COLUMBUS, Ohio — When this season started, the Columbus Blue Jackets’ best-case scenario — according to this publication and others — was to simply stay afloat long enough to play meaningful games down the stretch.
More specifically, it was said that this season could be called a success if the long-awaited outdoor game at Ohio Stadium actually meant something, that it wouldn’t just serve as a cool distraction on the way to another lottery pick.
MoneyPuck’s preseason likelihood that the Blue Jackets would make the playoffs: 0.6 percent. To win the No. 1 pick: 13.2 percent.
Well, the NHL’s latest Stadium Series game — Blue Jackets vs. Detroit Red Wings — arrives on Saturday, and it’s more important than anybody could have imagined. Columbus and Detroit are both in the throes of a playoff race, separated by only two points in the Eastern Conference.
There are 25 games remaining in the Blue Jackets’ regular season, beginning with Tuesday’s game vs. the Dallas Stars at Nationwide Arena. There’s a growing feeling that this Blue Jackets club has pushed the bar way higher than just playing meaningful games. It’s once again safe to check the NHL standings. The NHL’s out-of-town scoreboard is now of interest to fans in Columbus.
Here are six reasons the Blue Jackets returning to the Stanley Cup playoffs after a four-year absence should no longer seem far-fetched:
1. Whole > sum of parts
The Blue Jackets have more high-end talent than most people realize, but the burst of progress by their young core has pushed them to these new heights. Thanks to some impressive veteran players, the culture in the dressing room seems more healthy, frankly, than ever.
But there’s something else at work here.
It’s hard to watch these Blue Jackets and not be impressed with the way they’ve come together following the tragic deaths of star winger Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew. They have channeled that grief into a purpose greater than any one player’s ability.
The Blue Jackets, under first-year coach Dean Evason and his staff, have played with a resilient style that has allowed them to win games even when they’ve been outplayed. The crowds in Nationwide have always been faithful, but the cheers feel more emotional these days. Around the hockey world, the Blue Jackets have been adopted by many fans as a sentimental favorite.
There’s something going on here. Some might say it’s divine intervention. Others would say the Jackets have an aura about them. It’s more easily felt than described, but it’s unmistakable.
2. This team can score
In today’s NHL, it’s impossible to “check” your way into the playoffs. While the Blue Jackets have been better defensively in the last month or so, it’s their ability to score goals up and down the lineup that has helped them emerge.
The Jackets have five players on the cusp of scoring 20 goals. Kirill Marchenko (21) is already there, but Kent Johnson and Dmitri Voronkov (19) are on the doorstep, and Zach Werenski (18) and Adam Fantilli (16) are on pace. For the record, that’s a 27-year-old (Werenski), two 24-year-olds (Marchenko and Voronkov), a 22-year-old (Johnson) and a 20-year-old (Fantilli).
There were games, especially early in the season, in which the Blue Jackets were able to outscore not just their opponents but their own mistakes.
They’ve scored five or more goals in 15 of their 57 games, more than one-quarter of their outings. Only NHL powers Florida (18), Winnipeg (18), Washington (17) and Colorado (16) have had more games with five-plus goals.
It’s going to get more difficult to score after the NHL trade deadline when games tighten and checking gets dialed up. But the Blue Jackets can score goals off the rush. They have a decent power play. They can score gritty goals, especially now with Boone Jenner back in the lineup.
3. Werenski’s lauchpad
Edmonton has Connor McDavid. Colorado has Nathan MacKinnon. Washington has Alex Ovechkin. All of the NHL’s top teams have multiple star players, but they have one player whose singular talent makes them the face of the franchise.
For Columbus, that’s silky-smooth defenseman Zach Werenski, who is having the best season of his career and may well win the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top blueliner. It won’t be surprising if he registers Hart Trophy votes, either.
No matter how you measure Werenski’s season — he has 18-44-62 in 56 games — it’s been stellar. The way he’s performed at such a high level all season has made him the backbone of the club, and teammates have marveled at his newfound presence in the dressing room.
Z ON THE BREAKAWAY!!!!! @FanaticsBook | #CBJ pic.twitter.com/eKhY484F9W
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) February 23, 2025
Those previously mentioned players — McDavid, MacKinnon, Ovechkin, and let’s throw Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby in there, too — set the tone for their franchises both on and off the ice. That’s the level Werenski has reached this season.
He was the leading point producer (0-6-6) in the 4 Nations Face-Off, which was Werenski’s first experience in a best-on-best tournament. That can only help his prominence on a national (international?) level, but it’s nothing fans in Columbus haven’t seen all season.
4. Help is on the way
GM Don Waddell hasn’t told any of the veteran players they won’t be traded by the March 7 deadline, and there remains an air of mystery about how he’ll proceed.
It’s hard to imagine him turning down any overwhelming offers for players with expiring contracts, especially proven vets like defenseman Ivan Provorov and depth forwards Sean Kuraly and Mathieu Olivier. But it’s harder to imagine Waddell making the Jackets less competitive for the stretch run.
He’s already made it clear that he hopes to add a veteran forward at the deadline, with former Blue Jackets winger Gustav Nyquist (now with Nashville) a distinct possibility.
The Blue Jackets are also expecting center Sean Monahan (wrist surgery) and defenseman Erik Gudbranson (shoulder surgery) back for the stretch run. So far, neither player has made public a timeline for their return, but they’ve been skating for a while now, which is a good sign.
The return of Jenner, the captain, on Saturday vs. Chicago was a big lift. Monahan and Gudbranson would be a similar boost.
5. Elvis’ resurgence
Suspicious minds wondered if Elvis Merzlikins could ever play like a franchise goaltender. That demands a consistency of performance on the ice and a consistency of personality in the dressing room. It’s a role not unlike an NFL quarterback, where the way you play and the way you carry yourself both matter.
First, look at Merzlikins’ play on the ice.
He’s tied for ninth in the league in wins (20) but is 35th in save percentage (.897) and 36th in goals-against average (2.94). That’s a mixed bag, to be sure, but look at his numbers since Christmas: 10-5-1 with a .907 save percentage and 2.67 goals-against average.
Merzlikins still makes acrobatic plays and is still that bendy, flippy, twisty freak of nature you’d expect. On Saturday, he came way out of the net to play a puck, then backpedaled like a center fielder before gloving a lobbed shot over his head.
Ignition, full power and LIFTOFF! 🚀#CBJ pic.twitter.com/4oEHlMO7tZ
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) February 23, 2025
But the real difference of late is how Merzlikins, perhaps better than at any point in his career, has been positionally sound to make routine saves look, well, routine. The puck is finding him now, which is a really good sign.
As for how Merzlikins has behaved behind the scenes …
Evason doesn’t hand out compliments without merit, and he’s raved about Merzlikins as a teammate this season. He’s even called Merzlikins a “leader in the dressing room,” which is not something previous coaches have articulated.
Merzlikins won’t likely get any Vezina Trophy votes this season. But there’s no question he deserves high marks for being a big part of what’s happening.
6. Underwhelming East
Pittsburgh has floundered. Boston may be waving a white flag. It’s hard to know what to expect from the New York Rangers. Put another way: Some of the Eastern Conference powers have backpedaled, creating a wide-open battle for the two wild-card spots. It may look more like a potato-sack race than a sprint.
The Blue Jackets enter play on Tuesday in ninth place in the conference, tied with the Ottawa Senators in points (62) but a spot behind them for the final wild-card spot due to a tiebreaker (regulation wins).
The remaining schedule is favorable for the Blue Jackets:
• They don’t leave the Eastern Time Zone the rest of the season.
• After a four-game road trip (Florida, Tampa Bay, New York Rangers, New Jersey) beginning next week, the Jackets finish with 11 of 18 games at home, where they’re 18-6-4.
The Blue Jackets play seventh-place Detroit twice later this week. They play eighth-place Ottawa three times in 10 days in late March and early April. They play the 10th-place Rangers (who are only two points behind Columbus) twice in six days later in mid-March.
Columbus will have a chance to handle its own business.
Among that cluster of clubs, the Senators have the most favorable remaining schedule. Fifteen of their remaining 25 games are against clubs not currently in playoff spots, while 15 of their final 25 are at home, including eight of their final nine games.
The Red Wings, meanwhile, might have the toughest final stretch. Of their final 25 games, 17 are against current playoff clubs, and 15 are on the road, including five of six to end the season. At one point in mid-March, the Red Wings play Carolina, Vegas, Washington and Vegas — three of the league’s division leaders — in an eight-day stretch.
(Photo: Russell LaBounty / Imagn Images)
