Blue Jackets at Flyers preview

BLUE JACKETS (30-18-12) at FLYERS (32-20-7)
7 p.m. ET; NBCSP, FS-O, NHL.TV

The Blue Jackets, looking to end a season-long five-game winless streak (0-2-3), hold a one-point lead on the Flyers for the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference. They also are tied with the New York Islanders for third place in the division.
Goalie Elvis Merzlikins will start his third straight game and eighth in the past nine; the rookie is 8-2-2 with a 1.41 goals-against average and .951 save percentage with five shutouts in his past 12 starts.
The Flyers, 9-4-1 in their past 14 games, are one point ahead of the Carolina Hurricanes for the second wild card from the East and one point behind the Islanders in the Metropolitan.
Goalie Carter Hart will start; he's 14-2-2 with a 1.65 goals-against average and .941 in 18 home starts this season.
The teams will play again at Nationwide Arena on Thursday.

Players to watch

Blue Jackets forward Oliver Bjorkstrand has four points (two goals, two assists) in a four-game point streak.
Flyers forward Claude Giroux has nine points (three goals, six assists) in a five-game point streak.

They said it

"It's been a great learning experience for me to really see what a team can do playing as a team, versus free agents and star players and attitudes and entitlement and all that [stuff] that comes with it. We are who we are and I think our guys have really understood that." -- Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella
"They're just going in for me right now. Four games before that I didn't have a point and felt like I played better there. That's how it goes. They're going in, I'll take them." -- Flyers forward Claude Giroux

Blue Jackets projected lineup

Nathan Gerbe -- Boone Jenner -- Nick Foligno
Gustav Nyquist -- Kevin Stenlund -- Oliver Bjorkstrand
Sonny Milano -- Pierre-Luc Dubois -- Emil Bemstrom
Eric Robinson -- Riley Nash -- Jakob Lilja
Zach Werenski -- Markus Nutivaara
Vladislav Gavrikov -- David Savard
Scott Harrington -- Andrew Peeke
Elvis Merzlikins
Matiss Kivlenieks
Scratched: Gabriel Carlsson, Kole Sherwood
Injured: Brandon Dubinsky (wrist), Josh Anderson (shoulder), Ryan Murray (lower body), Alexandre Texier (back), Dean Kukan (knee), Alexander Wennberg (upper body), Joonas Korpisalo (knee), Seth Jones (ankle), Cam Atkinson (ankle)

Flyers projected lineup

Claude Giroux -- Sean Couturier -- Jakub Voracek
Joel Farabee -- Kevin Hayes -- Travis Konecny
James van Riemsdyk -- Scott Laughton -- Tyler Pitlick
Michael Raffl -- Connor Bunnaman -- Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Ivan Provorov -- Matt Niskanen
Travis Sanheim -- Philippe Myers
Robert Hagg -- Justin Braun
Carter Hart
Brian Elliott
Scratched: None
Injured: Nolan Patrick (migraine disorder), Shayne Gostisbehere (knee)

Status report

Korpisalo took part in the morning skate for the first time since the goalie was injured Dec. 29. ... Gostisbehere took part in the Flyers' optional morning skate but the defenseman will miss his sixth straight game and 16th of 17 for Philadelphia.

Stat pack

The Blue Jackets are 14-for-15 on the penalty kill in their past nine games. ... Van Riemsdyk has eight points (four goals, four assists) during a five-game point streak.