I don't even know where to begin.
My thoughts on the matter – much like what we've seen on the ice – are all over the place.
The Blue Jackets have played five games. They've won three of them, we know that much. At times they've played quite well and shown us glimpses of the fast, aggressive team they can be...and at others they've been an utter mess. John Tortorella has described them as such (for all intents and purposes) but he also believes all of this is happening without their top players on their game. That's also fair.
But doesn't all of this feel...weird?
That's the word and the feeling I keep coming back to.
I'll try to articulate this as best I can, but I can't guarantee its cohesiveness. Apologies in advance.
WEIRD THING #1: GOALTENDING
It's not the weirdest thing that Joonas Korpisalo is out-playing Sergei Bobrovsky. We're still early in the season and Korpisalo has beaten the Detroit Red Wings and Florida Panthers – both teams are currently winless, so let's halt the parade – but he's certainly looked better than the two-time Vezina winner ahead of him.
Bobrovsky has seemed off. I can't put a finger on it, and yeah I know this qualifies as pretty shitty analysis, but calling him "sharp" would be inaccurate. He was good enough to win last Tuesday against Colorado and played well in the third period, but there were moments in the 8-2 loss to Tampa Bay that didn't sit right. That brutal rebound on the third goal? Yikes. The slow meltdown late in regulation after it was clear the game was going to be a blowout? Just odd.
WEIRD THING #2: THE RESULTS
The games have been weird.
The Blue Jackets were just good enough to win in overtime against the Red Wings.
They were disjointed and slow against the Hurricanes in the home opener.
They turned it on at the right time to pull away from Colorado.
And in Florida, it was even stranger: by that I mean there was zero consistency. They managed to beat the Panthers on an ugly tying goal and a greasy winning goal. Two days later, they were pumped by the Lightning.
For their efforts, the Blue Jackets got five days to think about before their next game, tomorrow night at home against the Flyers. What I'm saying is: nothing has felt "right" about the first five games and maybe it'll sort itself out in time. Maybe Seth Jones comes back and everything settles down, people are back in proper places and there's less concern – but right now, the Blue Jackets need a perfect storm or some good fortune to get the right result.
WEIRD THING #3: THE TALK
We entered the season with Artemi Panarin talk, which carried over from the summer after we learned he didn't have an interest in signing an extension with the Blue Jackets. Jarmo Kekalainen didn't trade his top forward, so he's still here while the rumors and speculation persist.
Then it was Bobrovsky and the reports that contract negotiations weren't progressing. Then, Bobrovsky threw gas on the fire with his training camp comments, saying that the Blue Jackets are aware of his plans beyond this season.
And finally, this past weekend, Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos started a fire of his own with a report that Josh Anderson was unhappy with a demotion to the fourth line and could seek a trade out of Columbus. His agent, Darren Ferris, told The Athletic it was a baseless rumor but we can't rule anything out – especially after what Anderson's camp and the Blue Jackets went through to get him signed last fall.
