Crashing the Net: The road beckons against divisional foes

By foxsports
Published

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Blue Jackets held practice in the attached Ice Haus today in advance of flying this afternoon to Philadelphia for the first game of their four game road trip.

The notable absences from practice today were forward Nick Foligno and defenseman James Wisniewski. Blue Jackets bench boss Todd Richards confirmed after the skate that both took maintenance days. With Prout still out (upper body) and unlikely to make the trip, the defensive pairs were rotated and shuffled.

On the forward side of the ice, Tropp skated in place of the missing Foligno and Brian Gibbons skated with Mark Letestu and Jared Boll. Gibbons was placed on waivers today, and if he clears, will be assigned to the AHL Springfield Falcons as he recovers from a knee injury suffered December 18, 2014. He's been on Injured Reserve since December 19, 2014.

As the 28 remaining games on the schedule tick away with gathering speed, the team is still focusing on one game at a time. That focus is turned squarely on the Philadelphia Flyers. After beating the Flyers 4-3 on Friday, the Blue Jackets open their road trip in the "City of Brotherly Love" at the Wells Fargo Center Tuesday before traveling to Pittsburgh on Thursday.

"I think they are great teams," said Todd Richards of the Flyers and Penguins, "and the environments are good. The other thing is there is a fear. What I mean by fear is that if you don't show up, you're going to get embarrassed."

This will be the fifth and final meeting between Columbus and Philly this season, with the Blue Jackets holding the edge with a 3-1-0 record against the Flyers. They have played the Penguins just once out of four meetings this season, besting them 4-3 in a shootout on December 13.

These games always are marked as physical matchups that see an extra level of intensity creep into the games themselves. The Blue Jackets seem to have to trouble getting "up" for these games, and tomorrow should be no exception.

"You have to be prepared when you go into a building like theirs," Jack Skille said of the Flyers, "especially that team at home. There are a lot of teams that will eat you alive if you're not prepared and ready. I think knowing that you've got to do whatever it takes to be ready for the game, that's what fuels it."

Three of the four games on this road trip are against Metropolitan Division opponents, the exception being when they play the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday. The Flyers, Penguins and New York Rangers (Sunday) are all ahead of the Blue Jackets in the standings. And yet, these teams are all ones that the Blue Jackets are easily able to get "up" for.

Whether it is the different guys that have played for the other team (Flyers and Rangers) or the close proximity of the Penguins (three hours via Interstate 70), the vitriol seems to ratchet up a notch when they meet. All this indicates that, for the first time in the history of the Blue Jackets, they are developing some true rivals in the NHL.

This and That

Blue Jackets head coach Todd Richards said today that injured goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, out with a groin injury and on Injured Reserve since January 21, was practicing with goalie coach Ian Clark today and could return to the lineup by the end of February. Richards indicated that Bobrovsky was "progressing."

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Defenseman Dalton Prout did not practice with the team today is unlikely to make the trip. Richards did not rule out Prout joining the team at some point during the course of the road trip.

The Blue Jackets take on the Philadelphia Flyers Tuesday at 7 p.m. Catch all the action beginning at 6:30 p.m. with the FOX Sports Ohio pregame show "Blue Jackets LIVE".