NHL Global Series Preview: Columbus Blue Jackets vs. Colorado Avalanche
On Friday, Nov. 4 and Saturday, Nov. 5, the Columbus Blue Jackets will play the reigning Stanley Cup Champions Colorado Avalanche at Nokia Arena in Tampere, Finland.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are currently last in the metropolitan division with a record of 3-7-0. The Blue Jackets are coming off of back to back blowout losses by the Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils.
This past offseason Columbus signed all-star player Johnny Gaudreau who was a free agent from the Calgary Flames. Currently this season Gaudreau has eight points in ten games with a negative-one rating.
Between the posts for the Blue Jackets is goaltender Elvis Merzlikins. Merzlikins has had a very poor start to the young 2022-23 season thus far, giving up 29 goals with a 4.75 goals-against average and a .864 save percentage.
Columbus has had a very unfortunate slow start to the season that many didn’t predict and the product they are producing on the ice needs to change fast if they want a chance to win in Finland.
On the opposite side of the ice stands the Colorado Avalanche. However, the 2022 Stanley Cup Champions haven't had the best start to the season themselves. Many believed they would come out of the gates red hot to start where they left off last year.
But after nine games the Avalanche sit fifth in the central division with a record of 4-4-1. Their last two games have also been losses back to back to the New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders.
However, Colorado’s alternate captain Nathan MacKinnon has still been playing great hockey and totaling twelve points in nine games with a plus two rating.
Goaltender Alexandar Georgiev who was sent to the Avalanche on a trade from the New York Rangers currently has a 2.81 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage.
Both teams have not been playing to the best of their ability but it will be interesting to see if one team sweeps the other or if we will see a split series in Finland.
Both teams have players native to Finland which will be exciting for them to be playing in their home country and for the fans who will be watching their countrymen on ice.
For the Columbus Blue Jackets, forward Patrik Laine and goaltender Joonas Korpisalo who could possibly get the start for the series due to poor play from current starter Elvis Merzlikins.
On the Colorado Avalanche, forwards Artturi Lehkonen who scored the game winning goal in game six of the Stanley Cup Final last season and alternate captain Mikko Rantanen.
Fans in Finland will be excited to finally have NHL action back in the country for the first time since 2018.
People watching around the world hope that this global series will be an exciting display of the best the NHL has to offer even if the current records of each team do not currently tell that story.
Christopher Machado is a third-year studying broadcast journalism, to contact him please email cvm6238@psu.edu.
