Are the Jackets cooked? Probably. The question is why. What combination of actions/measures made this a roller coaster season to forget? I don't have all the answers, but there are a few obvious factors, in my opinion.

1) The compressed schedule. To me, this is the biggest factor. Days off and partial days off (practice days) are very important for everyone. Think about it. Hockey players, on average, are about the size of NFL running backs. But their game is much faster and more physical. A day or two a week away from the crashing and bashing is necessary, if only for the mental break.

2) The Olympics break came at just the wrong time. It broke the Jackets' rhythm when they'd been on a roll. For a team trying to go from last place to the playoffs, momentum is a major factor. The Jackets weren't the same team after a three week lull so that a handful of players, league wide, could play a meaningless exhibition tournament. There's already a place where the best players in the world face each other. It's called the National Hockey League. Since Ovechkin, Marchenko, Malkin and many others weren't able to participate, the Olympics can't say that they had the best in the world.

3) Injuries at just the wrong time. Yes, I know the cliche of not blaming injuries. Tell me the blueline didn't take a big drop in skill and talent when Severson was injured. Tell me there isn't something missing because Olivier is out injured. The fact is that the Jackets are not deep enough to not have problems when certain players get injured.

4) Overly high expectations. Last season, the Jackets rode emotion and willpower to the edge of the playoffs. This seems to have made Waddell decide that the roster only needed a few minor tweaks. Worse, it seems that Evason expected the Jackets to be able to rise emotion and willpower, plus those tweaks, into the playoffs. And when the Jackets started digging a hole, Evason didn't have answers. Maybe Waddell waited too late to change coaches or maybe he had no choice from not being able to find a willing replacement until Bowness.

5) An offensive slump at just the wrong time. When was Werenski's last goal? Or Fantilli's? Or Monahan's? You can't win if you don't score and the Jackets haven't been scoring.

There's my five reasons, do you have any to add?