SvoNotes: Columbus products having big impact for Blue Jackets

Three short years ago, Kole Sherwood led the way, as the forward became the first Columbus-born and bred player to make his debut for the Blue Jackets when he did so in February 2019.
Last season, Jack Roslovic made two, as the skilled center was acquired as part of the Patrik Laine/Pierre-Luc Dubois trade. Sean Kuraly then signed as a free agent this past summer to come home, and Carson Meyer made his NHL debut earlier this month as well.

Add in Cole Sillinger -- he didn't grow up in Columbus but was born in the capital city when his father, Mike, played for the Blue Jackets -- and there's a distinct local flavor to the Blue Jackets of late. With the organization celebrating its 21st season, the boom of hockey excitement that took hold when the franchise started in the year 2000 is starting to become quite bountiful when it comes to producing high-level players including NHLers.
But what has happened recently is not just a celebration of the local hockey community but a validation of its success. Since Meyer debuted April 4 against Boston, the Blue Jackets have scored 24 goals, and 20 of them were either scored or assisted by a player born or raised in Columbus.
"It's cool stuff," Kuraly said. "I'm proud of Columbus, I'm proud of the city, I'm proud to be on this team, and success is obviously something we're all working really hard to have. I think it says more about Columbus than it does us as players, the hockey system, the coaches, the people around us that have supported us. You have an infrastructure for kids to come up and play hockey in Columbus, and we're the byproduct of that."
The red-hot Roslovic has led the way during that span with seven goals and an assist for eight points, while Kuraly has three tallies and two assists in that span, Sillinger has a trio of goals and two assists, and Meyer has a goal and two assists.
One of the most special of those tallies came Saturday night in Los Angeles, as Meyer threw a centering pass to the net for Kuraly to drive home. While we are yet to see a goal that includes contributions from Roslovic, Kuraly and Meyer, the three are all products of the Ohio AAA Blue Jackets junior program and count each other among close friends.

"It's really cool," Meyer said of the goal. "(Kuraly) was a role model for me for years growing up and somebody who has always given me advice and somebody to look up to. Now I have a chance to be teammates with him and linemates and to help set up his goal, it's a pretty cool moment for me."
So far, the AAA Blue Jackets program also has produced NHL players in Chicago's Connor Murphy, Colorado's Kiefer Sherwood and Justin Richards of the New York Rangers, as well as 30-plus professional players and 150-plus college hockey players. Starting next year, the organization will be beginning a girls program to help young women be able to get to the highest level as well.
And all of them can look at what is happening at Nationwide Arena and draw inspiration by the success of the hometown Blue Jackets.
"I think it's awesome for the kids," Meyer said. "The more guys that make it through to the American League and the NHL and even D-I, it just shows these kids that they can have belief in the AAA Blue Jackets organization to get them where they want to go if they are willing to put the work in.
"There's great coaches there and it's a great organization. Just being able to see all three of us at a Columbus Blue Jackets game, it's awesome for the kids. I think it'll give them some more motivation."

Roslovic On Fire

For a season that has moved along in fits and starts, there's a very real chance Roslovic finishes the season with 20 goals for the first time after scoring his 18th and 19th in last night's loss at San Jose.

Of course, the frustrating part for both Roslovic and CBJ fans was that it took him a while to get into the season. After finishing last season on a high note including a career-high 34 points in just 48 games, Roslovic went the first 16 games without scoring a goal this season. He had nine goals when March began, but they've come fast and furious since then, including four multigoal games in his last 17 contests.
In all, he has 10 tallies in his last 21 games including seven in the last five, plus his second career hat trick April 9 in Detroit. Still, the hot ending to the season hasn't totally gotten the bad taste out of his mouth from the start of the campaign.
"You don't think of it like that," Roslovic said recently. "Just, when it's going, it's going. It's a lot of other things though that build up to that. It's the defensive part of the game, playing the game the right way. You learn those bounces will start to come when you start to play a full 200-foot game."
Larsen has spoken a lot through Roslovic's scoring stretch about being most happy with the center's defensive game, which also had its hiccups at times this year and culminated in a turnover at Calgary in February that prompted the coach and player to have a sit-down discussion about where his game was headed.
Since then, Larsen has seen a marked improvement, and as Roslovic said, it's probably not a coincidence that the offensive production has followed.
"It's been consistent for a while," Larsen said. "When you get consistency in the defending part, plus the production, that's a great combo."

Johnson Gets One

Wednesday night, Kent Johnson joined the party.
Many of his University of Michigan teammates have found success on the score sheet since they hit the pro level -- even his U-M and CBJ teammate Nick Blankenburg got an assist in his first NHL game last week -- but Johnson went through his first three NHL games without a point.
That's no big deal for a rookie, of course, and Johnson has showed signs of being able to transition his slick offensive game to the highest level after having success in college and at the Olympics this year. But by the smile on his face, you could also see how happy Johnson was to get on the board with his first NHL point when he assisted on Roslovic's goal in the third period last night.

After the loss, Johnson was a bit muted given the result -- "It's obviously nice. It always feels good to get the first one, and we can keep building from there," he said -- but the fifth overall pick in the 2021 draft said he wants to start producing more after now having played in four contests with the Jackets.
"I don't know if it's really about getting more comfortable at this point," he said. "I'm trying to create more, drive play more. I'm past trying to feel comfortable and just really trying to make a lot of plays out there."
Larsen, meanwhile, is also seeing progress as the 19-year-old winger gets his feet wet.
"Every game, I've liked something different within his game," the head coach said. "You can see he gets a little bit more comfortable with how we're playing with the puck, and he's had some almost moments to make that next play, to get that shot. The speed of the game is a real thing, and it comes at you quick.
"I think he's adjusting. He's taking in information. We've had good talks in meetings. He's gonna get more power play time. All those things, new teammates. There's a lot to process for him. I don't think he's pressing, but I think he's getting more comfortable every game, which is a good sign."