Match Preview 4: The Columbus Blue Jackets are trying to eliminate the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Nationwide Arena (No, this is not a dream)

Here's a sentence that, until now, had no reason to exist: The Columbus Blue Jackets have a chance to win a playoff series tonight. For the first time in the history of the franchise, the Blue Jackets are on the bright side of a potential elimination game.

Columbus officially plays with the house's money and tries the story tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Nationwide Arena (7p, FSO / NBCSN) for the fourth game of the quarterfinal series of the Easian Conference. It's a fluid race so far for Columbus, despite the presence of a huge underdog in the series, which has now outperformed Tampa Bay by an incredible 11-2 margin over the past eight periods of play.

CBJ 3, TBL 0 • EASTERN CONF QTRS
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
62-16-4 // 128 points ALIGNMENT / CALENDAR
7 am – TUESDAY 16 APRIL ARENA NATIONWIDE COLUMBUS, OH
FOX SPORTS OHIO, CNBC FLUX FSO, FLUX NBCSN

At this point, you know how things went for Columbus. They took part in the first game after losing 3-0 in the first period, then blew the Tampa doors to win 5-1. They then defended their rink in a difficult and tight battle, winning 3-1.

Now, with a 3-0 lead in the series, Columbus has four swings to this one. But it will be a little sweeter if they manage to get out of it tonight.

The MoneyPuck model is confident that the Blue Jackets will qualify in this round – giving them a chance to make it 89.5% – but their luck is not so great tonight, giving them a 44 , 3% to take the fourth game.

Between that and the memories of some unattractive home performances during the regular season against famous opponents – plus Tampa apparently starting to snap in the third period of match 3 – there's enough to worry about this evening. Nevertheless, if it does not happen tonight, Columbus could have three shots after that.

Whatever it is, it's clear that Tampa's stars are not shooting at full speed. Nikita Kucherov will come back tonight after a suspension, but he has not scored a point all series. No more than Brayden Point or Steven Stamkos, who with Kucherov combined 318 points in the regular season.

The secret may lie in the defensive tactics of the Blue Jackets, making life difficult for Tampa in neutral zone, something that few teams have risked trying during the regular season. By smothering Tampa defensively and putting on tons of skill, the Blue Jackets are up to now the top team in this series.

Sergei Bobrovsky has a chance to completely put his demons in the playoffs in this one because he has been wonderful in this series. He may have hesitated to open the first match, but he has been remarkable ever since. Tampa scored twice on him, but both goals barely sank in goal.

Make no mistake, Bobrovsky does not wear Columbus himself. Seth Jones and Matt Duchene were the best skaters in this series, and Columbus also receives contributions from guys like Josh Anderson and Cam Atkinson.

Duchene, like Bobrovsky (and all the damn Blue Jackets franchise), was apparently cursed in the playoffs. Between his injuries during the Colorado Avalanche playoff games (or his overall inefficiency when he is healthy) and his exchange with an Ottawa Senators team supposed to fight before an absolute implosion Duchene seemed as snakebuster as any outside player to Bobrovsky regarding post-season performance.

Now, it seems like the playoff karma is finally coming back for Duchene, Bobrovsky and the Blue Jackets.

Speaking of the power of the stars, while Kucherov is back for the Bolts tonight, Victor Hedman – the winner of the Norris Trophy last year – is unlikely, according to Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper. For the Blue Jackets, it seems that Brandon Dubinsky will take his normal service.

Ryan Murray and Adam McQuaid seem to be on the right track, but it would be a surprise if one or the other of them would join the training for tonight's match. Similarly, it is unlikely that Vladislav Gavrikov will go through immigration and be allowed to play in tonight's match, but more crazy things have happened.

Projected lines of the Columbus Blue Jackets

Lines projected by Tampa Bay lightning

Game 4 Storylines

• Just win, baby. Listen, there are plenty of other scenarios here, but there's only one that counts: the Columbus Blue Jackets, for the first time in the history of their franchise , are on the right side of a potentially decisive game for the series. Win the win tonight and the next round of announcements – and get the notoriety that stems from what will be seen as the biggest playoff defeat in the history of modern leagues.
• Bolts: Shook? After tore up the regular season and faced virtually no adversity, the Tampa Bay Lightning appeared to be a team lost until the third period of match 3. Between Kucherov's suspension, Hedman's trash speech and the shot carried by Stuckos at the end of match 3, it's clear that Columbus is in their heads. After the second game, we explained how Columbus had apparently taken a hammer into the Tampa psyche. These words seemed premonitory at the end of the third game, and the Blue Jackets will be looking to bring another big boost to this sledgehammer tonight. But will Tampa have injuries that he inflicted himself in his most intimidating game of the season?
• By killing Goliath. By entering this series, the hockey world seemed to think that a win in the Tampa series – and probably in five games or less – was a foregone conclusion. The only eulogy of Columbus seemed to boil down to "well, they could make things difficult," but still followed by a "but" and more complimentary words for Tampa. Even now, the narration has less talked about crediting Columbus than pointing to Tampa for choking what should have been a sure thing. The Blue Jackets do not need more motivation – all they have to do is watch the first three games and keep doing the right things – but you can bet that if they succeed this shot tonight, the larger narrative will become a big part of their motivation.