Carolina @ Columbus preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 4, 2019 ) Columbus 2, Carolina 4

The Carolina Hurricanes have matched their point total from last season, but they have loftier goals in mind -- namely reaching the postseason for the first time since 2008-09. Holding down the top wild card in the Eastern Conference, the Hurricanes will face one of their closest pursuers when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday night.

After getting mauled at home by Winnipeg, Carolina opened its three-game road trip with victories over Nashville and Colorado to improve to 9-1-1 away from home since the All-Star break. "There's a level, a standard the room expects every night, and that's to win," coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "In order to win, you have to play a certain way and compete a certain way." The string of bold moves at the trade deadline have yet to pan out for Columbus, which is two points behind the Hurricanes after ending an offensive funk in Tuesday's 7-4 win over Boston. “It’s just funny how it works sometimes,” forward Boone Jenner told the Columbus Dispatch after recording a hat trick. “I think when you go through a little bit of a stretch like that, where you’re not scoring, I think you can get caught up in it and you’re just thinking about it too much.”

TV: 7 p.m. ET, TVAS, FS Carolina, FS Ohio (Columbus)

ABOUT THE HURRICANES (38-24-7): Forward Micheal Ferland has missed the past two games due to a lower-body injury, but Brind'Amour is hopeful that the 17-goal scorer will be back in the lineup Friday. Rookie Andrei Svechnikov, the No. 2 pick in last year's draft, moved into Ferland's spot on a line with Jordan Staal and Teuvo Teravainen and scored twice in his second three-point game of the season. "He's been really good the last few games," Brind'Amour said of the 18-year-old. "He's a competitor, too. He's getting better and better."

ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (39-28-3): Ryan Dzingel and Matt Duchene, acquired in advance of the trade deadline, each had a goal while Dzingel also collected two assists as Columbus erupted one night after being shut out for the third time in six games. Forward Josh Anderson and defenseman Zach Werenski set the tone with one goal and three assists apiece. "I want to lead by example," said Anderson, who has 23 goals. "If I'm getting scoring chances and I'm being physical, that's a big part of my game. I know it's going to help the team win."

OVERTIME

1. Hurricanes G Petr Mrazek has posted two shutouts while winning his last six starts.

2. Blue Jackets G Sergei Bobrovsky is 1-2-0 with a 2.86 goals-against average versus Carolina this season.

3. Teravainen has 13 points in his last nine games but has only one assist in three meetings versus Columbus this season.

PREDICTION: Blue Jackets 3, Hurricanes 2