:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/51761929/usa-today-9661392.0.jpg)
The Basics:
Who: Columbus Blue Jackets (6-3-2) at Boston Bruins (7-6-0)
Where: TD Garden, Boston, MA
When: 7:00 pm
Watch: NESN, FS-O
Listen: 98.5 The Sports Hub
Game Notes:
- Columbus drew even in the East standings with the Bruins last night, with the benefit of early-season
loservalue points in OT losses to the Los Angeles Kings and the St. Louis Blues and an OT win last night against the Anaheim Ducks. A saving grace is that the Bruins won the season-opening matchup against the Jackets, 6-3, on a strong game from the top line at the time of Brad Marchand, David Backes and David Pastrnak. - Marchand had five points in that first game, and is on a five-game point streak. Pastrnak has a goal in each of his last five games. Good or bad omen?
- We know it's early in the season, but... will the real top sixers please stand up? Marchy and Pasta have been effective, but Krejci is third on the team at just five points and is followed by rookie D Brandon Carlo and veteran forward presence Dominic Moore in a six-way tie with some of the B's top offensive talent. They're followed by the depth forwards at just a couple points apiece, but that's not unexpected. It's time for the team to start sharing the workload.
- Columbus has a much more balanced point point spread, though that's not the story of their success. Goalie Sergie Bobrovsky is sporting some verrrrry nice stats - going into last night's tilt against Anaheim, he sported a 1.47 GAA and .947 SV% on 284 saves, allowing just 13 goals in that span. The Ducks were able to get two past him late last night, but he still finished the game with 30 saves and a .938 SV%. Bobs has played all but one of his team's eleven games so far, putting his team in a position to win nearly every night... and fortunately for the Bruins, since he played last night, we'll likely see backup Curtis McElhinney who has a solitary OT loss on his record.
- Conversely, the Bruins, coming off a last-minute 3-2 loss to their rival Canadiens on Tuesday, will probably have Tuukka Rask in net who has likewise been bringin' it to start this season: 1.74 GAA and a .941 SV% on 225 saves, boasting a 7-1 record. The silver lining to the Montreal game is that the Bruins held the advantage in opportunities for the latter half of the game and nearly - nearly - closed the game in a tie to almost earn an extra point. They lost out on what could've been a hard-earned win earlier this week, so they should be hungry to get those points back - and, to get to .500 at home.