Cavaliers Ticket Prices Will Remain Unchanged
February 24, 2009Cavaliers Preview Game #55
February 24, 2009Columbus Blue Jackets (30-24-6, 66pts)
vs. Calgary Flames (35-18-6, 76pts)
Pengrowth Saddledome, Calgary, Alberta
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
9:00 PM EST
FSOHIO/WWCD(fm)/WBNS(am)
(Dispatch Preview / SportsDirect Preview)
The Jackets finally got a couple of nights off. Granted, they traveled across the continent in that time frame, but at least they didn’t have to skate to Calgary. After a solid stretch of hockey, the Jackets finally had a let down on Saturday at home against the Ducks, to the tune of a 5-2 drubbing. This is the start of the Jackets final road trip through the far-west (after this, no more games further west than the Central Time Zone). Calgary is tough, and the Jackets haven’t won in Calgary in almost six years (March, 2003). The Flames are comfortably leading their division, and have no sense of urgency with respect to the playoff race. Nevertheless, they are always a tough out for the Jackets.
Projected Lineups
Columbus Blue Jackets:
LW: | Kristian Huselius | R.J. Umberger | Raffi Torres | Jason Chimera |
C: | Manny Malhotra | Jason Williams | Michael Peca | Jiri Novotny |
RW: | Rick Nash | Jakub Voracek | Jared Boll | Derek Dorsett |
D: | Jan Hejda | Fedor Tyutin | Kris Russell | |
D: | Mike Commodore | Marc Methot | Aaron Rome | |
G: | Steve Mason |
Toronto Maple Leafs:
LW: | Michael Cammalleri | Curtis Glencross | Kyle Greentree | Eric Nystrom |
C: | Craig Conroy | Matthew Lombardi | Jamie Lundmark | Dustin Boyd |
RW: | Jarome Iginla | David Moss | Todd Bertuzzi | Brandon Prust |
D: | Robyn Regehr | Jim Vandermeer | Adam Pardy | |
D: | Adrian Aucoin | Dion Phaneuf | Cory Sarich | |
G: | Miikka Kiprusoff |
Team Rankings
Scoring:
CBJ – 2.68 gpg (20th NHL)
CAL – 3.14 gpg (7th NHL)
Defense:
CBJ – 2.73 gapg (8th NHL)
CAL – 2.90 gapg (18th NHL)
Power Play:
CBJ – 12.9% (30th NHL)
CAL – 17.9% (t17th NHL)
Penalty Kill:
CBJ – 81.2% (17th NHL)
CAL – 86.0% (3rd NHL)
Prior Matchups
1. Calgary 1 at Columbus 3 (11/08/08)[box]
2. Columbus 4 at Calgary 5 – SO (1/21/09)[box]
Who To Root For
Thanks to the great people at Sports Club Stats, we can also look at what the rest of the league is doing, and who (as Jackets fans) we need to root for tonight to help them make the playoffs:
Columbus at Calgary
Tampa Bay at Edmonton
Anaheim at Buffalo
Los Angeles at Minnesota
Phoenix at St. Louis (technically speaking, a win by either team helps Columbus)
Chicago at Nashville
Vancouver at Montreal
Game Notes
The Jackets have a tough road ahead out west. They finally got a chance to rest, but after two consecutive games where they looked somewhat lethargic, will we see a recharged club after only two days off? Calgary is always tough at home, and the Jackets haven’t won their since March 29, 2003. The numbers don’t look good in Columbus’s favor, but we’ve seen them rise to the challenge against tough teams of late (San Jose, Detroit). Every game is critical at this juncture. Both teams are big, and play physical when playing at their peak. If Columbus is unable to bring their “A” effort, it could be a long night… just like Saturday.
Steve Mason looks to rebound after arguably his worst overall game (five goals allowed on 13 shots) on Saturday. It doesn’t get any easier with a talented Calgary offense, however. In addition to that, however, the Jackets need to improve their puck handling. They need to be able to get the puck out of their zone more efficiently, which is something they’ve struggled with for a few consecutive games, now. It finally cost them in a big way on Saturday. They had trouble getting the puck out of the zone, which also affected teir ability to get out and get the puck up ice, into the opposing zone, and to get shots on goal that resulted in quality scoring chances.
The Jackets have been feast-or-famine on special teams of late. They keep getting PP goals (which has upped their percentage by over 1% since the All Star Break), but they also still look absolutely lost at times on the man advantage. Calgary has a great penalty kill, which could spell trouble for Columbus. The Flames Power Play is middle-of-the-pack, which matches up well with Columbus’s PK unit. Still, though; Columbus tends to play better when they stay out of the box, which is something else they’ve struggled with of late.
Calgary is a pretty hot team right now, with points in their last seven games (5-0-2). Columbus needs to come back with their “San Jose/Detroit” effort tonight if they hope to snag two points and start an all-so-important road trip off on the right foot. It looks like Jason Chimera will go after missing Saturday’s game, and defenseman Aaron Rome—fresh off a call-up from Syracuse—will get his first game of the season in tonight as well.
Side game notes:
- Jackets winger Kristian Huselius is making his first start IN Calgary, where he spent the previous two-plus seasons before signing as a free agent with Columbus this past off-season. He missed the previous game in Calgary with an injury.
- Flames winger Jarome Iginla has always been a Jackets-killer. In 30 career games against Columbus, Iginla has 32 points (17G, 15A) and a +12 rating.
- Flames goalie Miikka Kiprusoff leads the league in wins (35), despite being 25th in goals-against average (2.76) and tied for 27th in save percentage (.907). However, Kiprusoff is 7-0-2 with a 1.63 goals-against average in nine career home starts against Columbus. His 1.93 career GAA versus the Blue Jackets is his lowest against any opponent he’s faced more than four times other than Minnesota (1.81).
From The Outside Looking In
Red Mile
The Calgary Sun
The Calgary Herald
Next Game For The Jackets
Thursday, February 26, 2009
9:00 PM EST
Columbus Blue Jackets at Edmonton Oilers