Five moments that stood out for the Columbus Blue Jackets this season
The Blue Jacket season came to an end last night, with a thrilling 6-3 victory over one of the NHL's most elite teams (who cares if they were resting people?!). Now, we'll take a look back at some of the most memorable moments along the way.
By Curtis Deem
There were plenty of headlines throughout this CBJ season. Unfortunately, we were pretty thin on positives again this year. The team struggled to string together any kind of consistency, winning just 27 of 82 games (.329 win percentage).
We hope better times are on the near horizon. It wasn't all bad, and our list does include some positive happenings - but, let's be real, they need to be better next season.
Let's take a look at five of the more notable moments from this Blue Jacket season.
Patrik Laine is concussed by Rasmus Andersson, resulting in a 4-game suspension...
The hit that earmarked the early part of the Blue Jacket season. Late in the 4th game of the season, Calgary Flames defenseman threw a viscous elbow into the head of Blue Jacket winger Patrik Laine.
Calgary’s Rasmus Andersson has been suspended for four games for Charging Columbus’ Patrik Laine, per @NHLPlayerSafety pic.twitter.com/VvpTXylYYU
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) October 21, 2023
The hit had massive repercussions for both the Blue Jackets and the Flames. Andersson was suspended for four games, costing the Flames one of their most valuable defensemen.
More importantly to us, Laine did not return for more than three weeks following this hit. Even worse, he was never the same afterwards.
Laine played just 14 more games this season, posting only 5 goals and 2 assists in that time. His play dropped off so much that the team made him a healthy scratch.
His season came to an abrupt end thanks to another questionable play on December 14th. He would attempt to come back after recovering from his clavicle injury, but ultimately wound up in the NHLPA's player assistance program.
It's obvious that the concussion early in the year left Patrik in a position where he wasn't comfortable on the ice. He was never able to gain his footing; which, combined with being forced into a position he shouldn't be playing, derailed his entire season.
In the end, the second highest paid forward on the Jackets this year accounted for just 9 points in 18 games played. The Rasmus Andersson hit crippled the team early on, but it wasn't the most memorable moment of the year for me.
Let's look at a positive one.