Ohio Jones
Game on...
Columbus enters the 2013 off-season with some disappointment, having set a franchise record for points - the second most in the league - only to be eliminated in the second round by the surprising Edmonton Oilers. Now, poised to relocate to the the re-jigged Atlantic Division, the Blue Jackets must decide what to do to retain a talented but expensive lineup. While most veterans have re-upped, Columbus still has a number of key RFAs to qualify, and will have to await the Offer Sheet market to determine what they'll have to work with next season.
The farm offers little help, having been extensively raided in successive years by trades. GM Emerson and his scouts also have little to work with at the draft table in attempting to restore that farm system. Columbus currently holds two third round picks (an additional third was forfeited due to salary cap violation), two fourth round picks, a fifth and a seventh.
Center
HFNHL: Eric Staal, Travis Zajac, Brandon Dubinsky, Jussi Jokinen
Prospects: Patrice Cormier, Gabriel Dumont, Chris Tierney,
Analysis: The area of Columbus' greatest investment last off-season, when it shipped blue chip prospect Dougie Hamilton along with two veterans to Vancouver for Staal, this season was a mixed blessing. Staal had a huge bounce-back year to again be one of the elite big pivots in the game. However, Zajac (RFA) and Dubinsky both struggled to produce at a top-6 rate, and Jokinen's struggles in limited ice time led to his being waived, then traded in a salary dump, so offensive depth will be a concern next year. All four pivots are strong on face offs, and only Jokinen would be considered a defensive liability, so the group should at least provide balanced two-way play. That's a good thing, as there's nobody coming down the pipe to offer immediate help. Ryan Potulny (Europe) and Dominic Moore (retirement) are both gone this offseason, and Blake Geoffrion has retired as well due to injury. The Jackets were hoping that one of Cormier or Dumont would establish themselves as an NHL regular this season, but despite cups of coffee neither has panned out as yet. And those represent the next of a rather sorry bunch down the middle. 2012 draft pick Tierney offers the most intriguing potential as a heady two-way player, but his skills will likely translate to a third-line ceiling if he makes the NHL in a few years.
Wing
HFNHL: Johan Franzen, Alex Burrows, Teddy Purcell, David Clarkson, Nikolai Kulemin, Drew Miller, Brandon Yip, Rob Klinkhammer, Chris Thorburn
Prospects: Abbott, Klingberg, Khaira
Analysis: A strong top-6 and solid NHL-depth, but the Jackets lack an impact player on the wings, and there's no immediate help on the horizon. Franzen, Burrows and Clarkson - all threats to score 30 goals - have been extended on multi-year deals, but veteran scorer Daniel Briere and his $6.75M contract will not be returning. Purcell will benefit from a productive season, but Kulemin's offensive woes continue, partially offset by a productive support game. Yip (RFA) and Miller offer decent depth, and rookie Klinkhammer was a pleasant surprise as a productive fourth-line contributor in Phoenix. That's where the good news ends, as the prospect raids were particularly hard on wingers in recent years. Abbott is a dark horse to become a secondary NHL scorer but is just coming off his rookie AHL campaign. Klingberg disappointed again and may return to Sweden. Only 2012 draft pick Khaira offers real hope of becoming a top 6 contributor, but the raw power forward just finished his freshman year at Michigan Tech and is still years away from seeing NHL or HFNHL duty.
Defence
HFNHL: Kimmo Timonen, Mark Giordano, Ladislav Smid, Barrett Jackman, Matt Carle, Carl Gunnarsson
Prospects: Justin Schultz, Torey Krug, Brian Dumoulin
Analysis: Far and away Columbus' greatest area of strength, the Jackets' blueline boasts both the most potent HFNHL lineup and the most promising prospects. The Captain, Timonen, had another ageless season in the NHL and is back for one more in Columbus. Giordano had a somewhat disappointing season but is back as an effective two-way performer. Jackman, the deadline arrival, provides a tough, reliable stay-at-home presence. Schultz should be ready for prime time in a strictly offensive capacity, and Krug offers hope for 2014-15 on the strength of his breakout playoff performance for Boston. The intrigue this summer comes in the trio of Carle, Gunnarsson and Smid, who are all RFAs. With Schultz looking ready, Columbus only really needs to bring two of the three back, and (along with Travis Zajac) may wait to see what the Offer Sheet market does before determining which ones to keep - or whether to keep all three. Beyond Schultz and Krug, Dumoulin had a bit of a rough transition to the pro game with Wilkes-Barre but still has top-4 potential, and Rob O'Gara won a National NCAA title as a freshman.
Goal
HFNHL: Tomas Vokoun, Devan Dubnyk, Ben Scrivens
Prospects: Niklas Svedberg, Mike Lee, Anthony Stolarz
Analysis: An area of strength for Columbus, despite the notable lack of an elite HFNHL puckstopper. Vokoun and Dubnyk are both capable 1A options, and rookie Scrivens has shown himself to en a solid (and cost-effective) backup at the NHL level. With Dubnyk continuing to carry the load for NHL Edmonton, Vokoun is a candidate to be traded this summer in a cost-shaving move. Behind those three, 2012 FA signing Svedberg had a monster first year in North America, posting a 2.17 gaa and .925 save% for Providence. He's looked more human during the P-Bruins' playoff run, but that may be due in part to half of the Providence blueliners (including fellow Jackets prospect Krug) getting called up to Boston to replace injured players. Svedberg should challenge Anton Khudobin for the backup role next season. Mike outplayed Mark Visentin and Chad Johnson in Portland and will earn more starts next season. He remains a long-term project. 2012 pick Stolarz might have the highest upside of all three prospects after another breakout year which saw him move from the NCAA to the OHL's London Knights mid-season. He was superb in the regular season and through two playoff rounds, but the run of games started to wear on him and he was replaced by solid prospect Jake Patterson for most of the remainder of the playoffs and the Memorial Cup. Stolarz remains a raw but very talented and athletic prospect with huge potential upside... as long as being an NHL Flyers draft pick hasn't cursed him.
Overall:
The Jackets have the horses to remain a playoff threat for the immediate future, but how much of a threat depends on who's their starter's ratings next Fall, and whether the team can muster enough offensive depth after disappointing NHL seasons from several key players.
The middle- and long-term fortunes of the club, meanwhile, may depend on whether GM Emerson can parlay some of their blueline and goaltending depth into meaningful prospects this summer as the team starts to reverse its farm sell-off.
The farm offers little help, having been extensively raided in successive years by trades. GM Emerson and his scouts also have little to work with at the draft table in attempting to restore that farm system. Columbus currently holds two third round picks (an additional third was forfeited due to salary cap violation), two fourth round picks, a fifth and a seventh.
Center
HFNHL: Eric Staal, Travis Zajac, Brandon Dubinsky, Jussi Jokinen
Prospects: Patrice Cormier, Gabriel Dumont, Chris Tierney,
Analysis: The area of Columbus' greatest investment last off-season, when it shipped blue chip prospect Dougie Hamilton along with two veterans to Vancouver for Staal, this season was a mixed blessing. Staal had a huge bounce-back year to again be one of the elite big pivots in the game. However, Zajac (RFA) and Dubinsky both struggled to produce at a top-6 rate, and Jokinen's struggles in limited ice time led to his being waived, then traded in a salary dump, so offensive depth will be a concern next year. All four pivots are strong on face offs, and only Jokinen would be considered a defensive liability, so the group should at least provide balanced two-way play. That's a good thing, as there's nobody coming down the pipe to offer immediate help. Ryan Potulny (Europe) and Dominic Moore (retirement) are both gone this offseason, and Blake Geoffrion has retired as well due to injury. The Jackets were hoping that one of Cormier or Dumont would establish themselves as an NHL regular this season, but despite cups of coffee neither has panned out as yet. And those represent the next of a rather sorry bunch down the middle. 2012 draft pick Tierney offers the most intriguing potential as a heady two-way player, but his skills will likely translate to a third-line ceiling if he makes the NHL in a few years.
Wing
HFNHL: Johan Franzen, Alex Burrows, Teddy Purcell, David Clarkson, Nikolai Kulemin, Drew Miller, Brandon Yip, Rob Klinkhammer, Chris Thorburn
Prospects: Abbott, Klingberg, Khaira
Analysis: A strong top-6 and solid NHL-depth, but the Jackets lack an impact player on the wings, and there's no immediate help on the horizon. Franzen, Burrows and Clarkson - all threats to score 30 goals - have been extended on multi-year deals, but veteran scorer Daniel Briere and his $6.75M contract will not be returning. Purcell will benefit from a productive season, but Kulemin's offensive woes continue, partially offset by a productive support game. Yip (RFA) and Miller offer decent depth, and rookie Klinkhammer was a pleasant surprise as a productive fourth-line contributor in Phoenix. That's where the good news ends, as the prospect raids were particularly hard on wingers in recent years. Abbott is a dark horse to become a secondary NHL scorer but is just coming off his rookie AHL campaign. Klingberg disappointed again and may return to Sweden. Only 2012 draft pick Khaira offers real hope of becoming a top 6 contributor, but the raw power forward just finished his freshman year at Michigan Tech and is still years away from seeing NHL or HFNHL duty.
Defence
HFNHL: Kimmo Timonen, Mark Giordano, Ladislav Smid, Barrett Jackman, Matt Carle, Carl Gunnarsson
Prospects: Justin Schultz, Torey Krug, Brian Dumoulin
Analysis: Far and away Columbus' greatest area of strength, the Jackets' blueline boasts both the most potent HFNHL lineup and the most promising prospects. The Captain, Timonen, had another ageless season in the NHL and is back for one more in Columbus. Giordano had a somewhat disappointing season but is back as an effective two-way performer. Jackman, the deadline arrival, provides a tough, reliable stay-at-home presence. Schultz should be ready for prime time in a strictly offensive capacity, and Krug offers hope for 2014-15 on the strength of his breakout playoff performance for Boston. The intrigue this summer comes in the trio of Carle, Gunnarsson and Smid, who are all RFAs. With Schultz looking ready, Columbus only really needs to bring two of the three back, and (along with Travis Zajac) may wait to see what the Offer Sheet market does before determining which ones to keep - or whether to keep all three. Beyond Schultz and Krug, Dumoulin had a bit of a rough transition to the pro game with Wilkes-Barre but still has top-4 potential, and Rob O'Gara won a National NCAA title as a freshman.
Goal
HFNHL: Tomas Vokoun, Devan Dubnyk, Ben Scrivens
Prospects: Niklas Svedberg, Mike Lee, Anthony Stolarz
Analysis: An area of strength for Columbus, despite the notable lack of an elite HFNHL puckstopper. Vokoun and Dubnyk are both capable 1A options, and rookie Scrivens has shown himself to en a solid (and cost-effective) backup at the NHL level. With Dubnyk continuing to carry the load for NHL Edmonton, Vokoun is a candidate to be traded this summer in a cost-shaving move. Behind those three, 2012 FA signing Svedberg had a monster first year in North America, posting a 2.17 gaa and .925 save% for Providence. He's looked more human during the P-Bruins' playoff run, but that may be due in part to half of the Providence blueliners (including fellow Jackets prospect Krug) getting called up to Boston to replace injured players. Svedberg should challenge Anton Khudobin for the backup role next season. Mike outplayed Mark Visentin and Chad Johnson in Portland and will earn more starts next season. He remains a long-term project. 2012 pick Stolarz might have the highest upside of all three prospects after another breakout year which saw him move from the NCAA to the OHL's London Knights mid-season. He was superb in the regular season and through two playoff rounds, but the run of games started to wear on him and he was replaced by solid prospect Jake Patterson for most of the remainder of the playoffs and the Memorial Cup. Stolarz remains a raw but very talented and athletic prospect with huge potential upside... as long as being an NHL Flyers draft pick hasn't cursed him.
Overall:
The Jackets have the horses to remain a playoff threat for the immediate future, but how much of a threat depends on who's their starter's ratings next Fall, and whether the team can muster enough offensive depth after disappointing NHL seasons from several key players.
The middle- and long-term fortunes of the club, meanwhile, may depend on whether GM Emerson can parlay some of their blueline and goaltending depth into meaningful prospects this summer as the team starts to reverse its farm sell-off.
