The thing about persistent noise is it always seems to get louder.
And if you’re the Blue Jackets, right about now you’d probably prefer to be the person on an airplane who slaps on some Bose headphones and checks out. It’s a metaphor for where they stand entering the 2018-19 season, which so far has shown us that it won’t be any ordinary season in Columbus.
See these headphones, person sitting next to us? Don't talk to us. Let us mind our business, and maybe we'll talk when this plane lands.
Artemi Panarin isn’t willing to sign an extension. Sergei Bobrovsky appears upset about something and his contract negotiations aren’t going anywhere. Both players, who are legitimate superstars in the NHL, are in the final years of their respective contracts and probably have an idea of where they’ll be playing this time next year (hint: likely not Columbus).
In the middle of it all is a Blue Jackets team that, at all positions, has star talent and depth. It’s a quality team, a team that has averaged 100-plus points in the last two regular seasons – a points total bested by only three teams. They’re on the cusp of finally breaking through and while we all thought that was an inevitably on, say, April 16, it certainly feels different now.
For real this time. Seriously.
This is the optimistic period of the hockey calendar, isn't it? Training camps are over. We've emerged on the other side of "best shape of my life" season and we're no worse for it. Roster decisions are settled and coaches are tired of talking (and players are tired of hearing them) – it's time to play hockey. Everyone feels like they have a chance, regardless of their warts or flaws.
Pessimism and skepticism are the hallmarks of summer. Who didn't add enough? Who lost too much, and who's fallen behind the curve in their division? Those questions are now of the past and the answers lie ahead. It's a beautiful time, but there's an uncertainty floating around Ohio's capital city despite the Blue Jackets sporting perhaps their best team to date.
That's the biggest question left unanswered here: can the Blue Jackets overcome all that's supposed to stand in their way, even though it's out of their control?
There are two things at play here: first, the sideshow(s) going on with Panarin and Bobrovsky do provide an underlying storyline, a “distraction” if you must.
Players and coaches can say all they want about these not being detriments or distractions, but the reality is that in every market and at every turn until their respective resolutions, these stories will follow them. You don’t think Panarin and/or Bobrovsky, and their teammates, will be asked about this when they go to any major media market in the United States and Canada? It may not ever be brought up in the dressing room (yeah, right), but media coverage and attention is part of the deal when you play professional sports, and it’s going to be brought up repeatedly throughout the year.
How the Blue Jackets deal with it is paramount.
Secondly, while players are reticent to stick their noses in each other’s business (because most will go through something similar at one point in their careers), it’s fair to wonder how much they choose to. You can't just let it go, can you? That would be hard to believe.
And on top of all that, the Blue Jackets – as mentioned – have a team that can win.
Their window of contention remains open and obviously it would be open wider if Panarin and Bobrovsky are in the fold long-term, but you’re not scrapping it all with Seth Jones (23), Zach Werenski (21) and Pierre-Luc Dubois (20) still scratching the surface. The Blue Jackets, regardless of what happens with the two major players, are dug in to win now and in the years ahead.
First up is 2018-19 and, after back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time in their history, the Blue Jackets are trying to eliminate that as a talking point. Making the playoffs isn’t good enough anymore. Regular season success is great but it’s not the goal; these Blue Jackets are in the midst of announcing their arrival as a contender and so much depends on the delicate situations hanging over their heads.
Can they do it? Can they put their headphones on and trudge forward?
If they can, they might be ready to kick the door down. And it's about damn time.
