A lot went right during last year’s magical ride for the Columbus Blue Jackets, and there’s one truth that cannot be disputed – none of it happens without Sergei Bobrovsky.
After two inconsistent seasons, Bobrovsky turned in a gem of a campaign, leading the league in every goaltending category that really matters – goals-against average (2.06), save percentage (.931) and goals saved above average (33.45) – on the way to his second Vezina Trophy and a finalist nod for the Hart trophy.
And along the way, he proved yet again that Bobrovsky is the Hart – pun very clearly intended – of the team. Just take a look at this chart over the last five seasons.
| starts | SV PCT | GAA | GSAA | TEAM PTS% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012-13 | 37 | .932 | 2.00 | 21.48 | .573 |
| 2013-14 | 57 | .923 | 2.38 | 15.40 | .567 |
| 2014-15 | 49 | .918 | 2.69 | 5.30 | .543 |
| 2015-16 | 37 | .908 | 2.75 | -7.69 | .463 |
| 2016-17 | 63 | .931 | 2.06 | 33.45 | .659 |
The first year (a lockout-shortened 48-game season) he won the Vezina and took the team to the precipice of the postseason. A year later, his numbers weren't quite as good but were good enough to help Columbus become a playoff team. Then, in back-to-back seasons in which Columbus missed the playoffs, injuries and ineffectiveness made him a below-average goalie on the whole.
Then came last year's campaign, which was nothing short of otherworldly. Bobrovsky was impressive from start to finish, not just in bursts. Much was made of the nearly 20 pounds he lost going into the season, and it clearly helped him become more durable after battling groin injuries over a two-year span. And he didn't lose any of the strength, quickness or flexibility that have come to define his game.
But the elephant in the room remains, and that is a playoff performance in which Bobrovsky posted a 3.88 goals-against average and .882 save percentage in the five-game loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The criticism was there and it was fair, but head coach John Tortorella doesn't expect anything approaching a hangover.
"I don't have a worry in the world about Bob," Tortorella said when camp began. "It was very well chronicled after the playoffs. It wasn't to the standard that we all know Bob can play. Pittsburgh did that to a number of goalies during their run. ... I'm not worried about it. He was the best goaltender in the league last year, and that wasn't a fluke. That's how well he played.
"I know in his heart, his game was not up to where it needed to be in the playoffs. He knows that. That's the most important thing. Right now, I think there's a great fire that he has in him. As I've gotten to know him, that's really important. I just think he carries himself so well within himself. He'll be ready to go."
His running mate in 2017-18 will be a netminder Blue Jackets fans have come to know well in Joonas Korpisalo. When Bobrovsky was sidelined two seasons ago, Korpisalo was called up from the AHL at just 21 years old and was impressive in a 30-start cameo, winning 16 of them for a team going nowhere that season thanks to a 2.60 goals-against average and .920 save percentage. Along the way, he showcased a gift for playing well in the spotlight as well as a calm yet athletic game.
Those numbers dipped a bit a season ago as Korpisalo didn't look quite as comfortable in net. He finished with a 7-5-1 mark in 14 games (13 starts) but his rate stats fell to a 2.88 GAA and a .905 save percentage.
After a rough start to the preseason in a loss to the Blackhawks, Korpisalo turned in a beauty in Chicago on Sept. 23, making 52 saves while backstopping Columbus to a win in a game against many of the Hawks' top players.
"The goaltender played outstanding," Tortorella said afterward. "We're trying to figure out that backup position. It's a great rebound by him because he struggled his first game. In the short time that I've known him, nothing bothers him. If he has a bad outing, it just rolls off of him and he gets ready to play. He was outstanding tonight."
Korpisalo has won a battle of attrition to be in position to be the Blue Jackets' backup backstop, with longtime second-stringer Curtis McElhinney traded to Toronto midway through last season and Anton Forsberg – who had been drafted a year before Korpisalo in 2011 – dealt to the Blackhawks in an offseason trade.
With that depth cleared out, where the Jackets will turn if the unfortunate reality of an injury happens remains to be seen. The team brought veteran Brad Thiessen, 31, to camp after he posted 2.34/.924 marks in 12 games last year with Cleveland, and he again figures to start the season with the Monsters.
After that, the team has gone with a youth movement, signing two goaltenders who spent last year in the USHL junior league. The good news is they were the two best netminders in the league, and one was named the best player in USHL in Matiss Kivlenieks. The Latvian was impressive with a structurally sound game in Traverse City and in camp after posting a 1.85 GAA and .932 save percentage last year with Sioux City.
The other signee is Ivan Kulbakov, who won't have far to go to reach Cleveland after spending last year with the Youngstown Phantoms. The native of Belarus was second in the USHL a season ago behind Kivlenieks with a .919 save percentage and had a goals-against of 1.93.
