Blue Jackets pursue Capitals, face Sabres next (Mar 28, 2017)
The playoffs are coming and Columbus' Sergei Bobrovsky is a hot goaltender. That's always a key to Stanley Cup playoff success. And with the first-round matchup the Blue Jackets might get, a hot goaltender will be a must.
The second- and third-place teams in a division face off in the first round. So get ready for the Blue Jackets and the Pittsburgh Penguins -- owners of the second- and third-best records in the league -- to play a high-profile first-round series.
The Washington Capitals are setting the pace in the Eastern Conference and the Metropolitan Division with 106 points. The Blue Jackets and Penguins have 103 each.
With less than two weeks left in the season, it is unlikely either team will finish worse than third. The best both can hope for is to surpass the Capitals and play a wild-card team in the first round.
Columbus continues its pursuit of Washington at home Tuesday night against the Buffalo Sabres, who hope to play the spoiler role for the third straight game.
The Sabres (32-32-12) beat Toronto on Saturday. The Maple Leafs are clinging to a one-point hold on third place in the Atlantic Division over Boston. On Monday, the Sabres all but doused the Florida Panthers' flickering Eastern wild-card hopes with a 4-2 victory.
"I liked the way we played," Sabres forward Marcus Foligno said of the Toronto victory. "We were physical, we didn't have sloppy breakouts the whole time and we were smart in the offensive zone.
"We shot a lot of pucks last game. That's what's got to happen in the next seven games. We have nothing to lose so we've just got to make sure we're playing as a team."
Columbus (48-19-7) has had a season full of positives. Bobrovsky is at the top of that list with seven shutouts, including a 1-0 victory Sunday over Philadelphia to snap a two-game losing streak.
"He's locked in," Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella told The Columbus Dispatch. "There's not a lot extra movement. He just looks confident. To have 100 points and more (in the standings), that's a key position, and he's been consistent with that all year long."
Bobrovsky owns a Vezina Trophy as the league's top goaltender already, but after three seasons of groin injuries his success this season has been more than anyone could have expected. His league bests of 40 victories, 1.99 goals-against average and .934 save percentage could mean a second Vezina Trophy.
Bobrovsky, though, prefers to talk about the final push toward the playoffs and his team's pursuit of the President's Trophy.
"Our most important games are ahead of us, but we still have to compete, still have to work hard," Bobrovsky told The Dispatch. "That's what will get us ready for the playoffs."
To try to take a little pressure of Bobrovsky, the Blue Jackets worked on some different power-play alignments in Monday's practice, according to bluejackets.com. The Jackets have failed to score on their past nine power plays in six games.
Buffalo has been hot on the power play. The Sabres converted twice Saturday and twice again against Florida.
Brian Gionta's power-play goal Monday was his 15th of the season in a milestone game. Gionta played in his 1,000th game for the Sabres. The team captain is the seventh player to do that in a Sabres uniform.
