After another big win at home against the Dallas Stars last night, the Columbus Blue Jackets find themselves back in a playoff spot this morning. With only four games remaining until the NHL trade deadline (March 7th), it's likely that the outcomes will decide whether they buy or sell. Of course, they could also do a bit of both.
But, it's my opinion that the Jackets would be wise to only tinker around the edges of this roster. This is a team that is working hard and performing well above expectations, and there's no reason to fiddle with that success. All we have to do is look towards a divisional rival to see what can happen.
Last month, the Carolina Hurricanes and Colorado Avalanche made one of the biggest NHL blockbuster trades we've seen in recent seasons. The Canes sent speedy winger Martin Necas, checking center Jack Drury to Colorado to acquire superstar winger Mikko Rantanen. In the same deal, they acquired Taylor Hall from the Chicago Blackhawks; throwing in multiple draft picks to make the deal work for all sides.
To this point, this trade has been an absolute disaster for the Canes. Rantanen and Hall have scored a combined 1 goal and 4 points in the 8 games since the trade; while Necas has 9 points in 10 games with the Avalanche. In that span, they are 3-5-0, well off their regular pace.
Certainly, Rantanen's struggles could be blamed on his 4% shooting percentage since the trade (he averages around 16% for his career). But, things have gone so poorly that many are speculating as to whether or not the Canes might actually flip him ahead of the deadline. These rumors seem to be growing as the shell-shocked star ponders signing a reported 9-digit contract extension to stay in Raleigh.
Chemistry is crucial in hockey.
That all of this comes after Don Waddell left Carolina for Columbus, actually gives me a lot of hope that the Jackets will be steered properly. The Hurricanes have been one of the Eastern Conference powerhouse teams for the last half decade or so, winning the Metropolitan Division three years in a row and making the playoffs in six straight seasons.
It's very noteworthy that the team was run like a well oiled machine under Waddell's watch. It's even more noteworthy that they didn't typically go out and made huge trade splashes at the deadline while he was there; often opting for depth adds instead. This is what I expect the Jackets to do this season.
Like the Jackets, the Canes are a team we can say is better than the sum of its parts. They haven't been a team loaded with star talent during this successful stretch of time. Their best offensive player (Sebastian Aho) is a guy who averages less than 80 points per season.
Rod Brind'Amour squeezes every ounce of energy out of his team every single night. They win games because everyone buys into the system, sticks within their role, and competes hard each and every shift. This year, they evidently thought they were close enough to take a big swing; but the guys they acquired definitely seem to be struggling within this system.
The Jackets are building in that direction, and should stay the course.
The system is the most important thing here, as well. Dean Evason has stepped in and changed the entire culture around this group. After years of losing, the Jackets are playing as a cohesive unit from the top down. Even fiery goaltender Elvis Merzlikins has toned back the emotions and started having fun again.
The last thing this team needs is to go out and make a big trade deadline splash. The guys who are here have worked very hard to right the ship. They deserve a chance to prove or disprove their capabilities in the roles they have, down the stretch in meaningful games.
Imagine what might happen to the room if they went out and traded for a top line winger, for example. Dmitri Voronkov, Sean Monahan, and Kirill Marchenko have been one of the NHL's best lines this season. Moving one of them down the depth chart breaks up that chemistry, and changes the role of every forward in the lineup. You can see where this could upset the process.
I do think they could use some depth adds. Maybe a third line scoring winger (depending on the health of Yegor Chinakhov), and a shutdown defenseman to play on the second or third pair (this becomes more important if they trade Ivan Provorov). But otherwise, there's no need for this team to take a swing at this year's deadline. Let's see where this group can take them.