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The NHL regular season resumes today for the 32 clubs. The Columbus Blue Jackets return to home ice for their only home game of the season against the struggling Chicago Blackhawks in their second and final meeting of the season. Game is on TV FanDuel Sports Network and Comcast Sportsnet in Illinois; Radio is on 97.1 The Fan; and is presented by Shores & Islands.
Columbus doubled Chicago in their December 1st matchup by the final score of 6-3. Connor Bedard; Craig Smith; and Nick Foligno scored for the Hawks; Ivan Provorov; Kent Johnson; Sean Monahan; Dante Fabbro; Kirill Marchenko; and Dmitry Voronkov scored for the Blues Jackets.
Chicago is preparing to do a hard sell at the upcoming deadline, as forwards Ryan Donato; Craig Smth; and Patrick Marron are expiring. Defenseman Alec Martinez is also a rental. Seth Jones is also confirming speculation he and the Hawks are working on a move. TJ Brodie is also expected to become a buyout candidate this summer.
Preview
When Chicago and Columbus clashed in December, the Hawks scored all three goals on the powerplay; they were 3 for 6 on the man advantage at the United Center. The Blackhawks are 3-3-4 in their last 10. Columbus is 4-5-1. After nearly three weeks away from game competition, most of the Hawks and Jackets players are well rested.
It is expected Columbus will have a healthy lineup tomorrow, featuring Zach Werenski and Dante Fabbro on defense; Kirll Marchenko and Joseph LaBate Jr. in the lineup; and the season debut of captain Boone Jenner. Sadly, Owen Sillinger and Kevin Labanc are done for the season as they had surgeries over the break.
The forward and Blue Jackets captain has not played since undergoing shoulder surgery on October 9. He has missed 56 games after sliding into the boards during a preseason practice October 4. The organization and leader of the club were hopeful for his debut to be at the Stadium Series in March 1, but getting him back 3 games early is great news.
Jenner on the long road back to playing this season for the Blues Jackets
“I was joking with some of the guys that I don’t remember what my game-day routine is. I’m super excited. Super pumped. It’s been a long road. To have that happen at the end of camp was hard and here we are four months and a bit later finally getting to be out there with these guys that you had so much fun with in training camp, and with a special group here. So to watch them battle their butts off all year to get to this point, I can’t wait to join them.”
The second rounder from 2011, Jenner, is Columbus' all-time leader in games played (715) and ranks third in goals (192) and points (364), and had 35 points (22 goals, 13 assists) in 58 games last season.
Columbus coach Dean Evason said Friday that forward Kirill Marchenko (broken jaw) and defenseman Dante Fabbro (concussion) each will also play Saturday; each was injured in a 5-3 loss at the Dallas Stars on Feb. 2 and missed three games heading into the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Marchenko, injured when hit by a puck while sitting on the bench, leads the Blue Jackets with 21 goals. Fabbro has 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 43 games after being claimed off waivers from the Nashville Predators on Nov. 10. He was injured when he was elbowed by Stars forward Mason Marchment.
Joe LaBate (6-5, 225), who was recalled Thursday from Cleveland of the American Hockey League, where he had 13 points (six goals, seven assists) and 49 penalty minutes in 33 games. The Blue Jackets signed him to a free agent contract on Nov. 29, 2024. LaBate, 31, last played in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks during the 2016-17 season when he had no points and 21 penalty minutes in 13 games. His last NHL game was March 28, 2017.
The race for the Hart Trophy as most valuable player to his team is heating up with Nathan MacKinnon (Colorado Avalanche), Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton Oilers) and Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay Lightning) pulling away from the rest of the pack. Zach Werenski will be a contender for the Norris Trophy as the League’s top defenseman and may receive Hart consideration if the Blue Jackets reach the postseason.
The Detroit Red Wings (28-22-5) are in position to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2015-16, currently the second wild card from the Eastern Conference with 61 points. The Ottawa Senators (62 points) hold the first wild card from the Eastern Conference and are looking to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2016-17. Detroit and Ottawa will try to fend off the Columbus Blue Jackets (60 points), Boston Bruins (60), New York Rangers (58) and New York Islanders (57), Montreal Canadiens (55), Pittsburgh Penguins (55) and Philadelphia Flyers (55). In the Western Conference, the Vancouver Canucks (63 points) and Calgary Flames (60) are set up for an epic race for the second wild card, with the St. Louis Blues (55), Anaheim Ducks (54) and Seattle Kraken (52) having work to do to get back in the running.
Keys to Victory
1. Pucks on Net — with a healthy offense and a top-10 offense, pucks will go in on the Hawks’ goaltending.
2. Z Home Streak — Werenski is on the cusp of the greatest season in Jackets’ history, and is inching closer to passing a defensive scoring record at home.
3. Road to Outside — this is the second last home game for the Jackets at Nationwide before they head to Buckeye Stadium to face the Detroit Red Wings in an Ohio State v Michigan level battle.
Projected Lineups
Chicago Blackhawks
Landon Slaggert — Connor Bedard — Ryan Donato
Teuvo Teravainen — Nick Foligno — Ilya Mikheyev
Phillip Kurashev — Frank Nazar — Tyler Bertuzzi
Pat Maroon — Lukas Reichel — Craig Smith
Alec Martinez — Seth Jones
Alex Vlasic — Connor Murphy
Louis Crevier — TJ Brodie
Petr Mrazek
Arvid Soderblom
Scratched — Ethan Del Mastro
Injured — Laurent Brossoit, Jason Dickinson
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dmitri Voronkov — Adam Fantilli — Kirill Marchenko
Boone Jenner — Cole Sillinger — Kent Johnson
James van Riemsdyk — Justin Danforth — Mathieu Olivier
Zach Aston-Reese — Sean Kuraly — Joseph LaBate Jr.
Injured — Erik Gudbranson, Owen Sillinger, Yegor Chinakov, Sean Monahan, Kevin Labanc
Players to Watch
Chicago — Ryan Donato — 4 goals, 4 assists, 8 points in his last 5 games played. The forward is having the best season of his career in a walk year for the rental. Could get a haul for the Blackhawks ahead of the March 7 trading deadline.
Columbus — Boone Jenner — season debut for the Columbus captain. This is a massive grab for the room; morale of the team; and more meaningful now than ever given how close we are to the Stadium Series and 2025 NHL Trade Deadline.
Predicted Final Score
CHI — 2
CBJ — 4
Gambling Corner
The Blue Jackets are a -180 favorites according to the NHL Draft Kings odds. The Blackhawks are a +150.
The final outdoor game of the season will take place March 1 when the Red Wings face the Blue Jackets at Ohio Stadium as part of the NHL Stadium Series. It is the first time Columbus will play an outdoor game and the fifth time for Detroit. It will be the 43rd outdoor game in League history and second this season. The Blues won 6-2 against the Blackhawks in the Winter Classic at Wrigley Field in Chicago on December 31.
After Ek promoted my post to the top slot over the weekend, this will be posted daily with my Twitter promotion of who may join and depart Columbus. Rumor Mill
F Brock Boeser (VAN)
CBJ, MIN
F Elias Pettersson (VAN)
BUF, CAR, DET, MIN, DAL, OTT, CBJ, BOS
F Brock Nelson (NYI)
MIN, DAL, BOS, TOR, COL, WPG, CBJ, WSH,
F Brandon Tanev (SEA)
TOR, WSH, NYR, VGK, OTT, CBJ,
F Gustav Nyquist (NSH) per Michael DeRosa
CBJ, NYR, OTT, CAR, FLA, COL
F Dylan Cozens (BUF)
Per Josh Erickson of ProHockeyRumors and Spencer Lazary of THN — CBJ
Columbus Blue Jackets Blogger • 
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