Inside The Rink Game Day Preview
Columbus Blue Jackets (0-0-0) at Minnesota Wild (0-0-0)
Date: Thursday, October 10
Xcel Energy Center – St. Paul, Minnesota
Time: 8:00 pm EST
TV: ESPN+
DraftKings Sportsbook Betting Lines:
Columbus +1.5 ML +210
Minnesota -1.5 ML -258
O/U 6.5
Purchase tickets via Ticketmaster
Columbus Blue Jackets Notes:
The Blue Jackets start the season on the road for the first two games of the season. They’ll travel to Colorado to face the Avalanche on Saturday. The CBJ will also start the season severely short-handed due to injuries. Captain Boone Jenner and Dmitri Voronkov will miss most of the season due to injury.
Minnesota Wild Notes:
After Minnesota made the playoffs 11 out of 12 previous seasons, a slow start under Dean Evason doomed the Wild last year to a spring without postseason hockey, as the team’s 39-34-9 record left the squad 11 points shy of a berth. The hope is the second year under Hynes will lead to success, with the team building around such names as star Kirill Kaprizov and young standouts Matt Boldy, Marco Rossi, and Brock Faber.
Columbus Blue Jackets Lineup:
Chinakov-Monahan-Marchenko
Van Riemsdyk-Fantilli-Labanc
Pyyhtia-Sillinger-K. Johnson
Aston-Reese-Kuraly-Olivier
Werenski-Provorov
Christiansen-Severson
J. Johnson-Gudbranson
Merzlikins
Tarasov
Minnesota Wild Lineup:
Kaprizov-Rossi-Zuccarello
Johansson-Eriksson EK-Boldy
Foligno-Hartman-Trenin
Lauko-Khusnutdinov-Gaudreau
Brodin-Faber
Middleton-Spurgeon
Merrill-Bogosian
Gustavsson
Fleury
Players To Watch:
Columbus – The Blue Jackets are dressing seven new players to begin the season. Sean Monahan was the biggest acquisition of them all, signing a five-year contract to come in and serve as a big piece of the puzzle at center. An 11-year NHL veteran, Monahan has averaged around 25 goals and 60 points per 82 games in his career and is one of the best faceoff men in the game, and he should provide stability and leadership at the top of the lineup.
Minnesota – Kaprizov is the star of the bunch but Rossi and Boldy are critical to the team’s success. Rossi, 23, had 21 goals, 19 assists, and 40 points for the Wild in all 82 games last season. He was one of two Wild players to have played in all 82 games. Brock Faber was the other. Boldy, 23, started the year last season with one goal in the first 12 games. He finished the year with 28 goals, 33 assists, and 61 points under head coach John Hynes in 63 games.
Injuries:
Columbus – Danforth (Wrist – IR), Voronkov (Upper Body – IR), Jenner (Upper Body – IR), Brindley (Finger – IR)
Minnesota – Declan Chisholm (Illness)
Next game
Columbus – October 12 at Colorado at 9 pm EST.
Minnesota – October 12 vs Seattle at 8 pm EST.
