Pre-Tortorella
Until John Tortorella took over as the head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets in October of 2015, the Blue Jackets were a middling team of no real significance in the NHL. The Jackets qualified for the playoffs just twice in franchise history. Their first appearance was a first-round sweep at the hands of the Detroit Red Wings. The second, another first-round loss to the Pittsburg Penguins in six games. Never finishing higher than third in their division, the Blue Jackets were not on the minds of anyone outside of Columbus.
The Tortorella Era Begins
John Tortorella took over for Todd Richards after the Blue Jackets started the 2015-16 season off with an abysmal 0-7 record. It was his hiring that would take the organization from an afterthought to a true playoff contender. Since Tortorella’s hiring, the Blue Jackets have had their first season breaking 100 points, as well as, three consecutive seasons with more than 95 points. These numbers wouldn’t be groundbreaking if they were the statistics for powerhouse teams like Pittsburg or Washington, both of whom are in the same division as the Blue Jackets. However, these show a substantial change for a team that averaged 69 points a season leading up to Tortorella’s tenure. With those successful seasons, the Blue Jackets have qualified for the playoffs in each of the last four seasons with Tortorella behind the bench, including last season’s incredible first-round sweep of the President’s cup-winning Tampa Bay Lightning.
Columbus Blue Jackets Lack of Star Power
Tortorella is well-deserving of praise for just how well his teams have performed all without any real marquee names in the lineup. With the exception of last season’s Artemi Panarin and Matt Duchene. Columbus’ lone superstar had been the goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. The big-name skaters in Columbus: Nick Foligno, Brandon Dubinsky, Matt Calvert, Cam Atkinson, Boone Jenner. Not exactly names you expect to see all over the NHL network. However, all of those guys are veterans with plenty of experience in the NHL. That experience, blended with the influx of young talent, thanks to former President John Davidson and GM Jarmo Kekalainen, has given John Tortorella a team that he can form to play his brand of tough, physical and relentless hockey.
Jarmo Kekalainen Goes All-In
Kekalainen and Davidson’s personnel decisions have been the catalyst for the Blue Jackets’ recent success. They have given John Tortorella plenty of talented players to work with. The pair made big trades, and big draft picks to build the Blue Jackets roster. They made four major trades, the first occurred during the 2014-15 season, and sent Artem Anisimov, Marco Dano, and two prospects to the Chicago Blackhawks for Brandon Saad. The second, in 2015, saw the Blue Jackets trade their first-line center, Ryan Johansen, to the Nashville Predators for Seth Jones. In 2017 Brandon Saad returned to Chicago in exchange for Artemi Panarin. The final major trade was made in 2019 after two consecutive playoff births and first-round losses. And with Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky becoming free agents after the season. Kekalainen traded two prospects and two first-round draft picks to get Matt Duchene from the Ottawa Senators.
Jarmo Builds a Young, Talented Core.
Aside from the trades, Kekalainen has mainly built the Columbus roster organically, through the draft. With great scouting, Kekalainen had consistently hit on his picks. As a result, John Tortorella has a roster loaded with youth and talent. Of the 32 players on Columbus’ roster, only 10 of them were not drafted by Columbus. Kekalainen has done a phenomenal job of finding talent and identifying the right players to fit into John Tortorella’s system. Some of the players he drafted include Alexandre Texier, Zach Werenski, Elvis Merzlikins, and Pierre-Luc Dubois. These players make up the young core for the Blue Jackets. Kekalainen has consistently drafted players that have developed and are now key producers for Columbus. Zach Werenski is one of the top offensive defensemen in the NHL, Korpisalo was named an All-star, Merzlikins played at an all-star caliber level when filling in for Korpisalo when he was injured.
Blue Jackets 2020 Play-In recap
John Tortorella had this young roster ready to go for Game 1 of their play-in series. Even while dealing with the unusual circumstances within the bubble due to Covid-19. Columbus played a very clean defensive game. Shutting out Toronto, the game’s only goal was scored by Columbus’ Cam Atkinson. In his first start, Joonas Korpisalo became the first goalie since 2015 to record a shutout in his playoff debut. Game 2, was completely dominated by the Maple Leafs, winning 3-0 over Columbus. Game 3 started where Game 2 left off, with Toronto jumping out to a 3-0 lead. But, after a goalie change by Tortorella. The Blue Jackets would storm back to win in overtime off of the back of a hat trick by Pierre-Luc Dubois. In-Game 4 the Jackets dominated the ice for 57 minutes. However, in the last 3 minutes, they blew a 3-0 lead and went on to lose in overtime. Columbus then secured their spot in the playoffs with a 3-0 win in game 5 taking the series 3-2. The Blue Jackets will face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round.
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