Despite Struggles, Columbus Blue Jackets Third in Metropolitan
By William Espy
The Columbus Blue Jackets have struggled so far this season, but luckily they’re still doing well in the standings.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are currently in third in the Metropolitan Division despite an abysmal power play, lack of defense and struggling goaltending. They’re trailing the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals while being just ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers.
If the Blue Jackets can find their form, then this is great news for the team as it means they should theoretically be able to pull away once they solve their problems.
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Offensively the Blue Jackets have done fairly well, as they’re currently seventh in goals for in the league. Unfortunately they’re tied for fifth last in goals against and have a negative goal differential, in part thanks to the large loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on October 13.
The power play is third worst in the NHL, behind only the Nashville Predators and Vegas Golden Knights while the penalty kill is the eighth worst in the league.
The highest scoring player on the Blue Jackets, Artemi Panarin, is currently tied for the rank of 30th in the league for points which may been seen as a disappointment to a few Blue Jackets fans.
Goaltending wise, Sergei Bobrovsky is ranked 33rd in goaltenders who have played more than four games in save percentage and 37th in goals against average. Meanwhile backup Joonas Korpisalo is ranked 47th in save percentage and 48th in goals against average. (all stats from NHL.com)
With all that negative information, it’s odd to think that the Blue Jackets could even be close to contending for the lead in the division however they’re currently only one point behind the leading Islanders.
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If they can find the solution to their problems, the Columbus Blue Jackets will be in great shape for the rest of the season. If not, it seems as if they still may be able to slip into the playoffs at this rate.