Union and Blue
Fansided

Predicting the Opening Night Lines for the Columbus Blue Jackets

By Curtis Deem

Oct 2, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets left wing Kirill Marchenko, middle, celebrates with teammates left wing Johnny Gaudreau (13) and right wing Patrik Laine (29) after scoring a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the first period at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 2, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets left wing Kirill Marchenko, middle, celebrates with teammates left wing Johnny Gaudreau (13) and right wing Patrik Laine (29) after scoring a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the first period at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 3
Next

Up front, it’s a lot of the same as before – but with a couple of tweaks from last year. While there may be some disappointment in certain guys making the cut, this is probably the correct move to allow the prospects more time.

WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 21: Patrik Laine #29 of the Columbus Blue Jackets in action against the Washington Capitals during the second period of the game at Capital One Arena on March 21, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 21: Patrik Laine #29 of the Columbus Blue Jackets in action against the Washington Capitals during the second period of the game at Capital One Arena on March 21, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /

Our first line center to start the season is going to be Patrik Laine. Did any of us see that coming, when the team acquired him from the Winnipeg Jets three years ago? If you answered yes, you’re lying. But not only did Patrik play center in the preseason, he looked good. Like, really good – so this experiment carries into the regular season, where he’ll have two very good players on his flanks in Johnny Gaudreau and Kirill Marchenko.

The fourth line for the Blue Jackets will be centered by Sean Kuraly. With enforcer Mathieu Olivier hitting IR to start the season, Justin Danforth will flank the right wing on this line, with Eric Robinson on the other side. This is pretty much exactly what we expected in the offseason, and throughout training camp. Danforth and Olivier will interchange on the right side as available/needed.

The reason we skipped straight to the fourth line? It’s really hard to nail down what the middle-six lineup for the Blue Jackets is going to look like. We’ll have some combination of Kent Johnson, Adam Fantilli, Alexandre Texier, Cole Sillinger, Emil Bemstrom, Jack Roslovic, and Boone Jenner playing on the second and third line.

If the last preseason game (“dress rehearsal”) was any indication; we’ll have a second line of Texier, Jenner, and Bemstrom; then a third line of Johnson, Fantilli, and Sillinger. It’s entirely possible that these lines remain intact for the opener, but I do not think it will be long before we see Jack Roslovic in the lineup. With his contract and experience, the team can ill afford to keep him in the press box all season. The 14th forward for the club is Liam Foudy, who will have to keep working hard and being patient to earn his chance.

Forward lines:

Gaudreau – Laine – Marchenko

Texier – Jenner – Bemstrom

Johnson – Fantilli – Sillinger

Robinson – Kuraly – Danforth

Roslovic, Foudy

One thing that’s almost for sure: there will be a lot of shuffling here. I don’t see the team going through an entire season with their three youngest forwards on one line, for example. But, I do think this group is more than capable of both providing offense, and two-way support on each line. So maybe it works, and maybe it sticks.

Home/Editorials