Dean Evason doesn’t read articles like this one. The Blue Jackets head coach doesn’t have social media, and there's no standings board in the CBJ coaches' room that spells out where Columbus is on a daily basis.
Evason prefers to keep his focus squarely on his team, but even he is aware this Blue Jackets team could be doing something special.
Picked to finish last in the Metropolitan Division and miss the postseason for the fifth straight season by just about every prognosticator in the NHL, the Blue Jackets have hit the midway point of their season in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race.
After last night’s memorable win in Pittsburgh, their first since 2015, the Blue Jackets are tied for the final wild card position with the Pens and firmly in a spot where they'll be playing meaningful hockey in the second half of the season.
“The guys know that we’re in it,” Evason said. "They know we’re in the hunt. More importantly, they know when they come in the dressing room every night for a game, we have a chance to win. We have a chance to win every single night.
“That’s what I think is exciting for the group. It gets them jacked. We have a long way to go, too, but it’s nice to get reinforced with that."
There’s a lot of hockey to go and a bevy of teams in the mix at the moment, and the Blue Jackets will have to adjust and be ready for the fact that the intensity will only get higher as the games become more and more important.
But it’s also a team that has built a quiet confidence and a resilience that has allowed them to bounce back from every challenge thrown at them. From the beginning of the season, they’ve believed they belong in this spot, and nothing that happened in the first half has changed their mind.
“No one had any expectations for us – except for ourselves,” Olivier said. “We expected to make the playoffs. We’re to the halfway point and we’re in the mix. That’s a big thing.”
How They’ve Gotten Here
Any discussion of how the Blue Jackets have worked their way into contention has to start with a couple of players who have become elite performers on a night-in, night-out basis.
Zach Werenski is a two-time All-Star, but he’s put his name in the running for the Norris Trophy this year with an excellent season in which he’s on pace to challenge the team’s single-season scoring record. Kirill Marchenko is right there as well, as in his third season, he’s evolved from a goal scorer into one of the most complete players in the league.
Fellow young talents like the red-hot Dmitri Voronkov as well as Kent Johnson, Cole Sillinger, Adam Fantilli and Denton Mateychuk have played some of their best hockey at the NHL level and still have strides to make, and they’ve been supported by a key group of veterans who are playing good hockey while bringing those players along.
No one has been more important in that regard than Sean Monahan, the free-agent signing who has helped turn the Blue Jackets’ top line into one of the best in the NHL while also providing crucial leadership both on and off the ice. Add in such veterans as Jack Johnson, James van Riemsdyk, Zach Aston-Reese and Kevin Labanc – all acquired this offseason – and the Blue Jackets have a good mix of developing talent and tried-and-true experience.
“We’re gaining experience, and that’s huge,” Olivier said. “I think people underestimate that a lot. Especially with teams that are quote-unquote rebuilding, there’s a lot of chatter around draft picks and prospects and all that stuff, but experience is still very much important. We see it with guys like Monny that came in and just transformed our first line completely.
“We’re still missing (injured leaders Boone Jenner and Erik Gudbranson), but those guys have really come and stabilized the young, raw talent we have on this team. Most guys have taken a step this year in different ways, and those are the guys that are going to help and make sure that it becomes a consistent thing night in, night out for these guys.”
On the ice, the team’s greatest strength has been an offense that has filled up the net, as Columbus is sixth in the NHL in scoring through 41 games. The Blue Jackets are third in the league in 5-on-5 goals, and the power play has taken a major step forward this season to rank 10th in the NHL. Columbus has also put together one of the best home records in the league with a 13-5-3 mark in Nationwide Arena.
The flip sides are the team’s defensive marks and its road record. The Blue Jackets are 31st in the NHL in scoring defense, a combination of a 5-on-5 defense that has gotten better but still allows too many chances – the Jackets are 27th in expected goals allowed per 60 minutes per MoneyPuck.com – a penalty kill that is 28th in the league, and goaltending that has been inconsistent. Meanwhile, their 5-12-3 road record must improve in the second half for the squad to be serious contenders.
You also have to credit the team’s new coaching staff, as Evason has firmed up the team’s systems but just as importantly pushed the right buttons in the locker room.
“It’s very cut and dry what we need to do,” Olivier said. “The thing that I always come back to is, ‘This is earned, not given,’ is our motto this year, and to their credit, whatever decisions (the coaches) have made this this year and whatever the messaging that comes across, it’s always related to that.
“As players, you know what to expect. You know that if you’re not giving your best or you’re not having a good night, you’re going to be held accountable, and that to me inspires more consistent performances from everyone.”
Keeping It Fun
One thing Evason has emphasized at times throughout the season is the need for the team to enjoy itself. It could be a shootout drill at the end of practice, a team bonding activity on the road or as simple as the players going out to dinner with each other, but the head coach wants his team to have fun on a daily basis.
After all, this is the NHL, and you’re playing a game for a living. What’s better than that?
“How the hell could you not be having fun playing hockey in the NHL?” Evason said. “If you’re not having fun playing hockey in the NHL, then there’s seriously something wrong with you. You do it until they tell you (that) you can’t, right? So yeah, I hope the guys are having fun.”
Of course, there’s an old adage in sports that the way to spell fun is simple – W-I-N. It’s not rocket science that the Blue Jackets are having more fun this year winning games than the last few years when they were out of the race by New Year’s Day, so there is a little bit of a chicken or the egg scenario at play.
“It’s a lot more fun winning than losing, certainly,” Evason said. “When you win, you have a lot more fun. But I think that comes from the team aspect of it, and the building of the chemistry. The way that they’ve come together as a group, I think they have each other’s back. They have fun. Then in the room and on the ice, that builds the chemistry of the group, so it’ll give you a better opportunity to have success.”
Indeed, Evason has said multiple times that when he took the job to lead the Blue Jackets, he was told by outside observers that when he came to Columbus, his No. 1 task would be to change what many viewed on the outside as a losing culture.
Instead, when Evason arrived, he was struck by how close-knit the Blue Jackets locker room was.
“I feel like the majority of guys like being at the rink and want to be around each other, and I think that makes for great teams and great success,” Werenski said. “I feel like we have that in here this year, so it’s been a lot of fun coming here and seeing everyone be themselves and do their thing, and how they approach the game, it’s working right now.”
The job is far from done, though, as playoff appearances aren’t handed out through 41 games. The Blue Jackets enter the second half of the campaign playing meaningful hockey, and it’s an opportunity they don’t want to waste.
“It’s great,” Fantilli said when asked about being in the race. “That’s something we’ve been working for all year, something that we were confident we were going to be able to do coming into this season. We don’t want to be satisfied with just being tied in that spot. We want to be able to jump into those (playoff) positions there and jump into the playoffs this year.”
