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Columbus Blue Jackets: A Winnable Three-Game Week Ahead

By Michael Mallory

COLUMBUS, OH - OCTOBER 21: Boone Jenner #38 of the Columbus Blue Jackets skates the puck towards goaltender Jonathan Quick #32 of the Los Angeles Kings during the third period of a game on October 21, 2017 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/NHLI via Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OH - OCTOBER 21: Boone Jenner #38 of the Columbus Blue Jackets skates the puck towards goaltender Jonathan Quick #32 of the Los Angeles Kings during the third period of a game on October 21, 2017 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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The Columbus Blue Jackets finish their four-game homestand with two home games next week and finish the week on the road.

This past week wasn’t the greatest for the Columbus Blue Jackets as the final two games ended up being losses at Nationwide Arena, but the team will look to bounce back against some lower-ranking opponents early next week.

Buffalo Sabres – Wednesday (10-25-17)

The Columbus Blue Jackets get their first taste of Jack Eichel this season Wednesday when the Buffalo Sabres come to town. This will be the Blue Jackets’ lone game on NBCSN as part of their ‘Rivalry Night’ series.

While the Sabres and Jackets are far from rivals, this game will showcase a lot of young talent. Jack Eichel is going to be a force in this league, and the Jackets will have two of the top young defensemen paired up against Eichel in Seth Jones and Zach Werenski. The Sabres are predicted to finish towards the bottom of the NHL, but the Jackets cannot take them lightly.

Winnipeg Jets – Friday (10-27-17)

Columbus finishes their four-game homestand with a matchup against another young star in Patrik Laine. This game is going to be the first game of a back-to-back, so it becomes even more important for the Jackets to have a good performance.

The Jackets have already faced the Jets with a 5-2 win in Winnipeg on October 17th. This was one of the Blue Jackets best overall performances of the season, and hopefully, they are able to put the same gameplan in place and beat another young squad.

St. Louis Blues – Saturday (10-28-17)

While the homestand ends, Columbus has a quick turnaround to St. Louis to face an impressive Blues squad. The Blues started out the gate quickly with four straight wins and have been taking advantage of home ice with a 2-0 record.

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The Blues look like a daunting task on the backend of the back-to-back, but the Blue Jackets do get the benefit of the Blues playing the night prior as well. The Blue Jackets will need to get a jump on St. Louis.

Conclusion

The Columbus Blue Jackets have three games next week, with all three being winnable games. It is very early to look at the standings, but Columbus needs to take advantage of a bearable stretch with two of three coming at Nationwide Arena.

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