BLUE JACKETS MAKE PLAYOFF PUSH

     With only twelve games remaining in their season, the Columbus Blue Jackets are looking to find the right chemistry to make a push for the playoffs. General manager MixtureBill sat on the fence for this year’s trade deadline, stating that after being a buyer earlier in the year he didn’t think it was the right move to become a seller with the playoffs at arm's length away. Having already shipped out the team's next two years' first and fourth-round picks to help improve the squad, the GM decided to stick to his guns and see if that would help buy him a bit of good luck from The Hockey Gods. Though Tavares was shopped after seeing the massive price being paid for talented forwards, there were ultimately no takers and he remains an integral part of the team, anchoring the team’s top line. 

     The Jacket’s most prominent moves this season have come in the form of two top centers, Patrice Bergeron and Elias Lindholm. Once Bergeron and Lindholm were added to the team, Columbus’ second-line center from the start of the season, Ryan O’Reilly, became expendable and the Jackets moved him out in favor of beefing up the blue line, bringing in veteran defenseman Mattias Ekholm. Andrew Peeke and Erik Gudbranson were also added earlier in the season with the hopes of adding some physicality. Though it’s nice to admire the shiny new toys, fans shouldn’t lose focus on the players that have been here all year. Johnny Gaudreau was expected to make a big impact on the Jackets this season and has held up his end of the bargain, leading the team with 86pts (44g and 42a) in 70 games this year, which has him amongst the top point-getters in the league.  

     In somewhat of a quiet move, the Jackets decided to fire head coach Brad Larsen at the end of February and bring in a new voice behind the bench. Veteran coach Ralph Krueger was available, just sitting there on the shelf, and the Jackets decided that Larsen had this team underperforming the GM’s expectations and that it was time to move on. A slight change that Kruger decided to make of late has been his decision to move away from this year’s planned backup netminder, Charlie Lindgren, in favor of rookie goaltender Lukas Dostal. Dostal has played well in his three games for the Jackets, winning all of his starts, with a very impressive stat line featuring a 1.33 GAA and a stellar .956 SV%. Lindgren just wasn’t able to get the job done this season seeing 16 games between the pipes and really struggling with a team-worst .907 SV% and averaging slightly over a 3.0 GAA, with that number coming in at 3.05. The team’s starting netminder, Elvis Merzlikins, has been a bright spot for the squad this year with numbers amongst the top goalies in the league. Thus far Merzlikins has posted a .927 SV% and a 2.22 GAA but has disappointingly only managed to win 28 of his 53 starts. 

     The Blue Jackets have been on a bit of a hot streak, going 6-3-1 in their last ten games, and out-scoring their opponents 29-19 over that period of time. The team has been alternating wins and losses for a good stretch, but after a back to back wins against the Ducks and Golden Knights, is this the light at the end of the tunnel the Jackets were looking for? It’ll be a nailbiter trying to leapfrog two teams and overcome their 3-point deficit for the final wildcard slot with only 12 games remaining, but MixtureBill remains positive that he’s at least given his squad a fighting chance.