Columbus Blue Jackets: Top 3 questions that need to be answered in 2020

2. Can Their Goaltending Continue To Carry Them?

Going into this season, I didn’t know what the heck to expect from the Columbus Blue Jackets goalies. Joonas Korpisalo was entering his first year as the number one goalie, while Elvis Merzlikins had never played in an NHL game.

This season, the Blue Jackets goalies have been put to the test, having to replace Sergei Bobrovsky, who won two Vezina Trophies in Columbus. Both Korpisalo and Merzlikins have significantly outperformed Bobrovsky. In 37 games, the former has a .911% save percentage, which is above the league average. Meanwhile, the latter has emerged as a stud with a .923% save percentage in 33 games.

Merzlikins has been especially impressive as of late. Since the start of 2020, he has made 22 appearances, stopping over 93% of the shots on goal he has seen and posting five shutouts. Their team save percentage of .913% is the fifth-highest in the NHL. In the postseason, that could give them a huge advantage.

But on the other hand, goalies do best when they stay busy. They love routines and thrive when they have them. Through no fault of their own, the pandemic has messed a lot things up, and that includes everyone’s routines. The Blue Jackets need their goalies to get back on track, which is going to be a lot harder to do than it sounds.