State Your Case: Will Blue Jackets or Flyers reach playoffs first?

The Columbus Jackets and Philadelphia Flyers each missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season and made significant moves in the offseason to get better.

The Blue Jackets made a splash in free agency by signing forward Johnny Gaudreau to a seven-year, $68.5 million contract ($9.75 million average annual value) on July 13.
The Flyers, who traded captain Claude Giroux before the NHL Trade Deadline last season on their way to a last-place finish in the Metropolitan Division, hired coach John Tortorella, who previously helped the Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Rangers and Blue Jackets find their way out of the wilderness.
The teams meet for the second time this season when the Blue Jackets host the Flyers on Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; ESPN+, HULU, SN NOW).
The Flyers (7-6-2), who have not made the playoffs the past two seasons, have exceeded expectations so far this season, though they've lost three in a row.
The Blue Jackets (4-9-1) are last in the Metropolitan. They had a five-game losing streak, outscored 28-8, before beating the Flyers 5-2 on Nov. 10. However, defenseman
Zach Werenski
is out for the season with a shoulder injury, forward Patrik Laine is out 3-4 weeks with an ankle sprain and defenseman
Nick Blankenburg
is out 6-8 weeks with a fractured ankle.
It is less than a quarter of the way into the regular season, so the sample size for each team remains small.
With that in mind, however, the question is which of these teams will make the Stanley Cup Playoffs first, be it this season or sometime in the future? That's the question before NHL.com staff writers Mike G. Morreale and Tom Gulitti in this installment of State Your Case.
Morreale: Tortorella doesn't want it to be about him when it comes to the early success of the Philadelphia Flyers. But, let's be honest, it didn't take long for the 64-year-old coach to trigger a change in the belief around the team while creating a more positive environment. Look, it won't be a quick fix, but I believe Philadelphia is in a better position than the Columbus to first qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs due in large part to their veteran coach, who has been there and done that. Don't forget, before Tortorella became coach in Columbus in 2015-16, the Blue Jackets had missed the playoffs for 12 of 14 seasons since their inception in 2000. With Tortorella, they had a run of four consecutive postseason appearances. 'Torts' also had his best regular season as a coach with the New York Rangers in 2011-12 after missing the playoffs in 2009-10. Philadelphia lost 57 games in 2021-22 (25-46-11), missing the playoffs a second straight season, so Tortorella is in familiar territory. He's capable of getting the most with the players he has and will be getting at some point during the season, to turn this ship around a lot sooner than later.
Gulitti: Although the Blue Jackets haven't played well this season, I think they still have the pieces in place to turn things around and qualify for the playoffs before the Flyers. Maybe it won't be this season, but I never expected them to make the playoffs this season and I'm not convinced the Flyers will make it this season either. Philadelphia has played well so far under Tortorella, but I think this season will still be a rebuilding one. Maybe the expectations were too high for Columbus after it signed Gaudreau, but it made strides when it went 37-38-7 last season and that foundation remains in place. Losing forward Patrik Laine in the first game of the season to an elbow strain derailed the Blue Jackets' start and they have yet to find their rhythm since he returned. Poor goaltending hasn't helped. But there is time for Columbus to turn things around this season and begin building toward next season. Having Gaudreau and Laine (signed for three more seasons) locked up is a good place for any team to start.
Morreale: Tom made some interesting points, particular with Columbus seeking their rhythm after the acquisition of Gaudreau, the return of Laine from injury and the goaltending woes. The Flyers, however, already have been able to persevere and find that chemistry minus some key weapons, including forwards Sean Couturier (back surgery), who could return in February, James van Riemsdyk (finger surgery), who could return in 3-5 weeks, and Cam Atkinson (upper body), who is out indefinitely. Additionally, the Flyers have their goalie of the present and future in Carter Hart, who can singlehandedly win games for his team and has proven that under Tortorella. Now in his fifth season, Hart has posted great numbers despite the fact Philadelphia ranks among the top five in shots against per game. The Flyers also rank among the top three in the League in blocked shots, which aids Philadelphia's goalies and is usually a hallmark of a Tortorella-coached team.
Gulitti: I won't bring up that the Blue Jackets won Thursday in Tortorella's return to Columbus despite losing Werenski and defenseman Erik Gudbranson to injuries during the game (oops, I just did). Unfortunately, the Blue Jackets announced Friday that Werenski will miss the rest of the season because of a separated shoulder and torn labrum. And on Monday they announced Laine will be out 3-4 weeks. Those are big blows to the Blue Jackets' chances this season. But for the purposes of this debate, I am looking ahead to next season. Philadelphia will likely be the better team this season and it has already made progress under Tortorella, which is not surprising because he's a good coach. But it will be a lot to ask for the Flyers to qualify for the playoffs this season with the injuries Mike pointed out and other holes in their lineup. I think they and the Blue Jackets will be in similar spots to begin next season. When healthy and with Gaudreau potentially more comfortable a year from now, I could see Columbus making a similar jump to what the New Jersey Devils (12-3-0) have done so far this season.