Game 15: A Rare Visit to Georgia
Late last night after losing a tough one to the Sharks, the Jackets boarded a plane for Atlanta where they will face the Thrashers tonight.
This will be a difficult contest from a Jackets perspective, because they have six players out with injuries. Modin and Murray have been out for a bulk of the season, and Commie, Juice, Brass and Blunden join them on the sidelines. Derek MacKenzie and Alex Picard have been called up from Syracuse to patch the holes. The Thrashers don't have as many players out with injury, but Ilya Kovalchuk remains out for the Birds. They are still a dangerous club without him however, and their powerplay is to be feared- it currently sits third in the league. (For the record, the Jackets powerplay is ranked 11th in the league at this point)
It looks like Garon will be getting the start tonight. I'm eager to see him in action again. He will assuredly be busy, but he'll be more than up to the task. Jan Hejda's return to the lineup last game was vital, he is almost automatic in the defensive zone. I eagerly await the return of Commie so we can see both shutdown stars in action together again.
Another player I am eager to see tonight is Nikita Filatov. He looked very good against the Sharks last night, and with guys like Brass and Juice out, his offensive skill and creativity will be needed. I would love to see him get some powerplay time with Nash and Vermette.
Fearless Prediction- Goal from Filatov, Rusty with two points!
Game Time: 7:00pm ET
Opponent's Blog: Bird Watchers Anonymous
Game Page: Blue Jackets vs Thrashers coverage
TSN Preview: Blue Jackets vs Thrashers Preview
TV: FSN Ohio
Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)
More after the jump...
From the Columbus Dispatch:
The Blue Jackets are 5-5-0-0 against the Thrashers, including 2-3-0-0 in Philips Arena. This is the first of two meetings this season. The Blue Jackets have won the past two meetings against the Thrashers 2-0. The Thrashers are 2-1-0 since captain Ilya Kovalchuk suffered a broken foot, including a 5-4 victory Tuesday in Montreal.
Jackets Links:
Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule
Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats
Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:
Columbus Blue Jackets
| Raffi Torres | Antoine Vermette | Rick Nash |
| Nikita Filatov | R.J. Umberger | Jakub Voracek |
| Jason Chimera | Samuel Pahlsson | Derek Dorsett |
| Alexandre Picard | Derek MacKenzie | Jared Boll |
| Fedor Tyutin | Anton Stralman |
| Kris Russell | Jan Hejda |
| Marc Methot | Rostislav Klesla |
| Garon |
| Mason |
| EXTRA: None |
| INJURED: Fredrik Modin, Andrew Murray, Derick Brassard, Kristian Huselius, Mike Commodore, Mike Blunden |
| Slava Kozlov | Nik Antropov | Maxim Afinogenov |
| Rich Peverley | Todd White | Bryan Little |
| Evander Kane | Marty Reasoner | Colby Armstrong |
| Eric Boulton | Jim Slater | Chris Thorburn |
| Tobias Enstrom | Christoph Schubert |
| Ron Hainsey | Pavel Kubina |
| Zach Bogosian | Mark Popovic |