GDT: Game 1: Columbus at Buffalo | 10/9 7PM EDT

[Samkow]

7:00 PM EDT
First Niagara Center
Buffalo, New York

Lines
Foligno-Johansen-Atkinson
Hartnell-Anisimov-Dano
Calvert-Letestu-Wennberg
Skille-Chaput-Boll

Johnson-Savard
Tyutin-Prout
Erixon-Wisnewski

Bobrovsky
McElhinney

Inactive
Cracknell, Goloubef, Tropp

Injured
Dubinsky, Gibbons, Horton, Jenner, Murray

Lines
Moulson-Ennis-Stafford
Foligno-Girgensons-Stewart
Hodgson-Reinhart-Gionta
Deslauriers-McCormick-Flynn

Gorges-Myers
Meszaros-Benoit
Weber-Ristolainen

Enroth
Neuvirth

Inactive
Mitchell, Strachan, Zadorov

Injured
Kaleta, Hackett, Larsson, McCabe, Pysyk​

Click to read more...

 

[EspenK]

I'm ready.

 

[Wendy Clear]

Oof. Tough lineup. And how likely is it RyJo plays? I guess they'll put him in there but I bet they don't want to.

 

[The Press Express]

Hartnell-Johansen-Wennberg
Calvert-Anisimov-Atkinson
Foligno-Letestu-Dano
Skille-Chaput-Boll

Johnson-Savard
Tyutin-Prout
Erixon-Wisnewski

Bobrovsky
McElhinney

Thoughts on these lines?

 

[IBleedUnionBlue]

So happy that hockey is back. Go Jackets!

 

[BluejacketNut]

Lets get it on. Im still pretty concerned with the lineup. Any of those combinations as your 1st line is not a playoff contending team. Joey is the only top 3 player in this lineup. Bob needs to stand on his head this 1st month to keep us in the hunt

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

So a game. What's that like? Can they actually play one so soon after Johansen got here and before all the injured players get better?

 

[EDM]

I think it is a decent lineup that, if they play "Blue Jackets hockey", can beat Buffalo. And that is all they have to do tonite: beat Buffalo.

 

[EDM]

I don't like Wennberg on the first line at all. But Richards shakes his lines up pretty quickly. I would prefer to give Dano a more prominent role than Wennberg. But that reflects nothing more than my own personal preferences.

 

[JoeCBJfan]

I expect:

Hartnell - RyJo - Cam
Folingo - Arty - Dano
Cal - Letestu - Wenn
Skille - Chaput - Boll


Just because of PK chem. Arty- Folingo, and Cal-Letestu.

Richards thinks Defense First

 

[Dr. Fire]

Sabres will be stoked. They are going to be one of the Eastern teams playing with a chip on their shoulders this season.

Look for some line shuffling from the CBJ tonight. Hopefully Dano and Wennberg shake off the butterflies early.

If CBJ are able to weather the initial Buffalo emotion induced storm, I think they will win.

 

[Speedy Sanderson]

Bob needs to be huge the first ten minutes of the game - can't let in an early one.

Think we're going to see some really disjointed hockey from the Jackets - these lines won't have much chemistry.

 

[Samkow]

http://bluejacketsxtra.dispatch.com.../jackets-out-to-avoid-another-slow-start.html

Slow starts are nothing new. In the past three seasons, the Blue Jackets are a combined 21-41-9 in the first two months.

Don't expect us to break the recent trend of horrible starts but i'm hoping we can at least tread water until Johansen returns to form and some of the injured come back.

Hope Bob is sharp.

 

[cbjfaninmo]

Glad the CBJ are back! I couldn't take much more of the "Joey" thread. Need to have the guys step up and play Jackets hockey. Bob will need to be sharp. Go Jackets!!!

 

[CentreKeeper12]

http://bluejacketsxtra.dispatch.com.../jackets-out-to-avoid-another-slow-start.html



Don't expect us to break the recent trend of horrible starts but i'm hoping we can at least tread water until Johansen returns to form and some of the injured come back.

Hope Bob is sharp.

Given how this them normal does things like crap their pants when people think they can make noise(2011-2012) or fight to the ned for a playoff spot(2013), I bet with the injuries that have pilled up and with how long Joey wasn't here, this will be the year the Jackets kick butt right out of the gate

 

[jackets4life]

Sure would be nice to get an early goal in this one.

 

[dru]

Ahhh... that new GDT smell.

 

[Nordique]

We need to weather the storm and play .500 hockey til November. This is a huge game, gotta get a point imo.

 

[WannabeFinn]

Porty tweeted that it appears Joey IS in the lineup tonight. Now I don't know if I should play Foligno in my fantasy league or not

 

[CBJx614]

Hartnell-Johansen-Wennberg
Calvert-Anisimov-Atkinson
Foligno-Letestu-Dano
Skille-Chaput-Boll

Johnson-Savard
Tyutin-Prout
Erixon-Wisnewski

Bobrovsky
McElhinney

Thoughts on these lines?

Cam is our only 1st line ready RW. I love Wennberg but it's not best to throw him on the top line yet. My expectations for Atkinson are high this year, especially if he gets significant time with Joey. This has gotta be his year if he can stay healthy.

 

[WannabeFinn]

Cam is our only 1st line ready RW. I love Wennberg but it's not best to throw him on the top line yet. My expectations for Atkinson are high this year, especially if he gets significant time with Joey. This has gotta be his year if he can stay healthy.

I remember so many times last year where Cam just kept getting bad puck luck and he still somehow got 20+ goals on the season. Assuming he can have even a little bit of luck this season and he plays on the PP/with Joey, 30 goals isn't entirely ridiculous to think about.

 

[DarkandStormy]

Icing Jared Boll with Tropp and Cracknell available? Dumb.

 

[ca5150]

Icing Jared Boll with Tropp and Cracknell available? Dumb.

Yeah, I mean why would you put the longest tenured Jacket in the lineup and a solid veteran presence, who is one of the captains and had a great camp, with a rookie heavy/youngster lineup, on the road, when you can put a guy that has one practice with the team under his belt with the organization and was cut by another team. I don't get it either...

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

Icing Jared Boll with Tropp and Cracknell available? Dumb.

Huh? Neither player offers an upgrade to Boll, just different strengths and weaknesses (and Cracknell has barely been on the ice with the other CBJ players). I would think that for this game, what Boll brings to a lineup is going to be valued more than what either of the other two offer.

I know we're all tired of Boller and that he's making more money than he probably should, but damned if he isn't the ultimate "familiarity breeds contempt" poster child.

 

[Theo Von]

Some fun facts I've gathered for the game tonight....If there's someone who loves playing Buffalo, it's Hartnell. Scotty has 28 points in 32 career games against the Sabres. Enroth, starting for the Sabres tonight has a brutal track record in his career against #CBJ ... 4.74 GAA, save percentage of .882. And the last fun fact I have is in just seven career games against Buffalo, Jared Boll has 32 penalty minutes and no, that wasn't a typo. Boller.... Go Jackets!