Jackets looking for back-to-back wins
They came up short this past weekend, but the Blue Jackets get another opportunity Wednesday to string together their first consecutive victories of the season.
The opponent, the Dallas Stars, will bring plenty of motivation with them to prevent it happening at Nationwide Arena. Dallas is off to a 1-5-1 start and hasn’t beaten the Blue Jackets since Dec. 15, 2015, a span of seven games. It’s another early-season measuring stick for the Blue Jackets (2-3-0), who split a back-toback this past weekend with a 3-2 victory Saturday at the Carolina Hurricanes after losing 2-1 to the Anaheim Ducks on Friday.
“We get a big win (against the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 7) and then we kind of let it slip, so we’ve got to find a way to keep manufacturing wins,” captain Nick Foligno said. “We’ve got to climb out of this. We’ve dug ourselves into a spot that we obviously want to get out of, so that will be exciting to play this next one and see how we keep progressing that way.”
Joonas Korpisalo has started the past three games, but it’s unclear whether he or rookie goalie Elvis Merzlikins will get the nod against The Hurricanes’ Teuvo Teravainen dives to poke the puck away from Oliver Bjorkstrand during the Blue Jackets’ 3-2 win Saturday. Bjorkstrand scored a goal in the game.
the Stars, who are winless in their last four trips to Nationwide Arena.
“I’m really proud of the guys for making that commitment against (Carolina), a team that was firing on all cylinders,” Foligno said. “Now, we’ve got a great test against a team like Dallas, which also has a lot of firepower and hasn’t quite figured it out, to make sure we keep going in that direction.”
Sonny Milano’s next day in New York Criminal Court will happen Wednesday, but the 23-year old forward does not have to attend the hearing.
Milano was arrested July 7 in New York along with Colorado
Avalanche forward A.J. Greer on misdemeanor assault charges stemming from an altercation sparked by a disputed bar tab. Both players, who are represented by separate defense attorneys, pleaded not guilty Sept. 4 at their arraignment.
They are charged with two counts of third-degree misdemeanor assault, one count of third-degree attempted assault and one count of seconddegree harassment for an incident that occurred about an hour after the players returned to Milano’s apartment from a nightclub accompanied by a third man they allegedly assaulted.
According to New York state law, thirddegree assault is a Class A misdemeanor
punishable by up to a year in jail, three years of probation and/or criminal fines up to $1,000 — though firsttime offenders usually avoid jail time.
The hearing Wednesday is expected to lead to a trial date being set for the case by the judge, who will also render decisions on motions made by the players’ defense attorneys.
Milano has played three games and hasn’t recorded a point yet, averaging 8:03 per game while skating on the fourth forward line. Greer, 22, hasn’t scored in three games with the Colorado Eagles, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Avalanche.