The Blue Jackets get their toughest test of the young season tonight, as they visit the defending Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh.
The Canes are, unfortunately, red hot. After losing their first two games of the season, they have won 10 of their last 12, all but one of them in regulation. They're atop the NHL standings by both points (22), with a 10-2-2 record, and a league-leading .786% points percentage.
The Jackets come into this one on a two game winning streak of their own, after beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 in overtime on Tuesday night. After placing defenseman Carson Soucy on waivers yesterday, all signs point to the possibility of Ivan Provorov playing his first game of the season tonight.
They will need him, and all other hands on deck if they are going to compete with this Carolina team. Lets break down three keys to success.
Weather the storm(s).
If you have watched a game in Raleigh at any point in the last few years, you know this has to be key #1. The Canes are a team built to drive play and momentum, and when they start buzzing around, their home crowd gets very loud.
The Blue Jackets don't have to shut these pushes down entirely, but they do need to find a way to get through them mostly unscathed. That means sticking within they system. Clogging up passing lanes, blocking shots, and slowing the game back down. A save or two will help, also.
Generate some shots on goal.
This won't be easy, but one area that I do think the Canes are below average is in goal. They play a smothering system that chokes out most offensive opportunitites, which they have done for years.
However, if you can get through to their final line of defense, you give yourself a chance. I may be entirely wrong here, as Pyotr Kochetkov sits at 8-0-0 with a .918% save percentage and 1.62 goals against average; but I do like the Jackets' odds a lot more if they can generate more than 15 shots on net.
Youth movement.
The Blue Jackets are starting to see more production from their young players. Kent Johnson leads the team in scoring with 10 points in 10 games. Adam Fantilli has 3 points in his last 2 games. Cole Sillinger and Denton Mateychuk have been very productive so far too.
These guys need to lead the way tonight. Their speed and skill is going to be very important if this team is going to get anything going offensively. We have already seen that this team will struggle to score if they try to rely on some of the veterans, so it's on the kids to make the difference at that end of the rink.
Puck drop is scheduled for just after 7:00 Eastern time. This is the first of four matchups between these two teams this season. The Jackets haven't beaten the Canes in Raleigh since 1/13/2022, when they thrashed them 6-0. Lets hope they bring that kind of effort tonight.
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