By: D. Frederick Cook
The Eastern Conference is going through a lot of transition right now. You have the big bad Boston Bruins, intentionally taking a step a step or two backward; you have the Detroit Red Wings dealing with life after Mike Babcock; you have the Pittsburgh Penguins salivating over the idea of a legit top-end goal scorer (Phil Kessel) to play with Sidney Crosby.
Then you have teams like the Buffalo Sabres and Toronto Maple Leafs who, while taking solid steps for their future, are likely not quite ready to compete with the best in the East.
The New York Rangers, meanwhile, aren’t exactly distraught over losing Martin St. Louis, and should remain somewhere near the top of the standings. The Washington Capitals always seem to have the Lightning’s number, but let’s not even go there. And then, of course, there are the Montreal Canadiens, but let’s be honest: they’ll go only so far as Carey Price can take them (which might well be a very long way).
I’m not sure if this is an off-the-radar pick or the current sexy pick, but I would not be surprised at all to see the Columbus Blue Jackets take a huge step forward and possibly even come out of the East. Injuries cut the legs off their season last year, and even so, they were always a dangerous opponent. It’s hard to imagine they’ll get so unlucky two years in a row.
John Davidson has proved himself a shrewd manager since taking over as the Blue Jackets’ President of Hockey Operations in 2012. The David Clarkson-for-Nathan Horton trade shows he’s capable of getting outside the box to improve his team.
Recently, he took advantage of the Chicago Blackhawks‘ cap crunch and got away with Brandon Saad, and then solidified his bottom six by adding Gregory Campbell. This was a team that would likely have made the playoffs last year had it not been for injuries, and now, a year older and a year wiser, with fresh blood in their ranks, they might well be the biggest threat the East has to offer.
Maybe it’s the Lightning fan in me who’s intrigued by the Blue Jackets. They remind me a lot of where the Bolts were a couple of years ago. That Lightning team was short on accomplishments, but the talent, young and hungry, was obvious. If, of course, you were paying attention.
The Blue Jackets have a roster full of players, similarly to the Lightning, who aren’t necessarily well-known, but when healthy, they get the job done just as well, if not better, than some of the league’s superstars.
Ryan Johansen is the very blue print of a hulking #1 Center, Nick Foligno scored 31 goals last year, and Sergei Bobrovsky, while sometimes inconsistent, has shown the ability to play at a level few goalies can match. Then you have a veteran like Scott Hartnell, who picked up 60 points last year, projected to play on their third line next season.
For me, it comes down to the Blue Jackets and the Rangers. I don’t think the Rangers’ window is closed quite yet, but if they slip up at all this season, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Blue Jackets are the team to replace them as the East’s most consistent contender (excluding our Lightning, of course) moving forward. And when it comes to the Lightning, specifically, the Blue Jackets are the team I fear most moving forward.
Next: Will the Tampa Bay Lightning Be Seeing Stars Next Season?
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