The Columbus Blue Jackets will play their final game of the 2023-24 season on April 16th against the Carolina Hurricanes. Columbus is not heading to the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year. This has been a long time coming, to be fair. Internal hope for progress this season didn't translate to on-ice results. And that has left this franchise at a crossroads once again.
The Blue Jackets have failed to make the playoffs for the fourth straight season. Their last appearance came in the 2020 COVID-19 bubble. Unfortunately, this is a franchise that is used to missing the playoffs. Columbus had its highlight moment come in 2019 when they swept the 62-win Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round.
Beyond that, though, there hasn't been much for Columbus fans to get excited about. In fact, since entering the league in 2000-01, the Blue Jackets have the lowest points percentage in the NHL. Columbus has been a rather safe bet to miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs since their inception.
However, fans should not get too down in the dumps. The situation certainly seems bleak, but there are beacons of optimism. And with that in mind, let's take a look at two reasons for Blue Jackets fans to have hope for the future despite their elimination from the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
A bright future
The Blue Jackets roster may not be the best in the NHL as of now. However, that could change sometime soon. Columbus has a wealth of prospects who could make a meaningful impact at the NHL level. In fact, The Athletic ranked their prospect pipeline as the third-best in the entire league.
That said, you don't have to read prospect rankings to find promising talent in the organization. Former Michigan star Adam Fantilli is currently out with a calf injury. Before that, though, he played to a 45-point pace across 82 games. That's a promising start for a player with the potential to be an elite top-line center in the league.
Beyond that, the Blue Jackets have also seen success from other young players. Winger Kirill Marchenko is likely to reach the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career. Furthermore, he ranks within the top five among Columbus skaters for points this season. Dmitri Voronkov and Yegor Chinakov aren't that far behind him, either.
Some of their young players have also shown signs of bouncing back. For instance, Cole Sillinger struggled mightily in 2022-23. This season, though, he has seemingly returned to form. He has 11 goals and 25 points in 67 games this year after scoring just 11 points in 64 games in 2022-23.
There is no denying the Blue Jackets have a shaky history when it comes to player development. In saying that, though, the team has a core of promising players contributing right now. And, as it currently looks, they have more knocking on the door to the NHL.
Blue Jackets should get a new perspective
Columbus entered the season being led by general manager Jarmo Kekalainen. The Finnish decision-maker had an incredibly important task before the draft or free agency began. He had to find a new head coach to lead his franchise for the next few seasons at least. He settled on former Toronto Maple Leafs bench boss Mike Babcock.
This decision proved disastrous. Babcock's hire drew a ton of criticism from the get-go. The former Stanley Cup champion was accused of creating a toxic environment shortly after leaving Toronto. Stories even emerged from his days with the Detroit Red Wings. In Columbus, Babcock's treatment of players became a distraction before he even ran a practice.
Babcock resigned as head coach before the season began. That development seemed to seal the fate of Kekalainen, who was arguably on the hot seat already. The Blue Jackets confirmed the fate of their now-former general manager on February 15th. Now, they need a new leader in the front office.
At this time, everything indicates the team going outside the organization for their next general manager. And that is exactly what this organization needs. Columbus needs to bring someone in who has no attachment to this current team. They need someone who can, to the best of their ability, objectively evaluate this roster and make tough decisions.
The Blue Jackets have a promising group of prospects and young stars. However, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to build the rest of this roster. If Columbus finds the right general manager, they will be set for the future. Of course, this is easier said than done. That said, fans should at least have hope that their situation will be looked upon with a completely fresh set of eyes.
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