemstrom
Eric Robinson -- Cole Sillinger -- Kirill Marchenko
Liam Foudy -- Sean Kuraly -- Mathieu Olivier
Vladislav Gavrikov -- Marcus Bjork
Tim Berni -- Erik Gudbranson
Gavin Bayreuther -- Adam Boqvist
Joonas Korpisalo
Elvis Merzlikins
Scratched: Andrew Peeke, Carson Meyer
Injured: Jakub Voracek (concussion), Nick Blankenburg (ankle), Boone Jenner (thumb), Yegor Chinakhov (ankle)
Senators projected lineup
Brady Tkachuk --
Tim Stutzle
-- Claude Giroux
Alex DeBrincat -- Shane Pinto -- Drake Batherson
Parker Kelly -- Dylan Gambrell -- Jake Lucchini
Derick Brassard -- Mark Kastelic -- Austin Watson
Thomas Chabot -- Artem Zub
Jake Sanderson -- Travis Hamonic
Nick Holden -- Erik Brannstrom
Anton Forsberg
Cam Talbot
Scratched: None
Injured: Josh Norris (shoulder), Mathieu Joseph (lower body), Tyler Motte (finger), Rourke Chartier (upper body), Nikita Zaitsev (lower body)
Status report
Laine will return after missing two games in COVID-19 protocol; Meyer, a forward, will come out. … Forsberg will make his second straight start. ... Brannstrom will return after missing five games with a lower body injury. … Defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker was sent to Belleville of the American Hockey League on Monday. … Norris, a center, is not expected to return "anytime soon," Senators coach D.J. Smith said. Norris practiced with a regular jersey Tuesday, but only took one line rush; he has missed 32 games. ... Of Ottawa's injured Senators, Joseph, a forward, will likely be the earliest to return, Smith said; Joseph has missed 11 games. ... Motte, a forward who has missed four games, is "weeks away," Smith said.