There's a lot of action ahead for the Blue Jackets, with four games in the next six days – but before we get to that, let's take a look back at the week that was.
Here's what we learned in the second week of 2018.
1) Seth Jones has some comedic chops
We’ll start this one off a bit more lighthearted. Seth Jones appeared on an episode (or, as they call it in their Albertan slang, an “eppy”) of On the Bench, where he got some, uh, interesting advice from the two hosts.
Scaring players off with a slap shot wide of the net? That’s a new one.
Jones did a great job of going with the flow and flexed some comedic chops – far better than many players who have previously appeared on the series.
2) Be Thankful for January’s Schedule
Okay, back to real hockey things.
Four key Jackets are still out of the lineup – Alexander Wennberg, Cam Atkinson, Ryan Murray and Brandon Dubinsky – and their original injury timelines all put them out until about February.
For most teams, these injuries, given the timing, would be a death knell. Luckily, the Jackets schedule may help them stay afloat this month before reinforcements arrive. The team has more breaks of four or more days (3) than sets of back-to-back games (2) this month – and both of those back-to-backs come this week.
This Friday’s game against Vancouver will be the team’s fourth in a six-day span. After that, they’ll play four games in an 18-day span to close out the month. That’s a great way to get a team healthy, but it’s got some other great benefits as well.
The team can’t practice during their bye week, but if there are any kinks in the system to work out, there are two four-day breaks where they can work on those. As for the players who aren’t being held out with injuries, this is key maintenance time for them as well.
A healthy and presumably rested Columbus team will then head into a key February schedule, where 10 of 13 games are against Metropolitan Division foes.
3) Oliver Bjorkstrand is emerging
You’d think a 22-year-old who’s put up 47 points in his first 80 career games would be making a hell of a lot more noise league-wide, but Oliver Bjorkstrand has managed to fly under the radar, even among Blue Jackets fans.
He’s not the goal-scoring dynamo he was in junior – not yet, anyway – but he’s emerged as a gifted playmaker and steady two-way presence in a lineup decimated by injuries. His 26 points through 42 games are good for second on the club, despite averaging just 14:00 per game this season.
Bjorkstrand showed a glimpse of that goal-scoring ability this week in Dallas, though, with two late goals that lifted the Jackets to a 2-1 victory.
A bit of perspective: Bjorkstrand got a 12-game cup of coffee with the Jackets in 2015-16 – he lit it up, with 8 points in 12 games – and he averaged 15:59 over that span. In the next season – one where he got sent back down to the AHL for most of the season – he averaged 14:05 per game.
His current scoring rate puts him on pace for 51 points – legit top-six forward production – despite playing fewer minutes than he ever has. He’s certainly making a case for more ice time – even after the team gets healthy – it’s just a matter of finding linemates who compliment his game.
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