PREVIEW: Blue Jackets face first road game of season in Detroit

BLUE JACKETS (2-0-0) at RED WINGS (1-0-1)

After a helter-skelter defensive performance against the Coyotes that was largely covered over by some offensive fireworks, Columbus played a much better defensive game against its expansion foe and got a deserved result in a much tighter game.
"The good thing is what we addressed the morning of the game, the areas we wanted to clean up, we did," head coach Brad Larsen said. "We only gave up nine scoring chances, and you do that in any game, that's a pretty good night. Compared to what we gave up the night before, even winning 8-2, it was a little bit sloppy, so we tightened some areas.
CBJ GAMEDAY GUIDE: Chinakhov set to make NHL debut in Detroit
"It was a better picture of what you like to see, and we didn't sacrifice on the offensive chances. We still generated almost as many chances in that game, too, even though we didn't score as many."
Defenseman Zach Werenski agreed, which is probably a good thing to hear out of the team's No. 1 defenseman and an alternate captain. While many teams probably would have been happy with a record-setting six-goal win in the opener, this group felt much better about the following victory on an overtime goal by Patrik Laine.
"I think that is a perfect game for our group to find a way to win, to come back at home, a big OT goal by Patty," Werenski said. "I think it can kind of spring you forward a little bit as a team, as a group. The first is kind of a wash in my mind, to be honest. You have to throw that one out, but Saturday was more how we have to play, how more games are going to be this year for us, and to find a way to win one early was huge."
So now the Blue Jackets find themselves at 2-0 for the first time since 2014-15. It's no guarantee the season will be a success -- that one ended up short of playoff qualification -- but there are
certainly encouraging signs
through the start of the campaign. That continues tonight in Detroit, with Columbus likely to see the debut of rookie Yegor Chinakhov after Max Domi was
placed on injured reserve
Monday with a rib injury.

Know the Foe

It's already been a wild start for the Red Wings, who opened with a back-and-fourth 7-6 overtime loss to Tampa Bay in which Detroit blew a late 6-3 lead, but the team came back Saturday to earn its first victory of the season with a 3-1 triumph over Vancouver.
Tonight's game will be the third straight home contest to kick off the campaign for the Red Wings, who again have made some big changes in the hope of accelerating a rebuild that now includes six straight seasons without a postseason berth, a far cry from the 25-year streak that playoff seasons that preceded it.
Steve Yzerman's team continues to build its youth, as first-round picks from 2017-20 - forward Michael Rasmussen (2017), forward Filip Zadina (2018), defenseman Moritz Seider (2019) and forward Lucas Raymond (2020) are all in the lineup. But the team also brought in some reinforcements this offseason in former Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy and former Carolina goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic.
"They're a good hockey team," Werenski said. "They played Tampa tough, obviously a high-scoring game in game one. They probably should have won it. They lost a lead late, and then they ended up beating Vancouver, who is a good hockey team as well. It's not the Detroit I feel like that has been around the last few years. I feel like they've turned the page a little bit."
Tyler Bertuzzi had a night to remember in the opener, notching four goals to become the ninth player in NHL history to do so in a lid-lifter. So far, his four tallies are tied for the most in the NHL, and he also has an assist to give him five points and a plus-5 rating. Robby Fabbri (1-2-3) and Seider (0-3-3) are next in the scoring race, while captain Dylan Larkin had a goal in the opener but was suspended against Vancouver for retaliating for a hit laid by Tampa's Mathieu Joseph.
In net, Nedeljkovic got the loss in the Lightning game, giving up seven goals on 48 shots, while Thomas Greiss returns and won the Vancouver game with 40 saves on 41 shots against.
Stay tuned around noon as we will post our gameday guide with lineups, news of the day, important stats and more about the CBJ game tonight vs. Detroit.