Preview: Blue Jackets ready to restart against sizzling Stars

GAME 47: STARS (26-17-3) AT BLUE JACKETS (25-18-3)
Location:Nationwide Arena, 7 P.M., Thursday
TV:Fox Sports Ohio/Fox Sports Go; Fox Sports Southwest (Stars)
Radio:97.1 FM The Fan & BlueJackets.com
They stumbled into their mandated bye, after getting swept in back-to-back games by the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks. Now, the Blue Jackets hope the time off helps them sprint out of the break.
Columbus will restart its season on home ice Thursday, where the Blue Jackets are 15-8-0. They'll host the Dallas Stars, who will play for the third time in four days, and will have a new face on the bench.
Columbus claimed veteran forward Jussi Jokinen, 34, off waivers Wednesday from the Los Angeles Kings, and he's expected to step right into the lineup. The Blue Jackets also recalled forward Tyler Motte from the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League, and placed rookie Sonny Milano on injured reserve with a torn oblique muscle.
"We're doing this to get a guy who can step into our lineup right now," Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen said of Jokinen, who has split the season between the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings. "We need players. We know very well he's had a great career, and he can help us."
Jokinen will likely start out in a role among the bottom six forwards, adding an NHL caliber replacement for Milano, who was injured Jan. 8 in Toronto.
The Blue Jackets need all hands on deck against the Stars, who are a hot team right now.
Dallas started a four-game road trip by sweeping a back-to-back set in Boston and Detroit on Monday and Tuesday, downing the Boston Bruins 3-2 at TD Garden and then the Detroit Red Wings, 4-2, at Little Caesar's Arena - led by Jason Spezza's two goals.
Dallas is 7-3-0 in its last 10 games, and 10-4-2 since Dec. 9, when the Stars lost their season-high third game in a row. They're looking to split the two-game the series against the Blue Jackets, who won the first game, 2-1, Jan. 2 at American Airlines Center.
Columbus is 4-5-1 in its past 10 games, and 8-10-2 in its last 20. It will help immensely if the Jackets can play as strong defensively as they did in Dallas. They're 20-3-0 when holding teams to two-or-fewer goals.

SERIES RECORD
2017-18 Season: (1-0-0). This is the second of two games. The Blue Jackets won the first game, 2-1, Jan. 2 at American Airlines Center.
First game:Neither team scored until the third period in a game featuring tight checking each way. Devin Shore gave the Stars a 1-0 lead 44 seconds into the third, which forced the Blue Jackets to open up their game to create more scoring chances. Forward Oliver Bjorkstrand scored two goals, separated by 1:18, to give Columbus a 2-1 lead. The Blue Jackets' defense and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky made it stand up for the win.
All-time (W-L-T-O): 23-27-0-6 overall; 11-13-0-4 at Nationwide Arena
WHO'S HOT
Stars: Defenseman John Klingberg had two assists against the Red Wings to extend his point streak to a career-high eight games, the longest current streak in the NHL. It was his eighth straight game with an assist, as well, which is also a career-best and longest current streak in the league.
Blue Jackets: Seth Jones has a four-game points streak in which he's tallied six points (one goal, five assists). He scored the only goal for Columbus against the Canucks in the final game before the break, which was his eighth of the season and first since Dec. 23 against the Philadelphia Flyers.
EYES ON: THE STARS
EYES ON: THE BLUE JACKETS
PROJECTED LINEUPS
STARS
Forwards
Jamie Benn - Tyler Seguin - Alexander Radulov
Mattias Janmark- Jason Spezza - Devin Shore
Antoine Roussel - Radek Faksa - Tyler Pitlick
Remi Elie - Martin Hanzal - Brett Ritchie
Defensemen
Esa Lindell - John Klingberg
Dan Hamhuis - Greg Pateryn
Dillon Heatherington - Stephen Johns
Goaltenders
Ben Bishop
Kari Lehtonen
Others: Julius Honka, Gemel Smith
Injured reserve: Marc Methot (knee)
BLUE JACKETS
Forwards
Artemi Panarin - Pierre-Luc Dubois - Josh Anderson
Boone Jenner - Alex Wennberg - Oliver Bjorkstrand
Matt Calvert - Lukas Sedlak - Nick Foligno
Jordan Schroeder - Jussi Jokinen - Tyler Motte
Defensemen
Zach Werenski - Seth Jones
Markus Nutivaara - David Savard
Scott Harrington - Jack Johnson
Goaltenders
Joonas Korpisalo
Sergei Bobrovsky
Others:Markus Hannikainen
Injured reserve:Ryan Murray (upper body), Brandon Dubinsky (fractured orbital bone), Cam Atkinson (fractured foot)