5 Columbus Blue Jackets who need to turn things around

Going into a crucial 2018-19 season, the Columbus Blue Jackets face a ton of pressure to not just make the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but to win in the postseason as well.  They need more from these five players. 

For the first time in franchise history, the Columbus Blue Jackets have made it to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in consecutive seasons. However, they are still looking to advance out of the first round for the first time. After losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in their previous two appearances, they thought they’d have better luck against the Washington Capitals. Despite having a 2-0 series lead, the Blue Jackets lost to them 4-2.

Going into the 2018-19 season, Columbus will face a ton of pressure to win. Both Sergei Bobrovsky and Artemi Panarin are going to be free agents after the season. Those are arguably their two best players, or at least two of their best three.

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Neither player is likely to negotiate during the season, so unless something gets worked out before the season, this could be their last rodeo with this roster.

The Blue Jackets have found the recipe for regular season success. It’s much harder to put together than many people would like to think. However, it’s one thing to win during the 82 game season. It’s quite another to win in the brutal postseason. The Blue Jackets lack a killer instinct, much like the Capitals did before the 2017-18 season.

Ironically, the Caps are proof that Columbus might not be screwed. All it takes to exorcise your demons is one big win. You could see all the pressure alleviated from the Capitals once Evgeny Kuznetsov scored in overtime in Game 6 to eliminate the Penguins. It’s not hard to see the Blue Jackets undergoing a similar process.

However, in order to have postseason success, they’ll need contributions from across the roster. That means the Blue Jackets will need certain players to step it up and improve. Let’s take a look at those five key players who Columbus needs a lot more from moving forward.

All stats are courtesy of Natural Hat Trick. Unless otherwise noted, they’re at five-on-five.