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The Five Greatest Single Seasons by a CBJ Goaltender

By Curtis Deem

Jun 21, 2017; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Sergei Bobrovsky wins the Vezina Trophy during the 2017 NHL Awards and Expansion Draft at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 21, 2017; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Sergei Bobrovsky wins the Vezina Trophy during the 2017 NHL Awards and Expansion Draft at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports /
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There have been some great performances by Blue Jacket goaltenders throughout their history in the NHL. It’s the one position where they have somewhat consistently had good talent, and even in one case – dare we say it – a potential future Hall of Famer. Our Friday Feature this week takes a look at five goaltending seasons that stand out in CBJ History.

Before we dive into the list, there is one impressive year that I have to point out as an honorable mention. The original Blue Jacket expansion team started from the net out, something that original GM Doug MacLean stood firm on. They entered their inaugural season with two good netminders: Ron Tugnutt (more on him later); and an upstart youngster named Marc Denis.

The excitement in landing a player like Denis was certainly merited. He was picked in the first round just five years prior (#25 overall, 1995) by the Colorado Avalanche. He’d spent the last few seasons under the tutelage of Patrick Roy, considered by some to be the greatest goaltender to ever play the game. He was still years away from getting his chance to be the starter in Colorado – but in Columbus, he immediately became the heir apparent in goal.

LOS ANGELES – DECEMBER 7: Goaltender Marc Denis #30 of the Columbus Blue Jackets makes a save during the NHL game against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center on December 7, 2002 in Los Angeles, California. Blue Jackets won 4-2 (Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images/NHLI)
LOS ANGELES – DECEMBER 7: Goaltender Marc Denis #30 of the Columbus Blue Jackets makes a save during the NHL game against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center on December 7, 2002 in Los Angeles, California. Blue Jackets won 4-2 (Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images/NHLI) /

By the time the 2002-03 season rolled around, he was clearly positioned as the team’s starter. In fact, he was so valuable to the team, that he played 77 games that season – tied for third most in NHL history – and stopped 2,172 shots (9th most all-time). While his save percentage (.903%) and goals against average (3.09) aren’t ideal, I think it’s more than fair to say that these numbers were a reflection of the team constructed in front of him.

The Jackets had a mostly forgettable season that year aside from the play of Denis and a young rookie named Rick Nash. But, the fact that Denis played in so many games and kept his save percentage above 90%, makes me wonder how good he might have been if he’d still been a member of that terrific Colorado team from the same year. Even though we can’t write this down as an all-time season by a Blue Jacket goaltender, it was an impressive set of statistics that we had to point out.

ANAHEIM, CA – JANUARY 11: Marc Denis #30 of the Columbus Blue Jackets makes a save off of Stanislav Christov #23 of the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in the third period during the game on January 11, 2003 at The Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California. The game ended in a 3-3 tie. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – JANUARY 11: Marc Denis #30 of the Columbus Blue Jackets makes a save off of Stanislav Christov #23 of the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in the third period during the game on January 11, 2003 at The Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, California. The game ended in a 3-3 tie. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

With the well-deserved Marc Denis talk aside, let’s take a look at our list. And since we’re talking about goaltenders, and early Blue Jacket teams, we have a natural transition into the first season we want to highlight.

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