Pool Outlook for Columbus

Another up-and-down year for the Columbus Blue Jackets, struggling to find any sort of consistency through the 2011 season.  A new coaching philosophy, goaltending confidence issues, some development stalls in their system and plenty of injuries were the leading causes of some more growing pains in Ohio and bright spots were somewhat few and far between for the club as well.  The Central Division is also not the easiest division to play in when a team is going through many of these growing pains, as three out of the five teams are very established in their ways and have systems in place... a tough environment to grow collectively.

No real surprise here, as Rick Nash finished as the best Blue Jackets scorer again in the 2011 season, scoring 66 points (32 goals and 34 assists) in 75 games, ranking 47th in pool scoring this year, 30th among all forwards.  Nash's potential still exists for some pretty big numbers, but he'll need some more quality help to get him to where he needs to be.  Thankfully for Columbus, he is signed on for the long-term, so they'll be responsible for getting him that help down the line, helping both his numbers and wins in the season.

In behind Nash, the Blue Jackets had an array of talent, from some veteran help, rookie surprises and some hired guns through the year, but nothing that really stuck out and gave the Jackets more wins in the season.  R.J. Umberger (57 points in 82 games), Antoine Vermette (47 points in 82 games), Derrick Brassard (47 points in 74 games), Jakub Voracek (46 points in 80 games) and Scottie Upshall (34 points in 82 games, between Phoenix and Columbus) were all the big forwards of note, all of which, will have to raise their game an extra level or two before the Jackets are in contention again.

On defense, the numbers are not quite as bad as they may seem, since the scoring numbers were all kind of low, but they still had five defensemen in the top 100 of that position's scoring.  Fedor Tyutin led all Columbus blueliners with 27 points in 80 games, followed by Kris Russell (23 points in 73 games), Jan Hejda (20 points in 77 games), Grant Clitsome (19 points in 31 games) and Anton Stralman (18 points in 51 games) led the way, providing a solid base to build around.

In net, it was time to ride Steve Mason again, who was trying to bounce back from a rough sophomore season, where he kind of fell off the map a little bit.  Unfortunately, he was only able to post 24 wins and 55 points in the pool, which wasn't quite good enough to make a mark in the Western Conference playoff race.  Behind him, Mathieu Garon wasn't much better, winning 10 games, picking up 27 points, but still may find somewhere to play as a seasoned back-up in the NHL, if he doesn't return to Columbus.

2012 Pool Outlook
There is a lot of work to be done for Columbus this Summer, as there are a lot of openings, especially in the back end, that will have to be locked up before the team goes anywhere.  Fortunately, the Jackets do have a number one goalie and some offensive talent up front to help build around.  If the Jackets can get some production from some of their youth, the transition into the 2012 season could be much easier.

Forwards	Defense	Goalies
Rick Nash	Fedor Tyutin	Steve Mason
R.J. Umberger	Kris Russell
Antoine Vermette
Derrick Brassard
Kristian Huselius
Derek MacKenzie
Matt Calvert
Sami Pahlsson
Derek Dorsett
Jared Boll

The salary cap forecast for the Jackets is fair, as the team above, 14 players, and one buyout comes in at an annual projected total of $36.3 million.  With a bump up in the cap ceiling and floor, the Jackets will be out to spend some money, more so because they have to, than anything else.  Nine players are needed to fill out the 23-man roster, while it would take $9.1 million to get to 2010's cap floor and that number is surely to go up.  If players like Nikita Filatov or Mike Commodore could ever get into the good graces of the team again, burdens could be eased significantly.

The restricted free agent class for the Blue Jackets is where the money should be spent first in the Summer, as Jakub Voracek, Anton Stralman, Sami Lepisto and Marc Methot are all up for new deals this year and all four played some significant roles when the team was finding a way to win some games.  Voracek is likely the big priority, although he hasn't found the same kind of scoring stride that he had in junior.

As for unrestricted free agents, Scottie Upshall, Mathieu Garon, Jan Hejda, Grant Clitsome and Chris Clark should all be up for some new deals and it will be key to see how Jackets management will approach some of these players.  I would imagine that Upshall, Hejda and Clitsome will all be priorities before the July 1st deadline and likely for good reason too.

There is some definite talent in the pool for the Columbus Blue Jackets, but the pool looks awfully shallow of blue chip prospects beyond a small few.  Ryan Johansen had a great showing for Canada at the World Juniors and will likely get a long look in camp for a top six spot, while John Moore did see some time with the big club, but without a regular firing offense, he might go unnoticeable.  I would like to say that we'll see Nikita Filatov again in the 2012 season, but if we do, I have my reservations that he'll be in a Jackets uniform, as his time is surely getting short.

I don't think there is much doubt that the Jackets' biggest need will be in the offensive side of the puck and it wouldn't surprise me if they were able to flip up to get a higher draft pick, maybe flipping Filatov in the process, trading one dynamic forward in hopes of getting someone with a little more size, but with hands, to compliment the likes of Nash.  If they can't flip up to get a player like Sean Couturier, I think there are a few offensive options that the Jackets could revert to, but I can see them trying desperately to flip picks this year.

What I said last year at this time... "For 2011, I'm expecting to see the leash loosened significantly in the forward ranks of the Jackets. Huselius, Voracek, Brassard, Umberger and Filatov should all be allowed to skate with Nash at will and hopefully be allowed to be creative. That being said, I would have to expect a lot more defensive responsibility from the team's defense, in order for that to work expertly. I'm also thinking that Mason will have a Summer of Reflection to bring himself back to centre, where he has known to be his best. If these are the things that come out of the Jackets next season, I am prepared to say right now that they are playoff material again."

Yikes, I was pretty optimistic about the Blue Jackets last year.  I mean, how could I not really be optimistic, they have a lot of offensive talent already on the team, but bringing Scott Arniel in as head coach really didn't help their offensive flair, since there is a push for almost as much defense than previous coaches.  Unfortunately, this may have really limited the Jackets ability to put the puck in the net regularly.  Very unfortunate, really, the Blue Jackets and their fans really need something to get behind soon.

The 2012 edition of the Blue Jackets will rely heavily on the team's star players yet again.  Rick Nash, Kris Russell and Steve Mason will all have to have banner years, if Columbus is going to make the playoffs again.  Is it possible?  Yes.  Is it probable?  That really depends on what the Summer is like to the team.  If management is going to be aggressive with some free agent acquisitions, not to mention giving some of the team's more offensively gifted youth a better shot, I think it is probable.  If the desire remains that defense comes first and try to buckle down in front of Mason, well, they might not score enough goals to make it worth while.  Looking at the team table above now, I would say less probable, but that's why we have an off-season.