Restoring the Rosters: Columbus Blue Jackets

Based on Matthew Pouliot’s series on Circling the Bases, I have decided restore the rosters for every NHL team. Like Pouliot, I have established some ground rules for my selections.

1. Each team contains players they originally drafted or signed before any other NHL team. This includes players drafted and not signed, as well as European free agents coming over at an older age.
2. I have chosen to leave retired players off the list, and lean toward players in the AHL rather than those deported (KHL, SEL, DEL, etc.).

Essentially I am choosing the best available players for a team to succeed in the current NHL season. All 30 teams will be covered, with grades assigned to forwards, defense and goaltending. After all 30 articles are written, they will be ranked in order. This series’ intent is to reward or shame NHL scouts.

You would expect a more talented roster with nine first round picks and eight of those in the top 10.  Unfortunately, this is a very green team with Rick Nash the most experienced of the Blue Jackets draft picks.  While that fact would not necessarily be a bad thing to have, the next player on the list played almost half the games and already left your organization, definitely a bad thing.

On a team that for the most part is still waiting for their prospects to develop, it’s hard to say exactly what their strength is.

Forwards:

So many players playing out of position and on lines that they should not be on which speaks volumes about the Blue Jackets drafting struggles.  Nash is the only established NHLer playing where he should be.  The forward corps is full of potential, but potential only gets you in the door.  Producing is what keeps you on the roster.

Rick Nash – Gilbert Brule – Jakub Voracek

Nikita Filatov – Derick Brassard – Tim Jackman

Alexandre Picard – Dan Fritsche – Jared Boll

Tom Sestito – Andrew Murray – Derek Dorsett

Bench - Maksim Mayorov

With very little production help for Nash, this team is going to struggle to score goals.  Providing Filatov returns to the Blue Jackets next season, and Ken Hitchcock loosens his reigns, Nash may finally get some scoring help.  Filatov is a naturally gifted scorer and I watched in amazement a few years ago as he dazzled in the World Juniors for Russia, scoring eight goals in 2009.  With six top 10 draft picks, you hope that this squad can fulfill its potential.  Only time will tell.

Grade: C

Defence:

Definitely not the strength of the scouting staff to say the least.  With only 1 bona fide Top four defensemen drafted, this corps is going to give up a lot of shots.  Hopefully they buy the goalies very nice Christmas presents.

Rostislav Klesla – Aaron Johnson

Ole-Kristian Tollefsen – Kris Russell

Marc Methot – John Moore

It was a struggle to find 6 NHL calibre defensemen that the Blue Jackets have drafted and I’m still struggling to find them.  Aside from Klesla, who’s currently on the IR, the defence is filled with 3rd pair defensemen at best.  Top pick John Moore has yet to play an NHL game and is currently playing in the OHL.

Grade: C-

Goaltenders:

If I had to pick an area of drafting strength, I guess I’d have to say it was in between the pipes.  Leclaire and Mason could be a very formidable duo on any roster.  I don’t think I can stress COULD any more then I’m about to.

Pascal Leclaire

Steve Mason

Dan LaCosta

With both goalies having career save percentages hovering around .900 and a very inexperienced defence corps playing in front of them, they will constantly be facing 35-40 shots a night and giving up 3+ goals a game.  Combine that with a forward group that is going to be struggling to score goals and it means both goalies are going to have to improve significantly for Columbus to have any success.  Mason currently is in the middle of what hopefully will just be a sophomore slump.  If he can find the “I don’t know what” that he had in his rookie campaign that produced a 33-20-0-7 record with 2.29 GAA and 10 shutouts, the goaltending situation in Columbus greatly improves.  If Leclaire can remember that stopping a puck with your face hurts when you’re not wearing a mask and can get into more than a handful of games, the situation almost takes care of itself.

Here’s hoping 2010-2011 is better for Blue Jackets goalies then 2009-2010 was.

Grade: B-

Jose Simoes
NHLHS Storyteller
jsimoes@nhlhotstove.com