While the Metro gets stronger, the Blue Jackets keep playing it safe

Are you a baseball fan? Whether you are or not, you've probably heard some sort of phrase revolving around taking swings and hitting home runs. Which is exactly what New Jersey Devils GM Sunny Mehta did this afternoon. He took a swing that could vault his team right into the mix of Stanley Cup contenders in the NHL.

The Devils went out and acquired disgruntled Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck. At a first glance, the return looks to be massive. But really, the more you think about it, these are expendable assets for a team looking to climb over the mountain and win the Cup.

They give up a player they picked 12th overall at the draft, along with a middle six forward, backup goaltender, and some other throw-ins. Hardly anything that tilts the scale too much from their end, especially when you take into account the fact that they just acquired arguably the best goaltender in hockey.

Now, I'm not here to complain about the Blue Jackets not making this deal. I'm sure they could have thrown together a similar offer (maybe even better?) and gotten the attention of the Jets. But they could never be in the running, because there's no way this player would agree to come here. Which is the biggest problem this franchise has.

Don Waddell is playing it too safe.

Take a look at some of the trades that have happened around the league over the last few seasons, since the Blue Jackets hired Don Waddell to be their GM. There has been some serious balance of power shifting type movement, including names like Hellebuyck, Quinn Hughes, Brady Tkachuk, and so on.

Meanwhile, Waddell has gone out and tinkered around the edges of a roster that continuously cannot get over the hump. Rather than going big game hunting and trying to land any of these guys-or even change his team's perception to get off of their no-trade clauses-Waddell has played it mostly safe, instead targeting reliable two-way players with term on their contracts.

The result shouldn't surprise us. While teams below the Jackets leap-frog over them, and teams above the Jackets continue to pull away; this team has remained stagnant in its current build. They aren't able to attract any meaningful talent here because, well, they suck. They have played it too safe.

Do we really see this team competing against a Carolina or New Jersey in a first round playoff series? Could we even count on them to stand up to 7 games against the Washington Capitals, who are the next best team in the division? I don't think so.

This team's absolute ceiling right now appears to be a fringe wild card spot, and that's if a lot of things go right. The concerning thing about this is, there isn't really much here to change that perception. This roster is now loaded with aging veterans whose contracts prevent the organization from making any other meaningful moves. Like trading for a star player, or signing a big ticket free agent.

You can't hit a home run if you don't swing the bat. And with the team pressed right against the salary cap, there really isn't a bat in Waddell's hand at this point. He's painted himself into the corner.

As everyone in their division and conference innovates and gets stronger, the Blue Jackets are content with just being here. Once again, it looks like this organization will get left in the dust.

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