The Blue Jackets are in California, and will visit the Anaheim Ducks tonight. It will be the second matchup between these two teams this week-and their final matchup of the season.
In their other meeting, the Jackets took home the win on Tuesday night, winning 4-3 in overtime thanks to a terrific individual effort from Adam Fantilli.
The Ducks will be seeking revenge, but will be hoping to bounce back after getting shelled 8-3 by the Dallas Stars last night. At home, no less.
The Opponent
The Ducks come into tonight's game losers of two straight games, including that one at Nationwide on Tuesday night. They are 5-4-1 in their last 10, after starting the season red hot.
So hot, in fact, that despite this little skid, they still sit second in the Pacific Division with a 20-13-2 record (42 points). Excuse the pun here: look for them to come out flying tonight.
They were embarrassed at home last night by the Stars, who scored six unanswered goals and chased starter Lukas Dostal from the home net. Petr Mrazek came on in relief, but he wasn't able to help get the Ducks back on track.
Since both guys played last night, it sounds like the Ducks could turn back to Dostal tonight against the Blue Jackets. He's 12-7-1 this year, with a 2.91 goals against average and .899% save percentage. He has never faced the Jackets in his career.
In front of him, expect the Ducks to look exactly as they did Tuesday night. They looked very dangerous in Columbus, especially offensively.
Despite them playing last night, I expect them to come out hungry and competitive at home. The last time they were blown out, they responded with a gutsy 4-3 shootout win against the Washington Capitals in their very next game.
The Good Guys
The Blue Jackets will look different tonight. That's because Don Waddell was finally able to add a player to his roster, acquiring big winger Mason Marchment from the Seattle Kraken ahead of the holiday roster freeze.
Marchment will make his CBJ debut tonight in Anaheim, playing alongside Adam Fantilli in some capacity. With the team on the road, we'll have to wait and see what the rest of the lines look like:
Per Coach Dean Evason, newly acquired F Mason Marchment will play for #CBJ tonight in Anaheim. He said he will play with Adam Fantilli but didn’t go into further detail on lines other than to say there will be other changes. Watch tonight beginning at 9:30pm @FanDuelSN_CBUS pic.twitter.com/mCnjX55CDG
— Dave Maetzold (@DMaetzMedia) December 20, 2025
The hope is that this will energize a team that has been going through the motions a bit of late. They haven't played terribly-especially if you remove third periods-but, they haven't played good enough to win, either.
The Jackets have needed a spark for weeks, and may have been prompted to make a move by their best player's comments after Thursday night's loss. This is the kind of player that can bring a spark.
If he's not scoring, he'll be looking for other ways to impact the game. I expect Mason to come out with a lot to prove tonight.
Three Keys to Success
1. Weather the early storm. The Ducks have only lost twice all season when scoring the first goal. They will be on their toes early, looking to do just that. The Jackets will have to match their energy and not break, especially in the first 10 minutes.
2. Slow them down. Thought I like what Mason Marchment will bring to the lineup, let's face it: the Jackets still aren't going to be able to out-skate the Ducks. So, they need to bring a physical element to this game and stay on them for 60 minutes.
3. Show Don your appreciation. It would have been easy for Don Waddell to sit back and wait. It probably would have been easier to trade players away. Instead, he went out and tried to improve this team for this season. They need to reward him by playing their best game of the season tonight.
With this one being on the west coast, it's a late start. Puck drop is scheduled for just after 10:00 Eastern Time. Catch the action via Fan Duel Sports Network, ESPN+, or tune in to Bobby Mac via NHL Radio. Let's go Jackets.