PREVIEW: Blue Jackets have Saturday night showdown with Golden Knights

BLUE JACKETS (9-5-0) at GOLDEN KNIGHTS (10-7-0)

But the Blue Jackets stuck with it, overcoming enough of their mistakes to win for the ninth time in 14 games. Afterward, head coach Brad Larsen acknowledged it wasn't the prettiest win for his team but could not fault the effort of his squad.
In fact, that's been a pretty consistent theme this year, as the Blue Jackets generally have leaned into their identity as a fast, hard-working team on a night-in, night-out basis. Simply put, the effort has been there, and at times that consistency has allowed the team to outplay its mistake and earn results.
GAMEDAY GUIDE: Domi returns, plus much more ahead of tonight's contest
"Most nights, these guys are giving it," Larsen said Friday ahead of tonight's game against Vegas. "They are playing hard for each other. That is a really good sign. Last night, the puck management stuff was a little bit of an issue at times, trying to force some plays I don't think were there, even exiting our zone and stuff. So we have to clean that up, especially playing a team like Vegas. They can score and score off the rush. We have to be a lot cleaner playing them tomorrow.
"But on the other side of it, we put up 46 shots, hit four posts and created a lot of danger, so that's a good sign, too. You just have to make sure you manage it a little bit better."
And for a first-year coach like Larsen, the good news is that having a team that shows up every night means he can simply coach execution, not effort. When the latter is inconsistent, that's when a team has real problems, but Larsen hasn't had to worry about that, instead focusing on bringing along the league's youngest team.
"We talk about it a lot," he said. "You can't even worry about X's and O's unless you have the effort and competitiveness. It's really a moot point if you're not giving it. When you give it, then you can assess where you're at. When your structure is off and you're not giving the effort, you gotta peel it right back and go right to the beginning and the foundation.
"I think they understand who they are and what they need to do to have success. We don't have an opportunity to play at 70 percent energy and just kind of float through games. That's not our team. We gotta turn the dial every night and make sure we're on our toes and aggressive, and they've bought into that and put all the effort in."

Know the Foe

One of the favorites to contend for the Stanley Cup entering the season, the Golden Knights instead got off to a 1-4-0 start, but since then the team has won nine of 12 games to jump back into contention in the Pacific Division early in the season.
Vegas has done that despite a bevy of injuries that have cost the team some of its top players, including former CBJ players William Karlsson (foot) and Jonathan Marchessault (COVID protocols). New acquisition Jack Eichel (neck surgery) as well as star defenseman Shea Theodore (head), Max Pacioretty (lower body), Alec Martinez (face), William Carrier (COVID protocols) and Nolan Patrick (undisclosed) also are out.
Yet that hasn't stopped the Golden Knights from some big success offensively, as the team has scored at least three goals in each of its nine wins in the last 12. In total, Vegas is 12th in the league with 3.12 goals per game, though defensively, the team's mark of 3.06 goals allowed per game sits 20th. The power play has struggled, scoring at just a 13.5-percent clip (29th), while the penalty kill's mark of 80.4 percent sits 19th.
The loss of Marchessault hurts -- he leads the team with nine goals and is second with 13 points -- but 27-year-old center Chandler Stephenson has been the player to step up with so many others out, as he leads the way with a 5-11-16 line. Reilly Smith adds six goals and six assists, and Alex Pietrangelo checks in with three goals and 10 points. Mark Stone is back after missing 12 games with a lower-body injury, and he has six assists in five games.
In net, last year's Vezina Trophy winner Marc-Andre Fleury is off to Chicago, leaving Robin Lehner as the team's starter. He has taken the net in 14 games, going 8-6-0 with a 2.87 GAA and .917 save percentage, while former Winnipeg netminder Laurent Brossoit (2-1-0/3.05/.905) is the backup.