Columbus Blue Jackets are peaking at the perfect time
After struggling with consistency for most of the season, the Columbus Blue Jackets are surging up the standings
The 2017-18 NHL season is coming to a close. Now’s the time for teams to gain some confidence going into the playoffs and iron out any wrinkles they might have. Right now is the best time for teams to start peaking. That’s precisely what’s happening with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Just over a month ago, they were trending in the wrong direction. On Feb. 9, they had just lost both ends of a home-and-home against the Washington Capitals. This gave them five straight losses and a 27-23-4 record.
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You could see frustration starting to kick in for them. Back-to-back defeats against the LA Kings and Anaheim Ducks on consecutive nights put them once again unofficially below .500.
Since those consecutive losses to start March, the Blue Jackets have won seven straight. After struggling to score for most of the season, Columbus has at least three goals in all but one game during their current seven-game winning streak. Four of those wins have come against teams currently in the playoffs, including the Vegas Golden Knights and Philadelphia Flyers.
Last season, the Blue Jackets were led by an almost-historic winning streak. However, they finished the season in a slump and it showed in the postseason. This time around, the Blue Jackets are peaking when they need to be playing their best hockey.
Columbus probably won’t catch the Capitals, who are six points ahead of them. But the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins, two of the top three teams in the Metropolitan Division, are well within reach.
The last thing the Blue Jackets want is to be in a wild card spot. This ensures they’d have to face either the Capitals or the Tampa Bay Lightning or the Boston Bruins in the first round. It would also force them to play on the road, where the Blue Jackets have been less than stellar this season (15-17-3).
Fans of hockey should be rooting for Columbus to grab the third spot in the division. This would give us a first-round series between the Penguins and Blue Jackets. They have an epic rivalry and the NHL needs more of John Tortorella and Mike Sullivan screaming at each other.
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The aura around the Blue Jackets this year seems different. They’re looking extremely confident, just like they did during that winning streak in 2016-17. But this time, the Blue Jackets are peaking at the right time. And the rest of the Eastern Conference should take note.