2023-24 season: 27-43-12, 8th in Metropolitan Division, 16th in Eastern Conference, 29th in league.
The Columbus Blue Jackets got off to a brutal start before they even hit the ice. Hiring Mike Babcock was at first a move that many in the NHL circles complimented, and it only looked better when he announced at a press conference that he had changed from his days as a coach on the Red Wings and Maple Leafs. I won't go into what Mike Babcock did as a coach that was abusive or a power trip move, but many of us are aware that his mental warfare against his players had little to do with hockey. Just weeks after his hiring, the Spittin' Chiclets Podcast broke news that he had been screening other players cell phone pictures, and in many cases, making some of the younger players feel uncomfortable with how much time he spent looking. The NHLPA ruled this as an unjust breach of privacy, and I'm glad that they did, because there is no place in the game for coaches like him. Boone Jenner stood by him, most likely to save himself from criticism, but he confirmed that it was true, and he resigned before even coaching a game with the Jackets. The resignation was still unexpected, and the team didn't seem to know how to respond. As a result, they finished 31st in goals against with 298, and ranked 25th with 234 goals for. Their last-place finish in the Eastern Conference prompted ownership to fire Jarmo Kekalainen before the end of the season, and he has since been replaced as GM by Don Waddell, who unexpectedly resigned from the Hurricanes. Pascal Vincent was also fired at the end of the season, and was replaced by Minnesota's former coach Dean Evason.
Columbus is a young team with the potential to bounce back from an embarrassing season, but it won't be on the ice. With Don Waddell and Dean Evason as the new GM and coach, establishing a standard and making Columbus a desirable team to play for should be what they are aiming to do. They are also still in rebuild mode, and I think it will take at least 2 more years of missing the playoffs to get back. Their problem last season was not having enough to trade away for draft picks, but they finally solved the Patrik Laine issue by trading him to the Canadiens for Jordan Harris and a 2026 2nd round pick. They did well with the 6 they did have though, by landing Cayden Lindstrom and Evan Gardner at 4th and 60th overall. Their prospect pool looks good too, with players like Gavin Brindley who are more than capable of making the team.
As much of a mess as Don Waddell and Dean Evason inherited, they both have a strong track record of turning around new teams, as Evason was a Jack Adams Trophy finalist in 2020-21, and Waddell was a finalist for the Jim Gregory Award in 2018-19 in his first year with Carolina. Their prospect pool looks bright though, and if Boone Jenner could manage a good season, he could end up costing another team a 1st round pick at the deadline. Daniil Tarasov also managed to do well with a poor defense, having a .908 save percentage in 24 games for the 2nd worst defensive team. The fact that many of their top contributors are under the age of 30 has to be a comforting sign to management that the boat doesn't need to be rocked too hard, and getting rid of Patrik Laine was the right choice, because he was weighing the team down, and they can now replace him with solid veteran leadership. Waddell made a lot of trades in his first season in Carolina, and those trades got them to Game 4 of the ECF that year, so I wouldn't put it past him to accomplish a playoff spot with Columbus, but it is incredibly rare to work towards a championship without a full scale rebuild. The Stars may be a rare exception today with how good their team has become, but the exception does not disprove the rule, showing that most Stanley Cup teams have a top 5 pick from at least 5 years ago.
This season won't be spectacular by any means, so I am predicting a last place finish again. I think they will finish 8th in the Metropolitan Division, 16th in the Eastern Conference, and 30th in the league with a record of 23-55-4. They won't be nearly as competitive as they were last season, and I do believe they have yet to bottom out. From the many championship teams that I've observed, all of them had to hit rock bottom at some point, so If I'm Don Waddell looking at a long-term vision for the team, the answer is simple: Aim to get James Hagens in the upcoming draft, and Gavin McKenna in 2026.
This shit sucks