It was a remarkable individual effort, and the goal with just over 12 minutes remaining sparked the Blue Jackets. Josh Anderson and Seth Jones followed with goals, and the Jackets won Game 1 by a 4-3 score on the way to the stunning sweep.
Scoring Savy:That was the biggest goal of his career, but the funny thing is that while Savard became known for his defense as his career went on, he actually came up as an offensive defenseman while playing in the QMJHL.
In his final year of juniors, Savard was the top-scoring defenseman in the league with Moncton, racking up 13 goals and 77 points in 64 games, and he had 121 points in his final 132 junior games in his last two years.
He then immediately showed his offensive abilities at the AHL level as well, posting 11 goals and 44 points in his first full season with Springfield. But as Savard's career went on, he realized his success would hinge on being a below-the-hashmarks defender, and he became known for that much more than his offensive abilities in Columbus.
At the same time, he still showed some pretty good offensive chops at times, including a career-high 11 goals in 2014-15. He ends his CBJ career with a 41-125-166 line in those 597 games, and at least he broke his nearly two-year scoring slump with the team by scoring his final Jackets goal on March 30 against, well, Tampa Bay.
Blocked Shot Savy: While everyone of course enjoyed when Savard chipped in on the defensive end, his on-ice play will be most be remembered for the prodigious amount of shots he blocked in his career.
In fact, no one ate more rubber in a union blue sweater than Savard, as he broke the team record for blocked shots a few years ago. He leaves Columbus with a grand total of 958 blocked shots (it seems a bit sad he couldn't get to 1,000 when all was said and done). Included in that total are more than a few shots that Savard blocked with his derrière, which was one of the most prodigious in team history.
No one really \wants\ to block almost 1,000 shots, but Savard knew that was part of the deal for him to be an effective player. No one put their body on the line for the team quite like No. 58, and he'll always be appreciated for that.
Off the ice: Savard will also be remembered for his personality as much as anything else, including the bushy beard he's grow each year that made him one of the most recognizable Blue Jackets players in franchise history. Of course, one also must remember the times when he'd shave it all off and just go with a mustache as part of Movember fundraising efforts.
