During their end-of-the-year press conferences, the Columbus Blue Jackets made one thought abundantly clear: they need to be better.
It was talked about ad nauseum during John Tortorella's press conference that the season's results were good, not great. It was a sharp criticism but it hit the right note as the Blue Jackets try to build the franchise into a consistent winner.
One player that exemplified that sharp criticism was also a healthy scratch during Game 4, Scott Hartnell.
While a lot of the focus fell on Sergei Bobrovsky for the playoff downfall of the team, the offense was nonexistent at the beginning of the series, scoring just a single goal in each Game 1 and Game 2.
The veterans were expected to step up and be a vital part of the team. In four playoff games, Hartnell, the current team's leader in NHL regular-season games with nearly 1,200 played, put up zero points and had a plus-minus of minus-2.
After the disappointing end, Hartnell delivered an impassioned speech to the team following Game 5, illustrating that the team needs to seize the moment when it has the chance:
"One thing I said after the game in Pittsburgh was you can't always say there is next year," he said today. "Next thing you know you wake up and you're 35 like me, in the twilight of your career. You know, a lot of these guys are 20, 22, 23 years old and if you say there is next year, there is next year, you're going to end up in the same boat."
The comments made by Hartnell are just the type of serious yet poignant thoughts a young team should dwell on as it goes into the offseason.
When Hartnell was asked about his healthy scratch and how he is going to process it going into the summer months, he acknowledged his shortcomings.
"Yeah, it's frustrating, obviously," he said. "The last few months of the season, I didn't score I don't think in 30 some-odd games. But personally, I was disappointed in myself, but as for the team concept and my role, it was fun playing. It was fun playing 17, 18, 20 minutes a game but to play your 10, 12 minutes and contribute and be a big part of how this season went for us, I accepted the role and loved it. Where we go from here, I don't have a crystal ball to tell you. Wish things worked out differently and we were still playing right now."
After Jan. 1, in a total of 43 games played for Hartnell, he put up four goals and 11 assists for a total of 15 points. The last time he scored a goal was Jan. 21, when he scored twice against the Carolina Hurricanes. He ended the season, including the playoffs, on a 38-game goalless drought.
Hartnell also didn't dance around what the Blue Jackets need to take the next step and be Stanley Cup contenders.
"You need a lot of things," he said. "You need your best players to be your best players. You need some puck luck that we didn't get this series. You need your big boys to step up and the other guys to play hard with timely goals. There's no magic recipe for success or it would be pretty easy to get where you want to go. We showed we're right there with Pittsburgh, a team that could go all the way again."
Expectations were high for the team and Hartnell this postseason. As they begin to look toward the future and the expansion draft, the former Flyer and Predator doesn't know whether he'll be asked to waive his no-movement clause but said Columbus has become his home.
As the offseason begins to take shape, Hartnell seems to have one of the more shaky futures despite being under contract through the 2018-19 season. He believes in the team and what it is trying to accomplish. The Blue Jackets have tough decisions to make across the board, but where he fits into their future plans is going to be one of the hardest to make.
