Bold prediction #4: Kent Johnson will lead the Blue Jackets in scoring this season.
The Kent Johnson hype train has not passed us by this fall. We are definitely on board with #91 having a breakout year for the Blue Jackets this season. Our Mike Stump predicts that he'll lead the team in scoring.
I made a similar prediction last season, which fell flat on its face. Hopefully this time around, we get it right. If KJ can produce like we know he's capable of doing, this team is going to be in much better shape.
So far through training camp and the preseason, he looks primed to do exactly that. Johnson returned to camp energized, looking stronger, and more confident than ever. Combining this with his impressive skillset, who better to predict as the driver of this team's offense this season?
We wrote just last week about him being one of the highest ceiling offensive players in the organization. Kent has that rare ability to change the pace of the game with the puck on his stick. He's a pass-first guy, who will have plenty of quality shooters to distribute to this year. But he's also shown more of a penchant for putting pucks on net this fall, too.
A confident, well-rounded Kent Johnson is bad news for the rest of the NHL. Hopefully, he's kicked aside that nasty sophomore slump, and is ready to show the rest of the world what he can do. Maybe to the tune of 70 points? Let's keep our fingers crossed.
Our final prediction isn't quite as bold. It's probably the most likely to come true.