Columbus Blue Jackets have a goaltending controversy
Thanks to early struggles from Sergei Bobrovsky, the Columbus Blue Jackets have one of the NHL’s most unexpected and fascinating goaltending controversies.
Entering this season, the Columbus Blue Jackets had a well-balanced team. However, their goaltending was arguably their greatest strength. Though the blue line features Seth Jones and the forward core features Artemi Panarin, only the latter has won a major award (and that was the Calder Trophy with the Chicago Blackhawks).
With two-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky in net, it wasn’t a stretch to say the Blue Jackets best player before this season began was a goalie. Thus far, Bob has been anything but his usual self.
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Bobrovsky’s save percentage through 11 games is .882. While he has the tendency to be a bit of a slow starter, that’s still the second-worst save percentage he’s had in the first month of any season since joining the Blue Jackets in 2012-13. Bobrovsky is the heart and soul of Columbus, so his early struggles are especially concerning for a team who wants to win now.
Backup goaltender Joonas Korpisalo hasn’t done much better, as he has a .881 save percentage. This puts the Blue Jackets in a bit of an awkward position. As weird as it might sound given how great Bobrovsky has been in recent seasons, Columbus has a huge goaltending controversy. Its implications could shake up the NHL.
The pink elephant in the Blue Jackets locker room that no one wants to address is Bobrovsky’s upcoming free agency. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after the 2018-19 season. Even though fellow goaltenders Pekka Rinne and Semyon Varlamov will be free agents as well, Bobrovsky should be a hot commodity. He’s the youngest of the three.
Bobrovsky’s contract situation made him a trade candidate even before his slow start. His abysmal October leaves the Blue Jackets in a bit of an odd position. Trading Bobrovsky was never going to be easy, given what he means to the team. Now, it’ll be equally hard, if not more so, to move him. But it will be for a reason no one anticipated – Bobrovsky’s underperforming.
His struggles will make suitors hard to come by. Because Bobrovsky is going to be a free agent after this season, unless he’s open to signing an extension, that limits his suitors to contenders. The Catch 22 is which contenders would be interested in taking on Bobrovsky’s cap hit, given his struggles. Columbus might have to wait for a team to lose their starting goalie long-term before they can move him for a decent price.
The decision with Bobrovsky is pretty simple thanks to his age (29 years old). Let him walk unless you can get him to sign another short-term deal. A long-term deal is far too risky for the Blue Jackets at this point.
However, Korpisalo’s struggles give the Blue Jackets a bit of an uncertain future. In 68 career starts, he only has a .908 save percentage. That’s far from ideal from someone the Blue Jackets are grooming to be a franchise goaltender. Unless Korpisalo’s struggles go away, Columbus would be wise to explore the free agent market for a goalie who can start.
Looking at the options, it’s not that pretty. Varlamov is certainly an option, but his age might scare off the Blue Jackets. Cam Talbot could be an option, but like the others, his age is worth being concerned about.
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The Blue Jackets goaltending controversy is one that NHL fans should keep an eye on. It could affect a variety of important parts in the 2019 offseason and potentially even this season as well if (and when) Bobrovsky is traded.