The great Dane has made a name for himself in Columbus.
Even though Oliver Bjorkstrand recorded less points this past year than the season prior, he finally started to do what Columbus Blue Jacket fans have been waiting for.
Score goals in bunches.
Bjorkstrand's Year
| GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | PS | PIM | SH | GWG | TOI | CF% | oZS% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 77 | 23 | 13 | 36 | 8 | 4.8 | 8 | 161 | 1 | 12:20 | 52.6 | 55.2 |
Bjorkstrand averaged the least amount of ice time in his 2018-2019 campaign than he has all fours years as a Blue Jacket. The fact that he was fifth on the team in scoring is pretty remarkable.
That's not all folks. Bjorkstrand was 18th on the club in minutes per game (for those who played at least 20 games), and 11th amongst all forwards. Even with these low minutes, the young winger was tied for fifth on the team in offensive point shares, and was in the top ten in total point shares.
Bjorkstrand was also eighth in points for the Blue Jackets, while still averaging five less minutes of ice time per game than any other player in the top ten.
So, point made. Bjorkstrand did a lot with a little. Come postseason time, he put up five points in ten games - with two of those points being huge goals in the first-round sweeping of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Highlight of the Campaign
Every goal in the postseason is important, but this one ranks in the upper echelon of 2019 Blue Jacket playoff goals.
Blue Jacket fans knew how good this Tampa Bay Lighting team was. Give them some life, and they could win four straight games. When Brayden Point scored a late-second-period-tying-goal in Game 4, there was an unspoken "Oh, please no" that hummed throughout the building.
Enter Oliver Bjorkstrand to drop the hammer and put the Lightning away for good.
Outlook
John Tortorella, if you're reading this, you know what to do. Let the kid play.
Oliver Bjorkstrand was one of the more valuable offensive weapons down the stretch for the Blue Jackets in 2018-2019, and (to continue to beat a dead horse here) with the exodus of three big-scoring free agents, the Danish Dynamo will have even more room for his wicked wrister to shine.
That is, if he gets more than 12 minutes of ice time per night. If so - Bjorkstrand could be pushing mid-to-high 30's in goals.
