The Bruins will kickstart a home-and-home series with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday, with the first leg coming at Nationwide Arena.

Boston will keep its lineup from before Christmas.

Charlie Coyle will remain on the same line as Elias Lindholm and Brad Marchand, while Morgan Geekie, Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak will remain together. Cole Koepke is expected to remain in the lineup in place of Marc McLaughlin, though Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco hadn’t made a final decision following morning skate.

“The start is going to be important for us tonight,” Sacco said, per team-provided video. “I would imagine they’re going to come out with some pace tonight in their game and we have to be ready to respond to that.”

Joonas Korpisalo will get the start over Jeremy Swayman.

Boston and Columbus are set to drop the puck at 7 p.m. ET, following an hour of pregame coverage on NESN.

We have the projected lines and defensive pairings for both sides:

BOSTON BRUINS (19-13-4)
Brad Marchand — Elias Lindholm — Charlie Coyle
Morgan Geekie — Pavel Zacha — David Pastrnak
Justin Brazeau — Trent Frederic — Oliver Wahlstrom
John Beecher — Mark Kastelic — Cole Koepke

Nikita Zadorov — Charlie McAvoy
Jordan Oesterle — Brandon Carlo
Mason Lohrei — Andrew Peeke

Joonas Korpisalo

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (14-15-6)
Dmitri Voronkov — Sean Monahan — Kirill Marchenko
James van Riemsdyk — Adam Fantilli — Zach Aston-Reese
Kent Johnson — Cole Sillinger — Mathieu Olivier
Mikael Pyyhtia — Sean Kuraly — Jack Johnson

Zach Werenski — Dante Fabbro
Denton Mateychuk — Ivan Provorov
Jake Christiansen — Damon Severson

Elvis Merzlikins

When you play for such a long time as a quarterback in the NFL, you’re bound to take your fair share of sacks.

Russell Wilson knows that fact all too well, as he passed former Pittsburgh Steelers great Ben Roethlisberger and became the third-most sacked player in league history following the team’s loss at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas.

As pointed out by Steelers Depot’s Matthew Marczi, Wilson has taken 29 sacks through his 10 starts for Pittsburgh this season, including five against Kansas City. His career total now sits at 556, which is two ahead of Roethlisberger’s mark of 554.

Defenses have averaged 42.77 sacks per year against Wilson, which is an absurd pace that all but guarantees he will close out his tenure in the league as the most sacked quarterback of all-time.

For instance, Pro Football Reference lists Fran Tarkenton atop that leaderboard with 570 takedowns despite the fact that sacks were not tracked until 1982 while his playing days ended in 1978.

His average per campaign was 31.67, far lower than Wilson’s number, and had he not missed the first six games of the year with a calf injury, there’s an outside chance he would’ve already surpassed Tarkenton.

Tom Brady is formally viewed as the most sacked quarterback with 565 due to Tarkenton’s record not being considered official. Aaron Rodgers sits at No. 2 with 564, meaning he’d jump up to the top of the list all by himself if he drops down two or more times in the backfield during Week 18 for the New York Jets.

Roethlisberger briefly held the title in the final year of his career in 2021, though that glory only lasted for so long as Brady surpassed him the following season.

Wilson’s sack rate is unusually high due to the fact that he’s always been adept at extending plays and scrambling, though it’s set a precedent that may never again be touched.

The next closest active player in that regard is Matthew Stafford, who’s been taken down 502 times while playing for three more years than Wilson.

Baker Mayfield has a chance to skyrocket up the rankings somewhere down the line given that he’s averaged 35.29 sacks per campaign over his seven-year career, though we’re a far way off from him even sniffing Wilson’s figure.

Wilson hasn’t let the constant pressure derail his Hall of Fame-worthy career, though it’s certainly an interesting footnote.

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Whether you’re re-packing those suitcases to head home or just getting your things together now for a vacation, the holiday travel rush on the road and in the air is on.

“We flew in on the 23rd really early. Way too early,” said Chase Blackstone, before catching his return flight at Bradley International Airport.

After spending Christmas in Connecticut, Blackstone was heading back home to Mansfield, Ohio. So was his mother, who is a flight attendant for United, and she knows just how busy it has been at the airport.

“The crowds, the lines, people’s tempers are insane. It’s stressful,” said Lisa Blackstone.

Others were just starting their holiday trips on Friday.

“Orlando. We’re going to Disney,” said Christina LaFortune, of Sturbridge, Massachusetts.

According to the TSA, Friday is one of their busiest travel days of the year. Airport officials at Bradley say they expect to see a steady number of travelers over the next few days.

It’s a similar story for people traveling by car. AAA says these are the best times to hit the road this weekend:

• Friday, December 27: Before 2 p.m.
• Saturday, December 28: Before 11 a.m.

“Right now, we’re heading to Virginia then down to myrtle beach then down to Florida,” said Allison Dickson of Coventry, Rhode Island.

Another family was also making their way to Virginia.

“Our oldest daughter brought her grandkids to our house for Christmas, and now we’re driving to see the other grandkids,” said George Stelljes of Westport, Massachusetts.

It’s a 12-hour drive for him, but he doesn’t seem to mind as he gets to continue the holiday fun.

“We got all the gifts and Santa is in the back of our car,” said Stelljes.

If you’re hitting the road, says these are the busiest times to hit the road this weekend:

• Friday, December 27: 3 p.m. – 7 p.m.
• Saturday, December 28: 1:30 p.m. – 7 p.m.

TSA is also preparing for large crowds at airports on Monday, Dec. 30.