After last season was full of inconsistencies and a failure to earn the trust of the coaching staff or fans, this was a critical year for Damon Severson.
Some were already wondering how the Blue Jackets could get rid of the rest of his contract, and while he does still have five years left at $6.25 million AAV, his performance this season has definitely quieted these thoughts.
He started strong and never looked back
Severson drew attention right away, as he looked noticeably better and played a much more impactful and consistent game than he had in years past.
His much-improved defense combined with fewer turnovers and mistakes in general led to him earning back the trust of Dean Evason early in the year and playing upwards of 20 minutes a night.
He played even better after the coaching change, tallying 15 points in 27 games when Rick Bowness was behind the bench.
The overall solid play and consistency contributed to him leading Blue Jackets defenders in many metrics across the entire season. Both his on-ice goals percentage (55.3%) and expected goals percentage (56.5%) led all Columbus blueliners at even strength, according to MoneyPuck.
He also led the team in both team expected goals for and against per 60 minutes of ice time, showing that his contributions at both ends of the ice were a big reason for the Blue Jackets' success.
Every statistic I listed was also better than last year, with his on-ice goal percentage jumping by 5%. I think that a lot of this came as a result of much better chemistry with his teammates. A lot of the mistakes I noticed from him last year weren't as much about a lack of skill as they were about not being on the same page as the player he was passing to or receiving a pass from.
And while it's fair to say that he probably should have been able to adjust to his teammates in his first two seasons in the organization (and I agree), I think that it's a good sign going forward that he should be able to continue to work well with the core group here.
I also think that it's worth pointing out that he allowed the least expected goals per 60 minutes of ice time when playing on the penalty kill, although he only played 42 minutes when the Jackets were down a man, so it's a small sample size.
So considering that he wasn't used much on special teams, Severson was quietly one of the team's best and most reliable defenders throughout the entire season. Combine that with the offensive improvement under Bowness, and I'm pretty excited to see what he has to offer next year.
He also wasn't afraid to get involved physically, as there were a few times throughout the season where he had to stand up for himself or his teammates, and we got to see a little more fire out of him than we knew he had.
After this success, he has certainly set the bar rather high for himself, and he needs to keep it up as he is expected to play an important part in the Blue Jackets' push for the playoffs in the coming seasons.
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