Blue Jackets at Predators
THE STORY: Trips to the Music City have routinely resulted in sour notes for the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Nashville Predators had dominated their Central Division rival at home, winning 17 straight games before the Blue Jackets scratched for a 4-3 overtime victory on Nov. 19. Columbus will attempt to make it two in a row when the clubs reconvene at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday. Like the majority of their season, the Blue Jackets haven't been faring well of late - losing three in a row and eight of their last 11 (3-7-1). Making their task all the more difficult will be the return of Pekka Rinne, who sat out Tuesday's 4-1 loss to the Washington Capitals. The NHL's second star of the week, Rinne has won five straight overall - and is 4-0-1 in his last five versus the Blue Jackets. All told, the 29-year-old Finn boasts an impressive 11-4-1 career mark versus Columbus.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSOH
ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (9-20-4): Columbus has squandered third-period leads in its last two games. This season, that precise scenario has played itself out on five occasions, tops in the NHL. "The ghost keeps haunting us. I wish I had an answer, a way to fix it," LW R.J. Umberger said. "We have to be better. I don't know what it is, to be honest with you." D James Wisniewski's nightmarish season continued on Sunday when he was a minus-3 against the division rival St. Louis Blues. All told, he sits at minus-17 for the season.
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (17-12-4): Nashville saw its five-game winning streak come to an end on Tuesday. The margin of the final score is noteworthy, considering that it marked the first time in 11 games that it was more than one goal. Sergei Kostitsyn broke the shutout bid late in the third period, but that was all the offense that the Predators could muster. Kostitsyn's tally was his first since Dec. 8 - ironically, also against Columbus.
OVERTIME:
1. Columbus G Curtis Sanford is dealing with back spasms, thus putting his availability in jeopardy for Thursday's game. Steve Mason would get the call should Sanford continue to be hampered by the ailment.
2. Nashville captain Shea Weber has collected 17 points in his last 18 games.