Pittsburgh Penguins vs Columbus Blue Jackets Prediction & Prop Bets – 1/4/2026

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets will face off on Sunday afternoon in a Metropolitan Division matchup in the NHL. Both clubs enter this contest playing well, with four wins over their last five games. Who will continue trending in the right direction with a win in this contest? Find out below, as I make my Penguins vs Blue Jackets prediction on the ice.

Our Penguins vs Blue Jackets Pick

Game Snapshot

• Matchup: Pittsburgh Penguins vs Columbus Blue Jackets
• Date & Time: Sunday, January 4, 2026, 3:00 PM
• Venue: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
• Broadcast: ESPN+

Key Storylines

Recent form

The Penguins have won four straight games with solid offensive output, including a 4-1 win over Detroit in their last game, where Bryan Rust continued his scoring surge and Sidney Crosby contributed multiple points. Pittsburgh also secured a tight overtime victory against the Red Wings in the game before that and recent wins have injected confidence into a lineup that has found scoring from multiple sources.

The Blue Jackets have been playing well themselves. They have won four of their last five games and most recently defeated the Buffalo Sabres 5-1 to halt Buffalo’s long win streak. Columbus will look to carry that momentum into this contest against another red-hot opponent.

Goaltending

Pittsburgh is expected to start Arturs Silovs, who has been solid in recent outings. While his overall save percentage is modest, he has an identical save percentage to Stuart Skinner, who the Penguins traded for from the Edmonton Oilers. Columbus is expected to go with Elvis Merzlikins in net. He has struggled mightily this year, with a GAA over 4.00 on the season. Both goalies playing today are the product of these teams playing on the second games of back-to-backs.

Key skaters

Sidney Crosby remains the Penguins’ top offensive catalyst, consistently generating points and creating dangerous chances. Crosby has 23 goals and 22 assists for the Pens this season. Bryan Rust has been on a nice run as well for the Penguins on the attack. For Columbus, Zach Werenski leads the team in both goals and assists. He will need to be at his best for the Jackets to win this game.

Best Player Props

Betting Trends & H2H

• These teams are 1-1 against each other so far this season.
• The road team has won both of the games these teams have played against each other this year.
• The Penguins are 25-15 on the puckline so far this season.
• Columbus is 20-19 in the puckline market this year.

Penguins vs Blue Jackets Model Projection

Final Thoughts

Jay Sanin

Jay Sanin is the GM and Head of Sports at ATS.io. He has been writing about sports gambling since 2013, handicapping tens of thousands of sporting events. He plays sides and totals aggressively across most sports and is more selective in player prop markets. He does his own modeling across most sports, and his family is jealous of how much time he spends on his precious spreadsheets.