BLUE JACKETS (33-21-10) at PANTHERS (32-29-3)
7 p.m. ET; FDSNOH, SCRIPPS
Blue Jackets projected lineup
Cole Sillinger — Adam Fantilli — Kirill Marchenko
Kent Johnson — Sean Monahan — Conor Garland
Mason Marchment — Charlie Coyle — Mathieu Olivier
Dmitri Voronkov — Boone Jenner — Isac Lundestrom
Zach Werenski — Dante Fabbro
Ivan Provorov — Denton Mateychuk
Damon Severson — Jake Christiansen
Elvis Merzlikins
Jet Greaves
Scratched: Miles Wood, Egor Zamula, Danton Heinen
Injured: Erik Gudbranson (upper body)
Panthers projected lineup
Eetu Luostarinen — Evan Rodrigues — Sam Reinhart
A.J. Greer — Sam Bennett — Matthew Tkachuk
Mackie Samoskevich — Tomas Nosek — Cole Reinhardt
Jesper Boqvist — Luke Kunin — Vinnie Hinostroza
Gustav Forsling — Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola — Dmitry Kulikov
Donovan Sebrango — Mike Benning
Sergei Bobrovsky
Daniil Tarasov
Scratched: Carter Verhaeghe, Anton Lundell
Injured: Uvis Balinskis (lower body), Brad Marchand (lower body), Seth Jones (collarbone), Aleksander Barkov (knee), Jonah Gadjovich (upper body)
Status report
Gudbranson was injured during a 5-4 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Monday and did not travel to Florida; the defenseman could meet the team before their game at the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, Blue Jackets coach Rick Bowness said. … Verhaeghe will not play after “something tightened up” during a 4-3 win against the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday, Panthers coach Paul Maurice said; the forward is expected to return at the Seattle Kraken on Sunday. … Lundell will not play for rest purposes; the center practiced Wednesday and was on the ice for Florida’s morning skate. … Balinskis, a defenseman, has a lingering injury after blocking a shot a few weeks ago and will not play. … Benning was recalled from Charlotte of the American Hockey League and will make his NHL debut. … Reinhardt will make his Panthers debut after being claimed off waivers from the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday.
