To say that Columbus Blue Jackets forward Emil Bemstrom has had an up-and-down season would be an understatement.
The 23-year-old forward did not make the opening night roster, cleared waivers, and was sent to AHL Cleveland. He's torched the AHL for 14-17-31 (G-A-PTS) in 21 games, and despite being in the NHL for several weeks at a time, he still finds himself among the league leaders in scoring. Clearly, he's too good for the AHL, and the promotion to the NHL was deserved. In seven games in mid-late November with the big club, Bemstrom posted 2-2-4 while averaging 12:54, before being sent back down.
After continuing to eat up the AHL, he was promoted again last week and given a new opportunity to play higher in the lineup with players like Johnny Gaudreau, Jack Roslovic, and Gus Nyquist.
A classic paradox in hockey is the ability to play with heightened expectations. When Bemstrom is slotted in a bottom-six role, he plays with lesser players, gets less ice time, gets fewer chances, and produces less for himself and his teammates. That, in turn, does little to incentive the coaching staff to give the player additional chances. So the player languishes until they either break the cycle or are pigeonholed into a role.
Bemstrom has torched the AHL and the SHL before that as a teenager. He's shown that he has offensive upside. He hasn't been able to show that at the NHL level, at least, consistently, but the two games since his most recent call-up are a good indication that he's at least trending in the right direction.
In the sleepy 2-1 loss against the Islanders, Bemstrom scored a late goal that at least gave the Blue Jackets a chance. He skated a season-high 20:46 playing alongside Gaudreau and Roslovic, and was on the ice in an empty-net situation with Gaudreau, Kent Johnson, Kirill Marchenko, etc. when he scored.
Bemstrom's third breaks the shutout. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/9047aXbW3w
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) December 30, 2022
Then, on New Year's Eve, he scored a power-play goal from the left faceoff dot, his favorite place to shoot. It was definitely his best game of the season, and possibly of his 126-game NHL career. He was consistently dangerous, ferocious on the forecheck, and was always around the puck. He finished the game with six shots on goal and 11 attempts, both of which were game-highs.
Bemstrom from Gaudreau and Boqvist. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/e65aJogEns
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) December 31, 2022
But it's not just the goals that are exciting. While Bemstrom is a shooter, the fact of the matter is that he needs to be a more effective player off the puck, winning battles, and coming out of the corners with pucks more consistently. Basically, he needs to have his name called with regularity on the telecast. He's done that as of late.
Through nine games this year in the NHL, Bemstrom has tallied 4-2-6. That production alone should allow him to get more of a look, particularly in a year devastated by losing and a laundry list of injuries. The reality is the Blue Jackets have a vested interest in Bemstrom's development. In August, the RFA was re-signed for two more years at a modest $900k cap hit, and he'll still be RFA when the contract expires in 2024. But they could have chosen not to qualify him. Clearly, they hope that they are able to turn Bemstrom into a full-time NHLer.
Two games are not enough to say that he's turned a corner, but it beats two uninspiring games any day of the week.
