After disappointingly knocked out of the playoffs just 6 short months ago, the Columbus Blue Jackets look to improve upon their franchise best 108 points last season starting with the New York Islanders at 7:00 PM EDT. The first game of the 2017-2018 season for both teams will be played at Nationwide Arena in front of a raucous Blue Jackets home crowd. With the Jackets looking to start the season strong, here are 5 Things to Watch for tonight’s game.

1. New Faces

Blue Jackets general Manager Jarmo Kekäläinen was busy this offseason making the Jackets roster better than it was last season. He started by trading Brandon Saad back to the Chicago Blackhawks with Anton Forsberg in exchange for Artemi Panarin and Tyler Motte. Motte is currently in the AHL with the Cleveland Monsters, but Panarin is set to build upon his impressive second season line of 31/43/74 by making his debut as the top line left winger for the Jackets. Determined on proving he is more than just Patrick Kane’s sidekick, look for Panarin to be the top line playmaker for whom the Jackets have been looking.

The second line left wing slot goes to Sonny Milano, a very promising AHL prospect the Jackets have been keeping in their back pocket for some time. Given a perfect opportunity to prove himself playing with Captain Nick Foligno and puck magnet Oliver Bjorkstrand, Milano will be attempting to complement the two way forward in Foligno, and help feed the scorer in Bjorkstrand.

On the third line, we get our first look at 2016 #3 overall pick, Pierre-Luc Dubois. Originally drafted as a center, his hard hitting, fast skating style has made him more valuable as a winger with Brandon Dubinsky and scrapper Matty Calvert. Look for the third line to press the forecheck and bring the pain led by Dubois’ endless motor and determination.

To round out the fourth line we have left winger Markus Hannikainen and right winger Zac Dalpe. Hannikainen played as a rotational/reserve role last season, but hung around, played tough, and earned himself a roster spot. Dalpe, a league journeyman, was picked up off waivers last season from Minnesota.

On the defense, the only new face is Gabriel Carlsson. A big, physical, instinctual defenseman Carlsson reminds me of Dalton Prout, but improved. He hits just as hard, but is faster, and has better instincts in finding the puck and sealing off passing and shooting lanes. While he still tends to make mental errors as part of being a young player, he is an exciting prospect to watch and has the potential to develop into a top tier defenseman.

2. Johnson/Savard

Jack Johnson and David Savard both entered last season with something to prove, and both came out the other side having far and away accomplished that goal. Their chemistry was clearly visible on the ice, as Savard’s conservative defensive style allowed the offensive minded Johnson to play up on the ice, and play to his strengths. While Johnson only had 23 points on the season, he posted a career high +23 rating, far better than his -16 the year prior.

Savard, meanwhile, posted a fantastic +33 rating, his best of his career, beating his 2013-2014 rating of +2. He also had a career high 126 blocked shots, and 22 takeaways. This second defensive pairing anchored the Jackets defensive unit all season, and they will look to replicate their impressive showing last season.

3. Power Play Unit

Last season, the Jackets brought in Sniper Sam Gagner to help with the power play unit. With 8 power play goals, and 18 power play points, Gagner helped the Jackets to the 12th best power play unit in the NHL. This year, the Jackets are looking to improve on that even more. First unit will be Captain Nick Foligno with passing wizard Alexander Wennberg, power play quarterback Zach Werenski, and big time scorers Artemi Panarin and Cam Atkinson. Look for a lot of movement trying to get those two open looks on net with Foligno screening. Focused on precision, this line will properly utilize the man advantage to capitalize on the best open look.

The second unit has potential to be just as dangerous. Seth Jones is the defenseman in charge, with center Brandon Dubinsky screening. Oliver Bjorkstrand, Sonny Milano, and Pierre-Luc Dubois are high powered shooters with a knack of finding the net. This unit really excites me as every single player here plays hard, fast, and has a shot that can score from anywhere on the ice. Dubois could make an immediate impact on the power play unit functioning as both a center and a winger. His high speed, high impact style of play will help keep the puck in the offensive zone creating scoring opportunities. Instead of precision, this line will score by simply bashing the defense and ripping shots until something slides through.

4. Nick Foligno Making The Switch To Center

In the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, the Columbus Blue Jackets looked to fix their lack of depth at center by drafting Pierre-Luc Dubois. However, not ready to play last season, he spent the year in the QMJHL. So, the Jackets turned to William Karlsson and Lukas Sedlak. Sedlak performed admirably as a defensive stand out, but his lack of offensive playmaking entrenched him on the 4th line. Karlsson was beginning to show serious promise, but was taken in the expansion draft by the Las Vegas Golden Knights.

Nick Foligno began stepping in and taking faceoffs. Posting a 47.2% win percentage, he worked his ass off to make the move full time to center. This season, he steps in as the 2nd line center in order to let Pierre-Luc Dubois play to his strengths on the wing. This game will be his first test as a full time center, and he will look to best Mathew Barzal, a rookie coming out of the WHL.

5. Line Chemistry

This is going to be the largest challenge facing this new Blue Jackets team. With a new left winger on every single line, a new bottom line defenseman, a position switch for their captain, and a total mixup of the lines, the Jackets need to find their chemistry quickly in order to be successful. They lost Brandon Saad, Sam Gagner, Scott Hartnell, and Wild Bill Karlsson in the offseason, all of whom played major roles in helping control the game at every level.

With so many new faces joining the team, the veteran players will need to be leaders in the locker room to bring the team together. There is definitely enough talent for this team to make a legitimate run at the Cup this season, but in order for that to happen the team needs to find their best possible line combinations, and develop them throughout the season.

This first game will be an interesting test to see how the team does. Expect there to be some rust as the Jackets settle into their respective roles, but ultimately the stars should break out, and we should see some really exciting plays from the Jackets tonight.