About the Blue Jackets - 12-04-10
A preview of the Blue Jackets.
When and where: 7 p.m., Nationwide Arena.
TV: FSN Pittsburgh, FSN Ohio.
Record: 14-8-1, 29 points. The Blue Jackets are in fifth place in the Western Conference and second place in the Central Division.
Leading Scorer: R.J. Umberger (right), 19 points (8 goals, 11 assists).
Last Game: 5-0 road loss to the Sabres, last night. Mathieu Garon made 32 saves for the Blue Jackets.
Last Game against the Penguins: 4-3 home shootout loss, Oct. 30, 2009. Sidney Crosby scored in the shootout for the Penguins.
Blue Jackets Player We Would Bet Money On Scoring: Rick Nash. He has seven points in seven games against the Penguins.
Ex-Penguins on the Blue Jackets: Bob Boughner, assistant coach; Tyler Wright, development coach.
Ex-Blue Jackets on the Penguins: Mike Rupp, C.
Useless Blue Jackets Trivia Vaguely Related to the Penguins: The first five shutouts in Blue Jackets history were recorded by former Penguins goaltender Ron Tugnutt.
Best Blue Jackets Video We Could Find: If you're not a fan of Rick Nash, you're not a fan of hockey:
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Probable goaltenders: Marc-Andre Fleury (10-6-1, 2.44 GAA, .908 SV%) for the Penguins and Steve Mason (8-7-1, 2.88 GAA, .912 SV%) for the Blue Jackets.
Injuries: For the Penguins, forward Evgeni Malkin (undisclosed) and defenseman Brooks Orpik (illness) are probable. Forward Maxime Talbot (foot) is questionable. Forward Mike Comrie (undisclosed) is out . Forward Jordan Staal (hand) and defenseman Alex Grant (wrist) are on injured reserve. For the Blue Jackets, defenseman Marc Methot ("upper body") is doubtful. Forward Kristian Huselius (foot) is on injured reserve.
Potential lines and defensive pairings:
The Penguins did not practice with a full crew yesterday. Their primary lines and defensive pairings against the Thrashers Thursday were:
Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby - Pascal Dupuis
Matt Cooke - Maxime Talbot - Evgeni Malkin
Chris Conner - Mark Letestu - Tyler Kennedy
Mike Rupp - Craig Adams - Arron Asham
Brooks Orpik - Kris Letang
Paul Martin - Zbynek Michalek
Alex Goligoski - Deryk Engelland
The Blue Jackets' primary lines and defensive pairings against the Sabres last night were:
Rick Nash - Antoine Vermette - R.J. Umberger
Chris Clark - Derrick Brassard - Jakub Voracek
Ethan Moreau - Samuel Pahlsson - Derek Dorsett
Kyle Wilson - Derek MacKenzie - Jared Boll
Fedor Tyutin - Rostislav Klesla
Mike Commodore - Kris Russell
Anton Stralman - Jan Hejda
Notes:
-Talbot left practice yesterday after taking a shot off the foot. Also, Orpik, Malkin and Comrie all skipped practice.
-Talbot has 49 career goals.
-Kunit and Martin each have 148 career assists.
-Crosby has 346 career assists.
-Kennedy has 47 career assists.
-Comrie has 197 career assists.
-Umberger? He's from Pittsburgh if you haven't heard.
-After last night's loss, the Blue Jackets are on a four-game losing streak.
-According to the Columbus Dispatch, Blue Jackets enforcer Jared Boll could face supplemental discipline from the NHL for a hit to the head of Sabres defenseman Shaone Morrison last night. Boll was given a game misconduct for the hit.
-You probably should expect Evgeni Malkin and Rick Nash to fight... again.
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-The Blue Jackets will wear their "dreaded" blue third jerseys tonight. They are 0-3-0 in the jerseys.
-Our live blog, direct from Columbus, begins at approximately 6 p.m. Please tune in.
(Photo: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)