(Best E Casino) - Each year we're told this is the season the Columbus Blue Jackets will finally make the franchise's first playoff appearance and, thus far, that's been empty talk.
This past offseason, Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson, who is in his second year as GM, tried to make Columbus' postseason dreams a reality with a handful of trades and free-agent signings.
Howson's biggest deal was the signing of right wing Kristian Huselius, who scored 77 and 66 points in each of his last two seasons with the Calgary Flames.
The Blue Jackets also acquired developing centerman R.J. Umberger in an offseason trade with Philadelphia. Both players are expected to give Columbus superstar left wing Rick Nash some breathing room on the team's top line.
A few changes were also made on the blueline and that should help head coach Ken Hitchcock optimize his defensive strategies.
All this may not be enough to get Columbus into the playoffs for the first time since entering the league as an expansion club for the 2000-01 campaign, but the Blue Jackets at least seem to be headed in the right direction.
FORWARDS - Nash, the first overall pick in the 2002 draft, has been the face of the Blue Jackets franchise, making three All-Star appearances in his five NHL seasons.
The 6-4, 218-pound Nash creates matchup problems for virtually every NHL team, as he combines size, surprising speed and superb stickhandling skills to get to the net.
Last year, Nash turned in his best NHL season in many respects, posting a career-high in points with 69 (38 goals, 31 assists) and setting a personal mark with 95 penalty minutes.
More importantly, Nash kept his team in the thick of the Western Conference playoff picture into the month of March.
Nash's top-line will likely feature two new faces with the arrival of Huselius and Umberger.
Huselius was lured away from Calgary with a four-year, $19 million contract and will be called upon for big production. Huselius is expected to take the place of right wing Nikolai Zherdev, who was traded this summer to the New York Rangers in a deal that brought a pair of defensemen to Columbus. Zherdev was second to Nash on the Blue Jackets with 61 points last year, while Huselius notched 66 points (25g, 41a) in 81 games for the Flames in 2007-08.
Umberger, meanwhile, had 50 points (13g, 37a) in 74 regular-season games with the Flyers in 2007-08, but really shined in the playoffs, where he 10 goals and 15 points in 17 contests.
Veteran centerman Michael Peca was re-signed to a one-year deal after an injury-plagued 2007-08. Peca played in 65 games and was third on the Blue Jackets with 34 points (8g, 26a). When healthy, Peca is one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL.
The Blue Jackets tried to add some firepower to their second line with an offseason trade for right wing Raffi Torres. Torres, who came over from Edmonton in exchange for forward Gilbert Brule, had averaged over 20 goals and 36 points per season in his first three years with the Oilers, but played in just 32 games in 2007-08 and notched 11 points (5g, 6a).
Columbus could also have two big-time prospects on its NHL roster for a full- time basis this season, as right wing Jakub Voracek and centerman Derick Brassard aim to make the team in training camp.
Voracek, 19, was the seventh overall pick in the 2007 draft and had 101 points (33g, 68a) in just 53 games with Halifax of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League last year. Scouts love the native Czech's combination of size, speed and skill.
Brassard, a sixth overall selection in the 2006 draft, is a 21-year-old playmaking center who saw action in 17 games with Columbus last season, registering one goal and one assist in that span.
Meanwhile, this past summer's first-round selection, Nikita Filatov, also has a shot to make the big club. Filatov is just 18 years old and undersized, but by all accounts has blazing speed. If the Blue Jackets decide the young Russian isn't quite ready for the NHL, then he will remain in North America and play at the major junior level.
DEFENSE - The Blue Jackets lost a solid defenseman to free agency this summer when Ron Hainsey signed with Atlanta, but Howson landed a few new blueliners to help ease the loss.
The big addition on defense came in the form of 6-5, 228-pound Mike Commodore, who was signed to a five-year, $18.75 million deal this summer. The 28-year- old Commodore is a solid blueliner who combines physical play with the ability to move the puck. He was traded from Carolina to Ottawa during the 2007-08 season and had 14 points (3g, 11a) in 67 combined games with the Hurricanes and Senators.
The Zherdev deal also brought in a pair of promising defensemen from the Rangers, as Fedor Tyutin and Christian Backman make the move from Manhattan to the Heartland.
The 25-year-old Tyutin played in all 82 games with the Blueshirts last year and recorded five goals, 10 assists and a plus-five rating. Backman, 28, was traded from St. Louis to New York last season and had 18 points (3g, 15a) in 63 contests.
Jan Hejda and Rostislav Klesla will return to Columbus' blue line and a handful of candidates will battle for the sixth spot in the defensive rotation.
GOALTENDING - Pascal Leclaire finally showed why the Blue Jackets selected him eighth overall in the 2001 draft by turning in an excellent season in 2007-08.
Leclaire played in a career-high 54 games and went 24-17-6 with a franchise- record nine shutouts. He also was seventh in the NHL with a 2.25 goals against average and 12th in the league with a save percentage of .919.
The Blue Jackets now must hope that the 25-year-old backstop has turned the corner for good. Howson must believe so since he re-signed Leclaire to a three-year, $11.4 million deal in the offseason.
Fredrik Norrena had an up-and-down season as Leclaire's backup in 2007-08, going 10-19-6 with a 2.72 GAA and .896 save percentage. The 34-year-old Finn had been Columbus' starter the previous year, when Leclaire battled a leg injury.
WHEN ALL IS SAID AND DONE - This year's version of the Blue Jackets looks to be the real deal in terms of playoff contention. Howson has done a good job of turning over the personnel and has a coach in Hitchcock who knows how to get the most out of a lineup. Columbus has enough talent to finally get to the postseason, but can Nash and company fulfill their obligations on the ice? Now more than ever, the answer seems to be yes.
