We were headed in this direction, before too long.
And to be honest I thought Tuesday night was a great opportunity for John Tortorella to get Joonas Korpisalo back in the net. I was surprised when Sergei Bobrovsky was announced as the starter, even though he's the No. 1 goaltender. You normally wouldn't be surprised by that, but it's an indication of where the Blue Jackets are right now.
They don't know what they're getting from Bobrovsky on a nightly basis. It's unfamiliar, uncharted and unnerving territory – this is a two-time Vezina Trophy winner and one of the top goaltenders in the world, but he's hardly been that so far. Bobrovsky has been one of the NHL's most underwhelming starting goalies so far.
Sergei Bobrovsky has the NHL's worst goals saved above average rate among regular starters. This is what that looks like on a shots map. Looks like too many goals from the high slot... pic.twitter.com/SgIxurhr03
— Sean Tierney (@ChartingHockey) October 23, 2018
That's pretty jarring. This is Sergei-freaking-Bobrovsky we're talking about.
Meanwhile, it's obvious that the Blue Jackets are also committed to giving Joonas Korpisalo a longer look this season in preparation for what may be coming next with Bobrovsky. Korpisalo is an uber-talented and still-kinda-green goalie who deserves a shot and could well be the Blue Jackets' No. 1 going forward, provided Bobrovsky isn't committed long-term to Columbus. It certainly doesn't look or feel that way.
So, if we're blending performance and perception, it's Korpisalo Time for the Blue Jackets.
He's been good, too. Tortorella singled Korpisalo out as the main reason Columbus was able to scratch out (no pun intended) a mid-October win over the Florida Panthers; Korpisalo made 37 saves including a handful of 10-bells, and bailed the Blue Jackets out of some serial sloppiness. Kind of like, you know, Bobrovsky is accustomed to doing.
The Blue Jackets are plodding along at .500 (4-4-0) and, for the most part, haven't looked all that inspiring. Part of it stems from a lack of consistency in net. We've gotten used to the Blue Jackets playing confident and almost care-free in front of Bobrovsky; right now, it's appeared to be the opposite – tentative, timid and indecisive. That's the antithesis of how Tortorella wants them to play, and their comfort level (or lack thereof) is showing.
So, let's give Korpisalo a shot.
The appropriate question might be "why not?"
The Sonny Side
We've written about it, discussed it, podcasted on it. The Blue Jackets still, what feels like years into this, don't have a sensible way of handling Sonny Milano. The guy they took in the first round four years ago hasn't yet found solid footing in the NHL, and there's an argument that it's in part due to inconsistent ice time.
The coaches out there will fire back with "inconsistent play yields inconsistent ice time." Fair enough, BUT.
That's a plausible, even believable, way of approaching it if there was even an inkling of their end game. Is he a trade piece? I'd surely hope not, as no one with any interest is seeing enough of him from game-to-game to get an idea of what they'd be acquiring. There's no such thing as a showcase when you don't show him off.
Are they hoping to drill into him what it takes to be an NHL regular? Playing him in a fourth-line role and sporadically on the power play doesn't make a whole lot of sense, either.
I just don't get it, I guess that's what I'm saying. The more this goes on the way it has, a trade seems like the only way out for both parties. Milano's not getting the ice he needs to produce, and the Blue Jackets don't think he's played well enough to earn that responsibility. Stalemate.
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- Trent Vogelhuber is hanging up the skates, but he's not going too far. He'll join the Cleveland Monsters as an assistant coach, effective immediately.
- Strong words from Cam Atkinson, who says the Blue Jackets need to "figure out who (they) are."
- Two Blue Jackets prospects are joining Team Russia for the upcoming Canada-Russia series.
