Well, again you may be asking yourself, Is that gary2 gone over the edge, of course we expect these 2 guys to be next years players, the future of the Blue Jackets is pasted on them.
Sorry, but I have to be a bit of a wary fan/blogger. Remember last year at this time relative to Matt Calvert. At that time, one blot post stated something like “trade anyone not named Matt Calvert”. To be sure, I too think these guys are tied to the future success of the Blue jackets, BUT….. we need to be just a little cautious before we hitch our star to these horses.
Both are just kids. Both are feeling their way into professional hockey. Both are still developing physically as well as mentally. And to be honest, we are still waiting to see if they can step up to adversity and kick it in the shin. We may like what we see, but we just haven’t seen enough to KNOW what they will become.
Ryan Johansen was with the Blue Jackets all year. After weathering the uncertainty of sticking or not, he stuck. Then we was asked to play out of position most of the year. He was relegated to the press box as a learning experience, and was the Blue Jackets All Star representative. A season of ups and downs to say the least.
Cam Atkinson on the other hand had his ups and downs, but they were a little more straight forward. He thought he had made the big club, only to be sent down to the AHL. From all indications he learned a lot of things he needed to know, but still it was not what he was expecting. He had All-Star success at Springfield. He is a little older than Ryan at 23, but still a youngster. When he came back to Columbus, it took him some time to get into the NHL speed, but he ended the season flying. And he was picked to represent the US in the Worlds Tournament.
Both appear to be keys to the new Blue Jackets, but remember they are still both YOUNG and tentative.We all have good vibrations about these 2 players, just don’t bet the house on them both being top performers all next year.