Always love a little history on the line.
During Sunday's 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks, Jake Voracek recorded his 50th assist of the season on Cole Sillinger's goal at 7:22 of the third period.
Three goals in the last four for Cole. pic.twitter.com/JJTs2fGEvE #CBJ
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) April 18, 2022
And that got us thinking.
Voracek is just nine assists shy of Artemi Panarin's franchise record of 59 set in 2018-19. He's one of three Blue Jackets to have 50 in a season, and he's fourth on the franchise list for most in a season.
With six games left in the regular season, could Voracek get hot and tie, or pass, that record?
It's certainly going to take a lot but it's not out of the realm.
However, the Blue Jackets being without Patrik Laine—day-to-day with an upper-body injury—for any stretch of games over the final few days certainly would make that quest harder. Voracek has connected on nine of Laine's 26 goals this season and generally speaking, we know how effective both are in creating offense.
Both have hooked up together on 23 scoring plays for the Blue Jackets this season, whether that's Laine assisting Voracek (twice), Voracek assisting Laine, or both earning assists on the same goal. No wonder Voracek and Laine are 1-2 in points for the club, with Laine leading by one, 56-55.
It's even more interesting considering Voracek only has five goals to go with his 50 assists, creating one interesting stat line.
Voracek was onto something when he said after their win over the Flyers in January, just as Laine's scoring surge was taking off, that Laine can still shoot more. Laine is a point per game player for the Blue Jackets, while Voracek is tied for second with Boone Jenner (0.75).
Quite the difference from the beginning of the season when Voracek joked about Laine not scoring when he's on the ice.
"I feel like (Laine) only scores when I'm not on the ice," Voracek said with a smile. "So I gotta talk to him, you know. What's up?"
Even if first place isn't attainable when it's all said and done, Voracek is within striking distance of second place on that franchise list—Panarin had 55 assists in 2017-18—and he's two behind Ray Whitney (52, 2002-03) for third on the list.
Considering how few Blue Jackets have reached 50 assists in a single season, it speaks to the greater impact a pass-first player in Voracek brings to the club. He's among the league leaders in primary assists per game (0.49).
We talked about Oliver Bjorkstrand's two-goal game in their win against the New Jersey Devils in January and Bjorkstrand talked about Voracek's pass-first style. Voracek just so happened to assist on both goals.
"With (Voracek), I feel like you just have to find the open space and he'll give you the puck so I gotta try to find that space a little more often," Bjorkstrand said. "He'll definitely pass it."
Players know they have to be aware of Voracek at all times when they're on the ice with him.
"He's a really good playmaker so every time he has the puck you know that there's a chance the puck can be coming towards you," Bjorkstrand said.
"You just have to be a little bit aware, try to find the open ice and get open, because he likes to pass it more than shoot it so that's just a mindset and you got to be ready for it."
When Jarmo Kekalainen made the trade to acquire Voracek last summer, he knew the dynamic would shift.
"I think it changes the whole complexion of our team," Kekalainen said. "(He's a) bigger player. He can pass."
With six games remaining in the regular season, it'll be fun to see how many more assists Voracek can dish out.
