Overall, Oliver Bjorkstrand has had quite a season for the Blue Jackets.
He has set career marks in both goals and points, as well being being just one assist shy of his career high.
Although, even with setting personal records, Bjorkstrand has had some recent struggles with offensive production. Our own Dan Dukart did an in-depth analysis of Bjorkstrand's pointless streak, that stood at ten games at the time and grew to eleven overall.
After being asked what the mindset is when going through long scoreless stretches, especially for a guy who is used to finding the net, this was number 28's response.
"For myself when I have slumps I (try to) keep my game a little bit simple. Focus on the small things, battles, coming back in the zone, (the) small little victories," said Bjorkstrand. "I definitely think that helps your game get going, and when you get a chance, you just gotta find a way to bury it."
And bury it he did against the Edmonton Oilers. Bjorkstrand found the back of the net off of rebound from Cole Sillinger to break his scoreless streak. That goal also happened to be his 25th of the season, the first time he has ever reached that milestone. He went on to tally assists on two of the next three goals and broke his scoring drought in fashion, posting three points that afternoon.
"Yeah, it feels good, (I've) been a little bit in the slumps, so getting a bounce like that definitely helps you mentally," said Bjorkstrand when addressing how it felt to get his first goal since Mar. 29. "You let loose a little bit after the goal, so [sic] wanna build off that in the last few games here."
He was indeed able to build off of that as he scored a goal again on Tuesday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The game might not have gone well for the Blue Jackets, but Bjorkstrand was able to continue his scoring when he notched a goal off a pass from Jack Roslovic just three minutes into the game.
Bjorkstrand has bounced back well from his rough stretch, with four points in the last two games. He will look to continue this momentum with the two remaining games on the season.
