If you take a look at the Blue Jackets' official lineup cards for last season, you'll see Sean Monahan penciled in as the Centerman on the second line most evenings, in between a conga line or who's who of two wingers. At various times, "Monny" skated with various combinations of... (take a deep breath...)
Boone Jenner, Danton Heinen, Kent Johnson, Dmitri Voronkov, Luca Del Bel Belluz, Miles Wood, Egor Chinakhov, Conor Garland, Cole Sillinger, Luca Pinelli, Isac Lundeström, Kirill Marchenko and Mathieu Olivier.
Alright, take another deep breath. Do you see a problem here?
One of the Jackets' fatal flaws in the 2025-26 campaign was the lack of consistent scoring from their second line. Ultimately, their "third line" of Sillinger-Coyle-Olivier ended up being more of a second line than the one Monahan often-centered despite Coyle's line having more of a "checking" reputation.
After putting up 57 points in just 54 games a season before, Monahan reportedly played with illnesses and injuries for most of the 2025-26 season, and it showed.
While he played in 78 games, he slashed just a 13-23-36 line in those games, while posting a -1 rating, a secondary-career-low 9.9 shooting % (he shot 7.2% in 2021-2022), 12 penalty minutes, and only a single power play goal across the entire campaign.
While he was still consistent in the faceoff dot (52.3%, higher than his career average of 51.2%), his lack of consistent scoring during this season was his unfortunately his most visible quality.
Analytically, his profile isn't much better. His reputation of being a smart, two-way scoring center doesn't hold up much under the hood either. His -20 goal differential on the penalty kill was 23rd worst in the NHL among 394 forwards, and he was in the top 30 of high danger shot attempts against and on-ice shot attempts against as well (minimum of 1 minute played on the PK).
His power play numbers don't fare any better, where he was second to last on the club in Expected Goals For per 60 (5.88) and High Danger Shots For per 60 (6.66), second only to Boone Jenner. His even strength goal differential was a +/- 0.
"Monny" is a guy that's easy to like, easy to root for, and easy to see when he's at his best. His wicked quick-shot release, underrated playmaking ability, and cerebral way he goes about the game makes him impossible to ignore, and opens up opportunities for his teammates.
There's a reason he was a point-per-game player for the Jackets in his first season in Columbus. It's also a big reason why linemates like Kent Johnson, Conor Garland, and Dmitri Voronkov struggled so much down the stretch.
If the CBJ are to break their 7 season drought of home playoffs games, they need Monahan to get healthy and find his game again. If he does, the postseason might come calling for the CBJ. If he doesn't, the dark days will likely continue in Columbus for a long time coming.
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