• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Blue Jackets hope to close trip with a win in Edmonton

Dec 16, 2010 - 4:48 PM (Sports Network) - The Columbus Blue Jackets have left two points on the table so far on their three-game swing through western Canada and they'll try to close out the trek with a victory as they visit the Edmonton Oilers tonight at Rexall Place.

The Blue Jackets have dropped overtime setbacks in Calgary and Vancouver this week, giving them five straight losses on the road and setbacks in eight of their last 10 overall.

Both losses have come by 3-2 scores. After Monday's defeat in Calgary, Vancouver's Ryan Kesler completed his first career hat trick with 1:30 left in overtime to deal Columbus another loss on Wednesday.

Tom Sestito's first career NHL goal tied the game in the third period and Derick Brassard also scored for the Blue Jackets, who are 8-4-2 as the guest this season and had forward Kristian Huselius back in the lineup for the first time in 23 games because of a high-ankle sprain.

"If you can come into Vancouver and get a point, that's great," Sestito said. "We were close to getting two."

Mathieu Garon, who made 20 saves in relief of Steve Mason in Monday's game, got the start on Wednesday and posted another 27 stops. He could get the call tonight and is 4-6-1 with a 3.38 goals-against average versus the Oilers, who he played with for parts of two seasons beginning in 2007-08.

Mason, who gave up two goals on four shots in about four minutes of action on Monday, is 4-1-0 with a 2.56 GAA versus the Oilers, including a 3-2 shootout victory at home over them on Oct. 28. Mason made 25 saves in that game and both Rick Nash and Nikita Filatov scored in the shootout.

That victory was Columbus' fourth in a row over Edmonton, but it has lost five of its last seven at Rexall Place.

Taylor Hall, the top pick of the 2010 draft, scored his first career goal in that meeting and leads the Oilers with 10 on the season. He has four in his last six games, but was held without a point in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to Toronto.

Fellow rookie Jordan Eberle had Edmonton's lone goal and Nikolai Khabibulin gave up four goals on 34 shots. The Oilers have dropped two straight after a 5-0-1 stretch.

"It was a lot things put together [that contributed to the loss], and that's disappointing," said Edmonton's Ryan Whitney.

Edmonton is 2-2-1 on a six-game homestand and 5-8-2 as the host this season.

Khabibulin is 8-8-4 with a tie and 3.14 GAA in his career versus Columbus.