Despite the massive trades that Jarmo Kekalainen pulled off on February 25, the Columbus Blue Jackets will still miss the playoffs. Here’s why.
The Columbus Blue Jackets added both Matt Duchene, Ryan Dzingel, and Keith Kinkaid to their roster and yet this team will still miss the playoffs. This isn’t entirely the team’s fault, more of their position in the standings and the strength of their competition.
When the Blue Jackets made those massive trades, the team was two points out of a playoff spot. Over two weeks have passed and they are still in the same position. Considering how well their competitors are playing right now, Columbus doesn’t have a shot. Here’s a look at the three teams that are in the mix:
1. Carolina Hurricanes
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The Carolina Hurricanes have chosen the perfect time to heat up and they are currently the hottest team in the NHL. The team is 8-1-1 in its last 10 games and 19-6-2 since the start of 2019. Everything is clicking for this team right now and we have seen tons of different Storm Surge celebrations. Curtis McElhinney has been solid in net, Sebastian Aho and Alex Galchenyuk are producing like crazy, and this team is showing no signs of slowing down.
At this rate, the Hurricanes are giving the New York Islanders a run for their money as they are only 4 points behind and Columbus can only stand back and watch as the Hurricanes pull away.
2. Pittsburgh Penguins
Only fools bet against Sidney Crosby and right now, no one is stopping him. He reached the 1200 point plateau, becoming the 11th fastest player in league history to reach that milestone. In his last 31 games, he has recorded 48 points and is dragging the Pittsburgh Penguins into the playoff picture. The team has gone 6-2-2 in their last 10 games and Matt Murray has started to play very well.
Early in the season, Murray was floundering but since December, he has stabilized for the team. A .959 sv% in December, .917 in January, and a .920 in February has brought the Penguins back into contention and his shutout against the Blue Jackets last night certainly helped.
Last night, Columbus had the chance to close in on Pittsburgh but instead, they lost 3-0 to the Penguins and are still two points out. With a team with Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel, Kris Letang, and Matt Murray, they will always be competitive and Columbus seems unable to keep up.
3. Montreal Canadiens
This is the complete wild card of the Eastern Conference but like how betting against Sidney Crosby is ridiculous, so is betting against a healthy Carey Price. Price has the ability to not only carry the Canadiens into the playoffs but also past the first round. Since December, Price has a .931 save percentage, including three shutouts and a 19-10-1 record.
Price has been rolling, but so has the rest of the team. Max Domi is having the best season of his career with 68 points (22G 38A) and counting. Jonathan Drouin is thriving now that Claude Julien has put him on the wing and Tomas Tatar is on pace for the best season of his career with 48 points in 67 games.
Since Shea Weber‘s return from his ankle injury, the team has gone 25-16-2 and their 5-on-5 play has improved drastically. The team as of late has not been playing to the best of its abilities and they have a tough end to the schedule, with their last four games of the season being against the Winnipeg Jets, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals, and Toronto Maple Leafs. However, with Carey Price in net, anything can happen and as the desperation starts to mount, their play will be accentuated.
The three teams in Columbus’ way are all playing very well and in their last 10 games, the Blue Jackets have gone 4-6-0. Not good enough. It will take the new players like Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel time to acclimatize to their new team, but time is a luxury this team cannot afford. Jarmo Kekalainen has put all his chips in the middle, but with 15 games to go, this season doesn’t seem to be the one.
What do you guys think? Will one of the three teams slow down to give the Blue Jackets a chance? Or has Kekalainen made the wrong bet? Let us know down in the comments!