2014-15 LEADING SCORERS
LW Nick Foligno (31 G, 42 A, 73 P)
C Ryan Johansen (26 G, 45 A, 71 P)
LW Scott Hartnell (28 G, 32 A, 60 P)
LAST SEASON
Heading into the 2014-15 season, the Columbus Blue Jackets had very high hopes to make it to the playoffs, following a solid 2013-14 season that saw them face off against the Penguins in the playoffs and put up a solid battle, but then unfortunately eliminated. They made a good first offseason move by trading R.J Umberger to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Scott Hartnell, and things were looking up. Unfortunately for the Jackets, they got hit with a plague known as the injury bug, ultimately preventing them for competing in the playoffs. Injuries to key players such as star goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, youngsters Boone Jenner and Ryan Murray, and Brandon Dubinsky among many others poked a huge hole in the playoff chances for the Jackets. That being said, there were a few bright spots to this season, including 2013 first round pick Marko Dano stepping into the lineup for 35 games and recording 21 points, as well as career seasons for Nick Foligno and Ryan Johansen.
A few notable trades included acquiring Jordan Leopold from the St Louis Blues in exchange for a 5th rounder, trading Tim Erixon to Chicago in exchange for Jeremy Morin, then trading Leopold to Minnesota later on. However, two notable trades would include sending fan favourite James Wisniewski to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for prospect William Karlsson, a second round pick, and Rene Bourque. The most notable out of the two, however was when they sent injured Nathan Horton to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for David Clarkson. This surprised hockey fans everywhere, considering Clarkson currently had one of the worst contracts in the NHL at $5.25 million per season, but he ended up fiding his game over two games under new coach Todd Richards' system, and would earn himself a spot on the Jackets roster. To cap off the season, the Jackets went 12-0-2 over their final 14 game stretch and had extremely high hopes heading into the offseason and following season.
OFFSEASON
IN
Dean Kukan
Brandon Saad
Michael Paliotta
Alex Broadhurst
Gregory Campbell
Andrew Bodnarchuk
John Ramage
Kole Sherwood
Brett Gallant
OUT
Marko Dano
Artem Anisimov
Corey Tropp
Jeremy Morin
Mark Letestu
Jack Skille
Frederic St-Denis
Sean Collins
Luke Adam
Thomas Larkin
Dana Tyrell
Brian Gibbons
Will Weber
The Jackets came into the offseason and began their moves at the draft. With the 8th overall selection, they took defenseman Zach Werenski from the University of Michigan, and then later on in the draft, traded their 34th overall pick and 78th overall pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for their 29th pick, and used that pick to select Swedish defenseman Gabriel Carlsson. Exiting the draft, the Jackets made a big trade to improve their playoff chances ultimately. They dealt rookie Marko Dano, Corey Tropp, Jeremy Morin, and Artem Anisimov to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Brandon Saad, Michael Paliotta, and Alex Broadhurst. Saad is a young two way forward that already has two Stanley Cups under his belt, and has the offensive ability to play on the first line. Heading into free agency, the Jackets didn't make too much of a splash, but they did pick up veteran defensive forward Gregory Campbell for depth. All in all, this was a successful offseason for the Jackets.
NEXT SEASON PT 1. OFFENSE
The Jackets added a huge piece to their offense in Brandon Saad, so look for them to score lots of goals next year. On top of that, they have Ryan Johansen and Nick Foligno to score goals, along with secondary scoring from Scott Hartnell, Boone Jenner, and two young forwards in Matt Calvert and Cam Atkinson. The Jackets have lots of scoring depth, and if they can stay healthy, they will be a force offensively next season.
NEXT SEASON PT 2. DEFENSE
The Jackets are yet to make any moves defensively, but they still have a pretty solid core heading forward. Jack Johnson will lead the defense with young talent helping out in Ryan Murray and David Savard, and veteran presence from Fedor Tyutin. Rumour has it that the Jackets offered a contract to free agent Christian Ehrhoff, but it's unknown whether he'll sign with the team or not.
NEXT SEASON PT 3. GOALTENDING
We all know that the Jackets' goaltending will be lead by Sergei Bobrovsky, with Curtis McElhinney backing him up. While "Bob" was injured last year, McElhinney stepped in and provided huge depth for them, and proved he could be relied on to fill in when Bobrovsky wasn't availible, so the Jackets shouldn't have a problem with goaltending this year.
POSSIBLE 2015-16 OPENING NIGHT LINEUP
Brandon Saad - Ryan Johansen - Cam Atkinson
Nick Foligno - Brandon Dubinsky - Boone Jenner
Scott Hartnell - Alexander Wennberg - David Clarkson
Matt Calvert - Gregory Campbell - Rene Bourque
Jack Johnson - David Savard
Ryan Murray - Fedor Tyutin
Kevin Connauton - Dalton Prout
Sergei Bobrovsky
Curtis McElhinney
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