COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS VS. VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
TV: Bally Sports Ohio Jeff Rimer (play-by-play), Jody Shelley (color analyst), Dave Maetzold (reporter)
Radio: 97.1 The Fan Bob McElligott (play-by-play), Dylan Tyrer (host)
THE MATCHUP
COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS
2021-22 Record: 9-5-0, 18 pts. (5th, Metropolitan Division)
Goals: 3.29 Goals-For/3.14 Goals-Against… Shots: 31.8 Shots-For/33.8 Shots-Against
Power Play: 22.5 percent (10th, NHL)… Penalty Kill: 82.9 percent (13th, NHL)
Penalty Minutes: 7.8 PIM (6th, NHL)… Overtime Record (Shootout): 5-0-0 (2-0)
VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
2021-22 Record: 10-7-0, 20 pts. (4th, Pacific Division)
Goals: 3.12 Goals-For/3.06 Goals-Against… Shots: 32.1 Shots-For/34.1 Shots-Against
Power Play: 13.5 percent (29th, NHL)… Penalty Kill: 80.4 percent (19th, NHL)
Penalty Minutes: 8.2 PIM (8th, NHL)… Overtime Record (Shootout): 2-0-0 (1-0)
Players to Watch: RW Mark Stone has assists in three-straight games (0-3-3) and has totaled 47-93-140 in 142 career games with Vegas since being acquired from Ottawa… D Alex Pietrangelo, who is in his second campaign with the Golden Knights after spending 12 seasons with St. Louis, has notched 3-7-10 in the last 10 games… G Robin Lehner has picked up wins in five of his last six games and posted a 2.52 GAA and .931 SV% since Nov. 4.
ALL-TIME SERIES
Results: Columbus has gone 4-2-0 in six regular season games vs. the Golden Knights, including 2-1-0 on the road… Of Note: The teams did not meet during the 2020-21 season… Columbus went 1-1-0 vs. Vegas in 2019-20, with each team earning victories on the road (VGK 2-1 win at Columbus on Nov. 5, 2019 and CBJ 3-0 win at Vegas on Jan. 11, 2020)… The Blue Jackets have picked up wins in each of their last two visits to Nevada following a 6-3 defeat in the first ever meeting between the clubs on Jan. 23, 2018… CBJ G Elvis Merzlikins turned aside all 27 Golden Knights shots to earn the first shutout in the all-time series in the clubs’ most recent meeting on Jan. 11, 2020 (3-0 W at VGK).
This Season (CBJ, 0-0-0)
Nov. 20, 2021 – at Vegas (10 p.m.)
Mar. 13, 2022 – at Columbus (6 p.m.)
CBJ TEAM NOTES
The Blue Jackets won for the second consecutive game and fifth time in the last seven outings with a 5-4 shootout victory at Arizona on Thursday… CBJ have won three-straight road games for the first time since the 2019-20 season (Jan. 2-7). Thursday’s game kicked off a stretch of 7-of-9 games from Nov. 18-Dec. 4 and 13-of-17 from Nov. 18-Dec. 20 away from Nationwide Arena… Thursday’s contest at Arizona also began a stretch of 7-of-8 games against Western Conference teams (6-0-0 in 2021-22)… Columbus is in the middle of a stretch of 10 games in 19 days from Nov. 12-30 (2-2-0)… CBJ have had to comeback in seven of their nine victories this season and didn’t trail at one point only against Arizona (Oct. 14) and Dallas (Oct. 25)… CBJ have posted a league-high four victories when trailing entering the third period this season (4-3-0)…. The Blue Jackets are 5-0-0 in games decided after regulation this season (3-0-0 in OT, 1-0 in SO). It’s the second time the club has started a campaign with wins in its first five games that were decided after regulation (2005-06, finished 14-1-3)… Columbus had the youngest season-opening roster in average age at 25.71. New Jersey (25.74) was the only other team to have an average age of its roster younger than 26-years-old.
CBJ PLAYER NOTES
The Blue Jackets have had 17 different players record goals this season, while 22-of-24 skaters have recorded at least one point… Four players (C Cole Sillinger on Oct. 21 vs. NYI, LW Gregory Hofmann on Oct. 25 vs. DAL, RW Yegor Chinakhov on Nov. 15 vs. DET and RW Justin Danforth on Nov. 18 at ARI) have recorded their first career NHL goals this season… RW Oliver Bjorkstrand has points in six of his last seven games (2-6-8). He leads the club in scoring and multi-point outings with 5-12-17 and five multi-point efforts in 14 games… RW Yegor Chinakhov, who has 1-3-4 in the last five outings, notched his first career goal on Monday and his first career shootout deciding goal on Thursday… C Boone Jenner has posted 5-2-7 in the past seven games, including his 11th career multi-goal game with two goals in Thursday’s victory. CBJ’s captain has already notched nine goals this season (14 GP) after scoring eight goals in 41 outings a season ago… C Cole Sillinger has 3-3-6 in the past six outings and ranks sixth-T among NHL rookies in goals and points with 4-4-8 in 14 contests… RW Jakub Voracek collected two assists on Thursday to stretch his point streak to a CBJ season-best seven contests (1-9-10). He is sixth-T in the NHL in assists with 1-14-15 in 14 contests… D Zach Werenski, who ranks third in the NHL in TOI/GP (26:31), is fourth-T among NHL blueliners in goals with 4-6-10 in 14 games.
MILESTONES
• RW Oliver Bjorkstrand is six points from 200 in his NHL career (88-106-194, 316 GP).
• D Zach Werenski is one point from 200 for his NHL career (69-130-199, 349 GP).
OhioHEALTH INJURY REPORT
• RW Emil Bemstrom (left oblique strain; Injured Reserve on Oct. 14) is expected to miss 4-to-6 weeks
• D Dean Kukan (wrist fracture; Injured Reserve on Oct. 26) is expected to miss 8 weeks
• LW Patrik Laine (oblique strain; Injured Reserve on Nov. 5) is expected to miss 4-to-6 weeks
TOTAL MAN GAMES LOST: 41
COURTESY BLUE JACKETS COMMUNICATIONS
