5 Things to Watch For With the Blue Jackets in the Second Half

In case you missed the first part of our Blue Jackets’ midseason series, we shared 10 things that we learned about the team in the first half. In Part 2, we turn our attention to the final 40 games of the regular season.

The playoffs are a pipe dream at this point. But there are several headlines to follow as the Blue Jackets prepare for the second half and the countdown to the trade deadline. Here are five things to watch for in the second half of the season for the team.

Evaluating Tarasov

As we said in Part 1, the goaltending with the Blue Jackets has become a major story. Coach Pascal Vincent spoke about the need to evaluate Daniil Tarasov to see if he can be a number-one goalie in the NHL.

At least in the short term, this points to Tarasov getting a majority of the starts. Elvis Merzlikins or Spencer Martin could get a turn here or there. On Saturday night, it will be Merzlikins getting the backup role with Martin as a healthy scratch.

The story here for Tarasov is not only his chance to prove what he has right now, it’s the team’s ability to properly evaluate him. We posed that question to Vincent on Saturday morning about what is the proper amount of time to fully evaluate a goalie especially when games start to run short in the season. Could it be 10 games? 20 games? Here’s Paz.

“I don’t think there’s a (gauge). For him, it might be 20 games. For somebody else, it might be 10,” Vincent said. “The fact that he hasn’t played much in the past few years, probably take some more time to have a real solid evaluation on him. Just think about Zach Werenski when he came back from a long injury. Think about Gus Nyquist when he was here. It took him almost three months. For a goalie, it’s no different.”

“So it takes some time. He needs to play. So for us to make a decision on him, and it’s an important one, he needs to play. How long it’s gonna take, that’s the evaluation. We’re gonna see how quick he adjusts and how consistent he is. But he needs to play.”

Something is eventually going to give with three goalies all with a desire to be a number one. Tarasov gets his shot now. The Blue Jackets believe he’s a big part of their future. This does leave the future of Merzlikins in the air.

The Blue Jackets are desperately seeking who their number one will be. Don’t forget about Jet Greaves. He’s an AHL All-Star and pushing for his chance too. This will be an ongoing story until decisions are made.

Why Lines Do Matter

The lines do matter, but maybe not for the reason you think. Fans everything are obsessed with lines. Admit it. You’re one of them. It normally triggers a reaction of some sort.

Lines change constantly. Unless a line is really clicking, it’s reasonable to expect there to be many changes. This leads us into why the lines do matter. That’s because it gives a glimpse of what the team is trying to evaluate.

Take Saturday night’s game for instance. The top line will be Cole Sillinger centering Johnny Gaudreau and Yegor Chinakhov. In fact, all four lines are new. After being shutout in Winnipeg, something had to change.

Different lines allow the Blue Jackets to do their evaluations. How does Player A look on this line? How does Player B handle this role? It indicates something the coaching staff is watching for. Here’s Paz on Sillinger’s new line.

“To me right now, the story of the recent days or weeks is Cole Sillinger,” Vincent said. “His game is just improving and improving and improving. I’m not talking about the offense because the offense is coming from his great play without the puck…We know that Chinakhov and Sillinger has some chemistry from past experiences and we want to see if that’s gonna work with Johnny (Gaudreau) tonight. So we have some tweaks with our lineups and we’ll see how it’s gonna work.”

Expect these tweaks and changes in line combinations to continue in these last 40 games. Try to look at it from a coach’s perspective to see what they could be evaluating for. That’s why the lines matter.

Trade Deadline

We are already under two months away from the Mar 8 trade deadline in the NHL. Is the season really going that quick? Where’d the time go?

For the Blue Jackets, they’re clearly going to be sellers. Will a goalie be on the move by then? What about the logjam on defense and forward when the injured return?

An obvious name to watch here is Merzlikins. He said Friday that he needed a new scenario. What that exactly means will come out over time.

The pending UFAs are Jack Roslovic, Brendan Gaunce and Spencer Martin. Roslovic’s situation will be interesting to monitor given what his next contract could be. Gaunce could be looking for his next opportunity. Martin’s situation is very interesting. He’s still with the Blue Jackets. Are they thinking of extending him? It will depend on how they handle the other goalies.

We can’t rule out a surprise or two given how bad the season has been. The team will have to thoroughly evaluate everything and make some tough decisions.

Improvement Needed

These last 40 games will provide the Blue Jackets an opportunity to show how much they’ve improved from the beginning of the season. They need to start showing tangible improvement in key areas.

This starts on defense. They have to start putting things together no matter who dresses for games. When you consider Zach Werenski, Damon Severson, Erik Gudbranson and Andrew Peeke each have multiple seasons left on their contracts, it’s going to be up to them to get things straight especially when the young prospects earn their way up for more playing time.

More importantly, the development aspect needs to shine through. Adam Fantilli, Kent Johnson and many others need to show tangible progress. Assuming they play, these games provide them another opportunity to show a good development path. The future doesn’t matter if the development now isn’t in order.

Once Season is Over

The big story for the Blue Jackets will commence once the season is over. What will be the damages and what repercussions are coming?

No one in the organization is happy with this season. It was supposed to be a season of growth for a young team looking to take the next step. It may ultimately still be that. However given the events that have happened, it feels inevitable that there will be some form of change.

Receipts will become due. Accountability (or lack there of) will take center stage. We are going to learn a lot about a lot of people after the season. When the kitchen is hot, that’s when you learn the most about groups or individuals.

We will see how ownership views all of this. We will see what management decides to do. Imagine if there are no changes. Imagine if there are a lot of changes. No matter what events take place, it will be fascinating to see unfold.

For now though, the Blue Jackets are preparing to take on the Kraken in Game 43. With half the season to go, the team is basically playing out the string. Who finds motivation in the darkness? Who cracks? There may not be playoff hockey coming in the spring. But there sure will be no shortage of stories to follow as the second half gets underway.