The Columbus Blue Jackets enter November with a surprising 5-3-1 record. Their 11 points is good enough for the 8th spot in the Eastern Conference. Yes, the Jackets are currently sitting in the WC2 spot in the (very) early playoff race. Tonight will be their toughest test to date, however; as they welcome the high flying Winnipeg Jets to town.
The Jets are the hottest team in the NHL, off to a crazy 9-1-0 start. Their only loss came on Monday, when they dropped a 6-4 loss at home against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Aside from that loss, the Jets have outscored their opponents 40-20 in the other 9 games they've played. This team has started out dominant this season.
That doesn't mean this game is a given...
The Blue Jackets may be the only team more surprising than the Jets early on this season. Coming into the season on the back of an unthinkable tragedy and picked by many to finish dead last; the Jackets have won games by scoring at a ridiculous rate. And, most recently, they won a tight checking 2-0 game against the New York Islanders - giving us hope that this early season run isn't a mirage. Good teams find ways, after all.
Dean Evason has this team playing above its head. If they can keep up the kind of efforts we've seen so far, there's no reason they can't compete with the best. They've shown capable of doing so already.
Winnipeg is led by former CBJ bench boss Scott Arniel, who took over for retiring head coach Rick Bowness. In a transition season, the Jets are buzzing and have taken the league by storm. With that said, they've had a fairly easy schedule mostly against teams they should beat - and with no back-to-back games to speak of, yet.
Can the Jackets break through tonight?
This reminds me a lot of a game the Jackets played 8 years ago, almost to the day. The undefeated Montreal Canadiens were coming to town on November 4th, 2016; but the plucky Jackets seemed like they were surprising teams. I recall telling a friend that if they played like they had all year, they were going to end Montreal's unbeaten streak. They did so with authority.
On that night, the Blue Jackets beat the Habs 10-0; arguably the most memorable regular season game in franchise history. Now, I don't expect the good guys to put up a 10 spot on the Jets tonight. But, I do think they're capable of taking them by surprise and winning this game.
Just one lineup change is noted for the Blue Jackets tonight: they'll have Dmitri Voronkov for the first time this season. He replaces Kevin Labanc, who will sit out as a healthy scratch:
#CBJ head coach Dean Evason said Kevin Labanc might have played his best game Wednesday night vs. the Islanders. Was a tough choice to take him out for Voronkov, but someone had to come out.
— Jeff Svoboda (@JacketsInsider) November 1, 2024
"Vronk" will bring some added size and toughness to the lineup, which never hurts. It's an unfortunate situation for Labanc, who looked to be coming on strong in Wednesday night's game. But, this is definitely a lineup upgrade for the Blue Jackets, who have missed their budding young power forward. I expect Dmitri to make a big difference tonight, in what should be a really fun game to watch.