Game 74 Preview: Keep it Goin'
Coming off a huge win over the Wings, the Jackets need to stick to their winning ways against the shorthanded Pens.
Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
March 28, 2014 - 7:00 pm EST
Nationwide Arena, Columbus Ohio
Radio - WBNS 97.1 - TV - Fox Sports Ohio
Opponent's Blog: Pensburgh
Penguins vs Blue Jackets coverage
With Sergei Bobrovsky still feeling the effects of his illness, Curtis McElhinney gets the start for the Jackets tonight.
The Jackets have lost all four previous meetings to the Penguins, but have a prime opportunity to steal the finale this evening. The Pens are without Evgeni Malkin, and of course Kris Letang. They've been on a bit of a skid lately as well, including a loss to the Kings last night.
The Jackets, on the other hand, have been off since Tuesday and should be well-rested against the tired Pens. The points are there to be taken.
Some things to look out for this evening:
- Johansen is sitting on 29 goals. The crowd would love to see the 30th.
- McElhinney was terrific in relief of Bob on Tuesday. This will be a big opportunity for him.
- Nathan Horton needs a goal. You read it here first- he'll get one tonight.
Projected Lineups
Columbus Blue Jackets
(37-29-6, 80 Points; 4th division, 7th conference)
| Boone Jenner | Ryan Johansen | Nathan Horton |
| Matt Calvert | Brandon Dubinsky | Cam Atkinson |
| Nick Foligno | Artem Anisimov | R.J. Umberger |
| Derek MacKenzie | Mark Letestu | Blake Comeau |
| Dalton Prout | Jack Johnson |
| Fedor Tyutin | James Wisniewski |
| Nick Schultz | David Savard |
| Curtis McElhinney |
| Mike McKenna |
Pittsburgh Penguins
(46-22-5, 97 Points; 1st division, 2nd conference)
| Chris Kunitz | Sidney Crosby | Lee Stempniak |
| Jussi Jokinen | Brandon Sutter | James Neal |
| Taylor Pyatt | Marcel Goc | Brian Gibbons |
| Tanner Glass | Craig Adams | Jayson Megna |
| Brooks Orpik | Robert Bortuzzo |
| Olli Maatta | Matt Niskanen |
| Simon Despres | Rob Scuderi |
| Marc-Andre Fleury |
| Jeff Zatkoff |
Season Series
11/01/13 - Columbus 2 at Pittsburgh 4
11/02/13 - Pittsburgh 3 at Columbus 0
12/09/13 - Columbus 1 at Pittsburgh 2
12/29/13 - Pittsburgh 5 at Columbus 3
03/28/14 - Pittsburgh at Columbus
Head to Head Stats
Pittsburgh Columbus 3.03 (5) GPG 2.76 (14) 2.48 (11) GAPG 2.69 (14) 23.7% (2) PP% 17.3% (18) 85.6% (4) PK% 82.1% (14) Sidney Crosby, 34 G leader Ryan Johansen, 29 Sidney Crosby, 62 A leader James Wisniewski, 36 Sidney Crosby, 96 Pts leader Ryan Johansen, 54 Tanner Glass, 83 PIM leader Brandon Dubinsky, 94 20-14-3 Road/Home 20-13-3 3/27 @ Carolina, L 3-2 Last Game 3/25 vs. Detroit, W 4-2 4-5-1 Last 10 5-4-1
Needless to say, this one's huge.