Why the Blue Jackets Might Outsmart the Flames in an Unexpected Showdown

Ever wonder if there’s a magic formula to turning a rocky NHL season around—or if sometimes, the cold streaks just refuse to melt away? Well, here we go again, riding the unpredictable Zamboni of early-season hockey chaos as the Columbus Blue Jackets face off against the Calgary Flames at 9:30 ET tonight. I never dived into hockey before the playoffs until Outkick nudged me into the handicap game a few years back—and boy, did lightning strike. The thrill, the misses, the streaks that could drive you mad… It’s been a wild haul. Columbus sports a respectable 7-5-0 record and a lone star, Kirill Marchenko, leading points, goals, and assists, which makes me nervous—that kind of dependency smells like trouble ahead. Meanwhile, Calgary limps in with a rough 3-9-2 slate, clawing desperately for momentum and a meaningful winning streak that’s yet to materialize. And yet, the betting line favors the Flames? Hmmm. Between better offense and a sharper goalie, I’m backing Columbus to find their rhythm and maybe, just maybe, break the Flames’ funk. Can the Flames snap out of this slump, or will the Blue Jackets skate away with another key win? Let’s find out. LEARN MORE

Columbus vs. Calgary, 9:30 ET

It has been an interesting ride on the Zamboni for me to start the NHL season. I never really watched hockey before the playoffs up until a few years ago. Outkick asked me if I could handicap some hockey games occasionally. I caught lightning in a bottle and have been hooked ever since. The first year, I was phenomenal, crushing games. The second year, not so much. Last year I was streaky, but when I was hot, I was very hot, and the cold streaks didn’t last too long. This year has been a rough start to the year, but I can get back on track. I’m looking to find the back of the net in this one as the Blue Jackets take on the Flames.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are off to a decent enough start with a 7-5-0 record. You aren’t going to see people praising them or telling everyone to go out and place a ticket on them for the Stanley Cup, but they are good enough for the moment. The team is led in points, goals, and assists by Kirill Marchenko. I seldom like to rely on a team that is led in all three categories by one guy. I know it is common, but I personally just think it is a recipe for disaster. Looking at their stats, the team is allowing 34 shot attempts per game, which is only two more than they are taking. For now, the team is ahead of pace in scoring as opposed to goals allowed, but it is 3.25 goals scored per game compared to 3.00 allowed. That’s also not something that I put a lot of confidence in. Additionally. The Blue Jackets are 4-1 over their last five games. Meaning that just over a week ago, they were 3-4-0. This was a bit of a hot stretch with a couple of overtime victories. It is expected that Jet Greaves will be in the net tonight for the Blue Jackets. He is 3-3-0 for the season with a .916 save percentage and 2.68 goals allowed.

The Flames are off to a rather ugly start. Calgary comes into the game with a 3-9-2 record for the year. They have yet to find a winning streak this year, having won the opener, then on October 26th, and finally Sunday against the Flyers. They are playing fairly competitive hockey lately, if we want to look for any type of silver lining. Two of their past three losses have been by just one goal. Their win, also was by one goal. Perhaps this will be the worst stretch of hockey for them, or perhaps this is just a bad team. We won’t officially know until the end of the year, but the good news is they have time to turn it around if they’d like. The offense has failed them significantly; they are scoring just 2.14 goals per game, and as much as the defense may try, that’s not going to keep you in a lot of games. Dustin Wolf is expected to be in the net tonight. Wolf is 3-8-1 for the season with a .884 save percentage and a 3.39 goals against per game average.

The line is moving in favor of the Flames, but I’m not really sure I understand it. The team hasn’t won two games in a row this season. Columbus has the better offense and better goalie. Perhaps the Flames get hot and keep the Blue Jackets from getting anything going offensively, but they are also playing pretty good hockey at the moment. I’m taking Columbus on the moneyline.

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