Acquiring Matt Duchene was seen as the biggest key to a Cup run for the Blue JacketsGETTY IMAGES
The Blue Jackets have "never had a three-day shopping spree" like they did in the lead up to yesterday's NHL trade deadline, and the team is being credited for having put "so much of their future on the line for what could be a one-year shot at glory," according to Aaron Portzline of THE ATHLETIC. The club yesterday traded for Rangers D Adam McQuaid and Devils G Keith Kinkaid prior to the deadline to go with other recent acquisitions in Cs Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel from the Senators. The four players -- all unrestricted free agents this summer -- came in "exchange for seven draft picks, including two first-round picks (one conditional) and two second-round picks." Perhaps the "bigger story" was that the Blue Jackets did not have to trade G Sergei Bobrovsky or LW Artemi Panarin. They are two "big-ticket players ... sticking around with a risk that they’ll walk away for nothing in the summer." The Blue Jackets currently sit in sixth place in the Eastern Conference and their decisions "might be reckless ... but this is going to be a riveting few months" (THEATHLETIC.com, 2/25). The GLOBE & MAIL's David Shoalts notes it has been a long time since a team "rolled the dice on a bet this size." Considering the franchise has "never won a playoff series in their 19 years in the league, this is quite a gamble." Presumably, Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen has the backing of the team President of Hockey Operations John Davidson and the owners, because if their Stanley Cup run "falls short they will have little to show for it" (GLOBE & MAIL, 2/26).
GOING FOR BROKE: THE HOCKEY NEWS' Ken Campbell wrote Kekalainen "went all in on his team for this season, acquiring expiring contracts instead of shedding them." It was a "bold move for a fan base that is desperate for some taste of playoff success, and probably a necessary one" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 2/25). USA TODAY's Kevin Allen writes the "all-in strategy is always risky." The Blue Jackets have "surrendered several prospects and draft picks and have many unrestricted free agents this summer." However, it is "refreshing to see a team try to win at all costs" (USA TODAY, 2/26). NBC SPORTS' Sean Leahy wrote for a franchise that has "yet to win a playoff round, good for them." Leahy: "The value in creating some excitement in the market is greater than whatever futures some team would throw their way in exchange for a couple of rentals" (NBCSPORTS.com, 2/25). SPORTSNET.ca's Ryan Dixon wrote moving Panarin and Bobrovsky for future assets "would have been the safe move," so good on Kekalainen for "making the bold and awesome one" (SPORTSNET.ca, 2/25).
THE TIME IS NOW: In Columbus, Brian Hedger writes all the moves the Blue Jackets made leading up to the deadline "sent the exact message Kekalainen had laid out in words" -- it is "time for Columbus to win." Kekalainen said, "We’ve been saying we want to send a message into the locker room, first and foremost into the locker room and to our fan base, that we’re serious about winning" (COLUMBUS DISPATCH, 2/26). THE ATHLETIC's Tom Reed wrote the Blue Jackets at some point "must start winning playoff rounds to be taken seriously by casual fans and high-end free agents." The team's latest moves "might represent their best chance." It is "hard to overstate what winning a few rounds would do for this franchise" (THEATHLETIC.com, 2/25).
