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Columbus Blue Jackets Don’t have a True Second Line, and thats OK

By Lansing Murphy

TAMPA, FL - JANUARY 13: Josh Anderson #34 of the Columbus Blue Jackets celebrates a goal with teammates Boone Jenner #38 and Brandon Dubinsky #17 against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the second period at Amalie Arena on January 13, 2017 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)
TAMPA, FL - JANUARY 13: Josh Anderson #34 of the Columbus Blue Jackets celebrates a goal with teammates Boone Jenner #38 and Brandon Dubinsky #17 against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the second period at Amalie Arena on January 13, 2017 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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Is it a big issue that the Columbus Blue Jackets don’t have a defined second line?

Training camp is over and the rosters are set. The Columbus Blue Jackets will head into their opening night game against the Detroit Red Wings with their top four lines looking something like this.

Artemi Panarin – Pierre-Luc Dubois – Cam Atkinson

Nick Foligno – Alexander Wennberg – Oliver Bjorkstrand

Boone Jenner – Brandon Dubinsky – Josh Anderson

Sonny Milano – Riley Nash – Anthony Duclair

It’s safe to say that the Panarin-PLD-Cam line is the number one unit. They should get a plurality of the offensive zone starts and jumpstart this team’s offense.

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But after that, the remaining three lines can be put in almost any order. You’d like to think that the Foligno-Wennberg-Bjork line is the “2nd Line” but the gap between that line and the other two has narrowed.

Wennberg has had a sub-par camp and everyone knows it. Torts has not-so-discretly said so to the media. Foligno has been nothing to write home about either. The only thing keeping this line afloat right now is Oliver Bjorkstrand looking like a 30 goal scorer in the preseason.

This line’s play opens the door for the Jackets to go with a floating rotation based on how each player is performing on a specific night and matchup advantages the coaching staff thinks they can find.

The physically intimidating line of Jenner-Dubi-Anderson has looked good in the preseason. Dubinsky is clearly ready to write off last season as an aberration and Anderson is ready after going through his first full Torts training camp in two years. They are going to shut teams down but they also have a bit of offensive pop to their game that would make them a solid second line.

The “4th Line” could see top minutes as well. New Jacket Riley Nash proved last year with Boston that he can handle top line responsibilities and has the talent to get the puck to scorers on the wing.

And scorers he has on his wing. Duclair is looking like the 20 goal scorer he was his rookie season in the NHL. We all know about Milano’s great goal scoring rates from last season too. If this line gets enough ice time, they will look like a second or third line, not a fourth line.

Having these two stout lines behind the supposed second line is what makes this team so deadly this season. It gives coach John Tortorella so many options when deploying lines, especially at home.

So just because the second line isn’t playing like a second line right now is no reason to panic. For all we know they will turn it on once the season starts and this won’t be a concern.

But if it is, the Jackets have plenty of options because of the great depth the team has built and acquired over the years. The Jackets may not have a true second line, but they have three lines that will play like second lines given the opportunity, and that should scare the rest of the league.

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