5 Must Do’s if the Columbus Blue Jackets Want to Win the Presidents’ Trophy
The Columbus Blue Jackets aren’t as far off winning a Presidents’ Trophy as some might think. We identify five musts if the CBJ are to top the NHL in points in the 2018-2019 season.
Contrary to the way the Columbus Blue Jackets played the first half of the 2017-2018 NHL season, the Metropolitan team isn’t far from winning its first Presidents’ Trophy. Some might have already forgot that the Jackets finished just 10 points back from the Washington Capitals in 2016-2017 for a franchise best 108 points.
With a slow start in 2017-2018, the Jackets fell behind the league-leading Nashville Predators, finishing 20 points out of the trophy spot. 10 wins seems like a substantial margin to close in one season, but the Blue Jackets are closer than experts, and novices think.
Columbus Blue Jackets fans should remember that after the April 26 deadline, the Jackets went 13-4-2 or more impressively, 13-2-2 after March 3rd. Surely the CBJ aren’t likely to maintain a trend that impressive, although many would say that was the team they were expecting to see all year.
Recovering a chunk of key talent from injury along with tremendous goalie play from Sergei Bobrovsky, the Jackets surged at the right time. The question is, can they do it over the course of an 82-game season? Here we identify five musts if the Jackets want to make a serious run at their first Presidents’ Trophy.
Columbus Blue Jackets
1. Special Teams Improvement
Many would call it a miracle that the Columbus Blue Jackets made the playoffs considering their dismal special teams play throughout the season. The Jackets finished just 25th in the power play at 17.2 percent and 26th in the penalty kill at 76.2 percent. Figure in how much talent the Jackets had at their disposal, these numbers are abysmal.
Look for a shake up in penalty killers in Columbus next year along with minor adjustments to what was a slowly improving power play. If the Jackets could move towards the top, or even middle of the pack in these statistics, that would go far for their chances to win a Presidents’ Trophy.
2. Stay Healthy
After a relatively healthy 2016-2017, the Columbus Blue Jackets saw the injury bug bite back in 2017-2018. The Jackets went all season, consistently missing large stretches of play from a number of key contributors.
Injuries are never a good excuse for failing to achieve goals but to say they don’t play a role is unfair. Core players such as Cam Atkinson, Alexander Wennberg, Josh Anderson, Ryan Murray and captain Nick Foligno all missed 10 games or more. The CBJ will hope to keep its top skaters in uniform all year long if they want to top the league in points in 2018-2019.
3. Find Consistent Center Depth
Columbus has solid depth at wing and is spoiled with young defensive talent. The Blue Jackets’ primary weakness for going on some years now, is center depth. Thanks to an explosive debut from rookie Pierre-Luc Dubois, the CBJ top line looks to be cemented.
Beneath Dubois though, the Jackets are seeking health and consistency from a shifting mix of Alexander Wennberg, Nick Foligno (who isn’t a true center) and Mark Letestu. Looking at Brandon Dubinsky‘s sharp decline in play and ice time, it’s difficult to consider him as a buttress to this unit. Unless Wennberg proves to be the strong second-line center they hope he can become, the Jackets will continue to seek improved options to play between their young wingers.
4. Find Scoring From At Least Three Lines
It’s a lot to ask of a fourth line to regularly contribute offensively. That being said, there were some brutal stretches of the 2017-2018 season where the Jackets would scratch and claw just to snag a pair of goals from their top, or second line. Boone Jenner found his way late in the season and the recently-acquired Thomas Vanek delivered offensive support as hoped. Lastly, the shuffling of lines after the trade deadline seemed to boost the CBJ scoring from near the bottom of the league to settle at 17th by the season’s end. Of course it helps when you’re playing with a healthy lineup, but many notable players struggled to find their groove throughout the entire season.
5. Play Safe but Smart in Free Agency
The core of the Blue Jackets’ top talent is signed to stay in Columbus through 2018-2019. That’s not to say there aren’t some notable gaps that could be neatly addressed during free agency. Depending on who the Jackets choose to keep and who to let go, they could be very active in the free agency market. Young right-wing prospect Vitaly Abramov could find his way onto a third or fourth line slot if veterans Matt Calvert, Boone Jenner or Vanek depart Columbus. If defenseman Ian Cole or Ryan Murray don’t re-sign with the Jackets, the CBJ could turn to similar youth in Gabriel Carlsson, Scott Harrington or Dean Kukan.
Related Story: The Blue Jackets Address Their Free Agent Forwards
GM Jarmo Kekäläinen will be wise to look ahead to the daunting task of signing Artemi Panarin, Zach Werenski and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky who all have one year left on their contracts. Considering this, the Jackets won’t have a ton of cap space to make any big splashes in free agency. Unless the CBJ can find a way to move Brandon Dubinsky‘s bulky $5.85M a year, don’t expect any shocking changes in Columbus this summer.