Achilles Heel - The Power Play

LOL - Dubois and Jones a year ago, 2016
training camp.

Tonight the Columbus Blue Jackets fell to the Washington Capitals in the sixth game of their play off series, allowing Washington to advance to their inevitable clash with the Penguins.  Still bitter, so don't really want to comment on that series, the wrong things will come out. 

However, the inescapable truth for the Blue Jackets is that their power play, which languished between 31st and 30th in the league cost them this series.  When you go Oh for Four Games on the power play, against an opponent with a lethal power play, you are pretty much done.  And that is what our CBJ did this year.  We could not overcome that goal differential 5 on 5. 

And tonight, in the series clinching game, the power play kill still yielded a shorty.  At the end that glaring deficiency cost them dearly, and they were never able to solve it all year.  Until the can solve it, they won't advance in the playoffs.  You can bet that hockey operations will dissect that problem over the off season, and make changes.

Nonetheless, I'm pretty proud of this group.  Not the best team in franchise history, though they left their mark. But they showed a lot down the stretch, going from the outside looking in, to making the playoffs after the trade deadline when it is heavy lifting around the league.  They won more than their competition, which is saying a lot, because all the competition won as well.  They made the playoffs, but they are not ready yet for a 3 time Metropolitan Division Champion.  So we lost. 

In future series we need Oliver Bjorkstrand and Sonny Milano to make statements in these games.  I thought both players got their feet wet in the NHL this year, and look to take further strides next year. 

I haven't listened to Torts yet.  That should be informative.  I thought he did a great job down the stretch. 

Welp.  The 2017-18 season is over.  It was a good one.  Just wait till PLD is a year older.  Wowza!

GO JACKETS!!!