Following their second loss of the season, the Columbus Blue Jackets host the Los Angeles Kings tonight. This will be the Jackets fourth game against a Western Conference opponent this season.
A tough 2-0 loss gave the Columbus Blue Jackets a reality check on Thursday night. The power play woes continued and they suffered their first shutout of 2017-18.
To be fair, The Tampa Bay Lightning are, in terms of points, the best team in the NHL. However, it won’t be any easier tonight against a 5-0-1 Los Angeles Kings team.
The Kings are the only team in the NHL who have yet to lose a game in regulation. Their only loss was in overtime against the Calgary Flames on October 11. This makes for a matchup against two of the top teams in the league early in the season.
Game Information
- Game: Columbus Blue Jackets (5-2-0) vs. Los Angeles Kings (5-0-1)
- Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
- Location: Nationwide Arena (Columbus, OH)
- TV: Fox Sports Ohio, Fox Sports West, FOX Sports Go
- Radio: 97.1 The Fan (Columbus, OH), KABC 790 (Los Angeles, CA)
Injury Report
Columbus Blue Jackets
- Gabriel Carlsson – upper-body injury (IR)
With Sam Vigneault and Boone Jenner activated yesterday, Gabriel Carlsson is the only injured player for the CBJ. Jenner is expected to make his season debut tonight. Carlsson skated this morning but it appears he needs a little more time to get back to full strength.
Los Angeles Kings
- Marian Gaborik – knee (IR)
- Jeff Carter – ankle (IR)
- Kyle Clifford – upper-body injury (IR)
Two former Columbus Blue Jackets, Marian Gaborik and Jeff Carter, will not play against their former team tonight. Gaborik has yet to play this season and Carter was injured in the King’s game on Wednesday.
Projected LAK Lines
Iafollo – Kopitar – Brown
Pearson – Shore – Toffoli
Cammalleri – Kempe – Lewis
Andreoff – Dowd – Auger
Forbort – Doughty
Martinez – Muzzin
Fantenberg – Folin
Quick
Projected CBJ Lines
Panarin – Wennberg – Atkinson
Jenner – Foligno – Bjorkstrand
Dubois – Dubinsky – Anderson
Milano – Sedlak – Calvert
Werenski – Jones
Johnson – Savard
Murray – Nutivaara
Bobrovsky
Filling right into a top 6 role is Boone Jenner coming off an injury. He looks to revamp the second line after Thursday’s shutout.
Sergei Bobrovsky makes his second consecutive start in net and his sixth start of the season. His 1.58 GAA sits at third best in the NHL.
Next: Staring Down The Barrel – Rink Royalty
The Columbus Blue Jackets look to rebound against a hot Los Angeles Kings team tonight. Follow @UnionAndBlue on Twitter and visit r/BlueJackets for live updates and Blue Jackets talk throughout the game.