Columbus Blue Jackets at Boston Bruins
November 17, 2011 – 7:00pm EST
TD Garden – Boston, Massachusetts
Radio – WBNS FM 97.1 – TV – Fox Sports Ohio
Opponents Blog: Stanley Cup of Chowder
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The Blue Jackets are all but dead and buried at this point. They literally played the best period of their nightmare season on Tuesday night in the first against Minnesota, and took a 2-0 lead into the dressing room. Result? LOSS. 45 shots. Two goals. No hope.
Speaking of no hope, the Bruins have won six in a row to right their own ship a little bit. This is their fifth straight home game. Columbus is yet to win on the road. In other words, the Jackets will have their work cut out for them.
Tonight marks the start of the annual Fathers’ Trip, which should help the boys forget about the stresses of trying to find answers. If you can’t play hard for 60 minutes in front of your pop, then when can you? They won’t have to spend their down-time thinking all the time about how dreadful they’ve been playing. They can spend some time with their dads, and maybe get back to enjoying the game for the game.
The Jackets need to score. They need to capitalize on their chances. Who can forget the game back in the spring when Tuukka Rask stopped 34 of 36 shots? So, Jackets: bury your chances. It’s maddening to watch otherwise.
Projected Lineups
Columbus Blue Jackets
(3-13-1, 7 Points; 5th division, 15th conference)
| R.J. Umberger | Jeff Carter | Rick Nash |
| Vinny Prospal | Mark Letestu | Ryan Johansen |
| Antoine Vermette | Samuel Pahlsson | Derek Dorsett |
| Derick Brassard | Derek MacKenzie | Jared Boll |
| Fedor Tyutin | Nikita Nikitin |
| Marc Methot | James Wisniewski |
| Aaron Johnson | Grant Clitsome |
| Curtis Sanford |
| Steve Mason |
Boston Bruins
(9-7-0, 18 Points; 5th Division, 11th Conference)
| Milan Lucic | David Krejci | Nathan Horton |
| Brad Marchand | Patrice Bergeron | Tyler Seguin |
| Benoit Pouliot | Chris Kelly | Rich Peverley |
| Daniel Paille | Gregory Campbell | Shawn Thornton |
| Zdeno Chara | Joe Corvo |
| Dennis Seidenberg | Johnny Boychuk |
| Adam McQuaid | Steve Kampfer |
| Tim Thomas |
| Tuukka Rask |
Season Series
11/17/11 – Blue Jackets at Bruins
12/10/11 – Bruins at Blue Jackets
By The Numbers
Scoring
CBJ – 2.24 G/G (t26th)
BOS – 3.44 G/G (t2nd)Defense
CBJ – 3.71 GA/G (30th)
BOS – 2.38 GA/G (9th)Power Play
CBJ – 11.7% (28th)
BOS – 16.7% (15th)Penalty Kill
CBJ – 74.2% (29th)
BOS – 86.4% (12th)
Game Notes:
- We’re goin’ streaking!! – The Bruins have won six straight games, outscoring their opponents 34-13. In other words, they’re pretty much back into the form that won them Lord Stanley last summer. They’re scoring almost six goals a game over their stretch. This is not good news for the Jackets.
- Back that thang up – We finally get to see Curtis Sanford make his first start as a Blue Jacket. Try to contain your excitement.
- Lines and Scratches – It looks like Derick Brassard will draw back in tonight, as will Aaron Johnson. John Moore and Matt Calvert look to be the odd men out, as is Cody Bass who is still with the club despite clearing waivers this morning.
- Planning on watching this one? A quick word:
Do your best, folks. It could be a long night.