Coming off the best season in franchise history, the Blue Jackets look to take the next step this season — and by next step, that means finally winning a playoff series or two or more. A terrific regular season followed by one and done in the playoffs is no longer an acceptable outcome for the Blue Jackets.
How head coach John Tortorella handles the strain of raised expectations this year could play a major role in how much success the Blue Jackets have. He can be exceptionally volatile when under the most pressure, though his first two seasons in Columbus have been pretty smooth sailing.
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Injuries, a contract holdout, and several new faces have made for a halting training camp, so far. With Tortorella, there are no excuses, though. So, a similar start to the 0-8-0 limp from the gate two years ago — while unexpected — is absolutely unacceptable.
Columbus Blue Jackets 2017-18 schedule
The Blue Jackets open up the season with back-to-back games Oct. 6-7. First they host the Islanders and the next night the Blue Jackets skate in Chicago against the Blackhawks. There's also a four-game homestand during the first month, from Oct. 19-27, and in a bit of an oddity, the Blue Jackets conclude their season series with the Jets before October is complete — playing in Winnipeg on Oct. 17 and then hosting the Jets ten nights later in Columbus.
The Thanksgiving holiday finds the Blue Jackets at home, hosting the Flames on Nov. 22 and the Senators on Nov. 24
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December brings the first two of four meetings against the defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins — Columbus' main rival. The Blue Jackets will travel to Pittsburgh for each of those two December match ups on the 21st and 27th. There are also three sets of back to back games on the Blue Jackets schedule in December, including a difficult one where they host the Ducks on the 1st and then play in Washington against the Capitals on the 2nd.
There are three more sets of back to back games in February, the most interesting of which takes place on the 13th and 14th when the Blue Jackets play conference road games at the Islanders and then at the Maple Leafs. Ten of the 13 games Columbus plays in February are against Metropolitan Division opponents, a crucial test for the Blue Jackets, including three games against the Capitals.
March provides a travel challenge as the Blue Jackets open the month with three games in four nights in California and close it out with another three-in-four in Western Canada.
Blue Jackets' key offseason additions
Artemi Panarin (trade), Jordan Schroeder (trade), John Mitchell (PTO)
Blue Jackets' key offseason departures
Brandon Saad (trade), Sam Gagner (free agent), Scott Hartnell (free agent), Wiliam Karlsson (expansion draft), Kyle Quincey (free agent), Anton Forsberg (trade)
Blue Jackets' projected lineup
Forwards
Artemi Panarin-Alexander Wennberg-Cam Atkinson
Nick Foligno-Brandon Dubinsky-Oliver Bjorkstrand
Matt Calvert-Boone Jenner-Sonny Milano
Markus Hannikainen/Pierre-Luc Dubois-Lukas Sedlak/John Mitchell-Jordan Schroeder
Defense
Zach Werenski-Seth Jones
Jack Johnson-David Savard
Gabriel Carlsson-Ryan Murray
Goalies
Sergei Bobrovsky
Joonas Korpisalo
Blue Jackets' best-case scenario
After establishing franchise records with 50 wins and 108 points last season, the pressure is on the Blue Jackets to replicate, or even better, their regular season standing. Even more importantly, playoff improvement is expected after a first-round dusting last spring for an organization that has never played past the first round in its history.
Already, the Blue Jackets face a lot of early adversity this year with the current contract holdout of 17-goal scorer Josh Anderson, training camp injuries suffered by forwards Boone Jenner, Jordan Schroeder and intriguing rookie Sam Vigneault, and Brandon Dubinsky's limitations following offseason wrist surgery. Add to the mix that Columbus lost 55 goals from last year's roster with the departures of Brandon Saad, Sam Gagner and Scott Hartnell.
It's not all doom and gloom in Columbus, however. Uber-skilled Artemi Panarin arrives from Chicago where he won the Calder Trophy two years ago and totaled 31 goals and 74 points last season and immediately provides the Blue Jackets a sniper on the top line. Also, 2016 top pick Pierre-Luc Dubois has had a nice camp and could crack the NHL lineup this year. Then there's the stud young pair on defense — 20-year-old Zach Werenski and his 22-year-old partner, Seth Jones — and, oh yeah, the reigning Vezina Trophy winner, Sergei Bobrovsky, in goal.
If they can get healthy, the Blue Jackets are one of the elite teams in the league. However, they will ultimately be judged on whether they can make a deep postseason run for a change.