CBJ of the Day: Rene Bourque

By William Espy

 

On March 2, 2015 the Columbus Blue Jackets traded fan-favorite defenseman James Wisniewski to the Anaheim Ducks for William “Wild Bill” Karlsson, a 2015 second round draft pick, and a 33 year old left handed right wing by the name of Rene Bourque. Bourque was an undrafted forward who first appeared in the NHL during the 2005-2006 season with the Chicago Blackhawks. He would reach the peak of his career with the Calgary Flames in the 2009-2010 season and then quickly went downhill. The Alberta native had a solid season in 2010-2011, however in 2011-2012 a trade to the Montreal Canadiens would seemingly shatter his good play. In 76 games between Calgary and Montreal, he would be held to only 24 points, and then with Montreal he posted 13, 16 and 2 over the next three years never playing a full season and eventually being sent down to the Hamilton Bulldogs. In the 2014 playoffs, Bourque showed that he could still provide a scoring touch putting up eight goals (2 GWG) over seventeen games.

On November 20, 2014 Bourque would be traded to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for defenseman Bryan Allen. Bourque had hoped to restart his career; however he would only post two goals and eight points in his thirty games with Anaheim. Just before the trade deadline, he cleared waivers and it looked to be all over for him. But suddenly, he was traded to Columbus. Once he arrived in Columbus, he was immediately sent down to the Springfield Falcons but before long injuries began to continue taking a toll on the Blue Jackets roster and Bourque got his chance. Bourque knew that this was likely his final chance to make an NHL roster and he showed it in his play. He seemed determined to make a play whether it was a goal or a big hit. His tenure in Columbus would start off slow with only one point in his first six games, however in his final two games of the season he would score three goals bringing his total in the union blue to four points (all goals) in eight games.

STATUS: UNMOVABLE

Do not confuse “unmovable” with untouchable, for the right price Bourque would quickly be available in trade negotiations and that price likely wouldn’t be very high. At this point in his career, it is unlikely that any team would be willing to take a chance on him with his relatively high cap hit and only one year remaining. If a team is willing to take him on, they will likely wait until next off season and sign him on a much more affordable deal. Bourque however, knows this almost certainly is his final chance at the NHL level and needs to play like it. His desperation could help the Jackets in various ways as he will likely play harder in all three zones in an attempt to impress general managers around the league. Jarmo Kekalainen may have found a diamond in the rough at a perfect time.