Comparing the Columbus Blue Jackets and New Jersey Devils
The Columbus Blue Jackets and New Jersey Devils have been near the top of the Metropolitan standings since the year started. A surprising start by the Devils has us thinking about how they compare to the Blue Jackets.
Last year, it was the Columbus Blue Jackets coming out of nowhere to make the playoffs. This year, it could be the New Jersey Devils.
After the first two months of the season, a few things about the two organizations stand out as similar.
Youth movement
The Jackets and Devils are becoming known for their talented young players. For the Blue Jackets, it’s Zach Werenski, Josh Anderson, Seth Jones and others. For the Devils, it’s No. 1 overall pick Nico Hischier, Taylor Hall and Jesper Bratt among others.
The young talent is taking over each of the two teams and likely will make Columbus vs. New Jersey a heated matchup for the foreseeable future. They will both be making noise in the Metropolitan division for years to come.
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From the skilled playmakers down to the blue line, there is no shortage of young studs between these two teams. With both teams struggling in recent years, there will be more skilled young players coming soon which will only help improve each team.
Style of play
The take on the Devils before this year was that they were boring to watch, but that isn’t the case anymore. They’re fast and they’ll hit you in the mouth, just like the Blue Jackets.
Next week, the first meeting between the two teams will occur. Tuesday, December 5th, the Devils come to Nationwide Arena and it will be a game you won’t want to miss. This couldn’t always be said in recent years about New Jersey and Columbus.
The youth movement, mixed in with established veterans, allows each team to have an ideal style of play. It isn’t easy to squeak anything by either two teams, which is a standard set by the coaching on each side.
The scary part is that the teams will only continue to get better as the season goes on due to the youth and disciplinary coaching.
Not afraid to make moves
The New Jersey Devils recently parted ways with Adam Henrique and Joseph Blandisi in order to acquire Sami Vatanen. This gives them a reputation of not shying away from making a trade.
ICYMI: The @NJDevils sent @AdamHenrique and @_themagicbullet to the @AnaheimDucks for Sami Vatanen. Full details of the trade: https://t.co/cqBvSQK6uC
— NHL (@NHL) November 30, 2017
We all know what the Blue Jackets have done in recent years (Seth Jones, Artemi Panarin, etc.) so the two front offices seem to share a similar mentality.
This makes things particularly interesting, especially since both seem to be in a position to make the playoffs.
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The Columbus Blue Jackets and New Jersey Devils compare in many ways, but their differences will set apart who has more success than the other in the near future. If one thing’s for sure, it’ll be fun to watch these teams compete in the near future.