October is in the books, and for the Blue Jackets, that’s probably a relief. They head into November with a mostly healthy roster and a clear need to clean things up after a rough opening month that left them searching for answers.
The record tells the story well enough: Columbus finished October at 5-7-0 for 10 points, good for the sixth-worst points percentage in the NHL at .417%. They managed just one regulation win, tied for the fewest in the league, and sit last in the Eastern Conference. The one wrinkle is that they’ve played the fewest games in the league so far, with 12.
Injuries certainly played a role early on. The Blue Jackets were already thin on the blue line and opened the season without Damon Severson, Dante Fabbro, and Ivan Provorov, with Provorov only returning for their final game of the month.
Still, that can only explain so much. Every team has had to deal with injuries, and Columbus did battle through the month and scrape together points. The bigger issue is that the underlying numbers match the standings.
Offensively, the Jackets have been stuck near the bottom of the league, sitting 29th with 2.33 goals per game. What makes that especially frustrating is that some of their younger players have taken noticeable steps forward.
Kent Johnson leads the team with 7 goals and 12 points, already matching his goal total from all of last season. Adam Fantilli has started to heat up after a slow beginning. Denton Mateychuk and Cole Sillinger have also chipped in at key moments.
But beyond that group, the production dries up fast. Outside of those names - and leaving out assist men Zach Werenski and Charlie Coyle - too many forwards have gone quiet. Sillinger’s three goals and Coyle’s one are part of the picture, but the larger problem is that players like Valeri Nichushkin, Matthew Knies, Sean Monahan, Mathieu Olivier, Dmitri Voronkov, and Conor Garland have combined for just 6 goals and 20 points.
That’s not enough from a middle six that’s on pace for 42 goals and 140 points over a full season. If the plan is to have Knies on the top line, the Jackets need much more from that group, and soon.
The defensive side hasn’t offered much relief either. Columbus is tied for 19th in the NHL, allowing 3.25 goals per game. The numbers behind that are even more revealing.
At 5-on-5, the Jackets have a CORSI% of 48.9%, which ranks 19th, and an expected goals percentage of 47.24%, meaning opponents are expected to generate about 53% of the chances. Their PDO sits at 99.03%, so this isn’t just a case of bad luck or a hot opposing goalie. The bigger change from last season is that they’re not getting games stolen by their own goaltender.
That leaves special teams as the obvious escape hatch, but those haven’t delivered either. Columbus owns the NHL’s 29th-ranked power play at 12.9% and the 23rd-ranked penalty kill at 73%.
The result is a first-month grade of D-.
This was supposed to be a team built to play big, heavy, and low-event hockey, and there have been nights where that identity shows up. But not enough of them. Teams built that way usually need strong special teams to tilt the ice when 5-on-5 play stalls, and Columbus hasn’t gotten that boost.
Right now, there isn’t a simple fix. The players have to be better, especially the veterans, if this season is going to turn. Maybe November brings that change.
In Other News...
Blue Jackets Fans Just Got An Easier Way To Watch This Season
Blue Jackets fans will have a few more ways to follow the team this season, thanks to a new broadcast arrangement involving Columbus, Sinclair Broadcast Group and Gray Media. The deal will put regular-season games on over-the-air stations across Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky, broadening access beyond the usual cable and streaming options and giving the team a wider reach in markets where fans may not always have an easy path to the telecast.
The coverage will run on a mix of Gray Media stations and WWHO CW Columbus, adding another layer to a viewing setup that already includes cable, satellite and streaming services such as Prime Video. For a fan base that has watched TV distribution shift and expand in recent years, the practical upside is simple: more households should be able to find the Blue Jackets without having to chase down a subscription or a login. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Prospect Is Forcing A Bigger Future Role Conversation
William Whitelaw keeps giving the Blue Jackets a reason to pay closer attention. The 2023 draft pick has been lighting it up for Western Michigan, piling up four goals and three assists over two games while continuing to look like one of the more dangerous offensive players in college hockey. His production has put him near the top of the national scoring picture, and his plus-11 rating only adds to the sense that this has become more than a hot stretch.
For Columbus, the appeal is obvious: Whitelaw is starting to look like a prospect who could push the conversation about his future role sooner rather than later. He is already viewed as a promising offensive piece, and if his college season keeps trending this way, the next stop could be a jump to the Cleveland Monsters once the year wraps up. The Blue Jackets have had enough young talent to monitor, but Whitelaw is making himself hard to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Alternate Jersey Has Fans Debating What This Team Represents
The NHLs Hometown Remix jersey series was meant to give all 32 clubs a fresh look rooted in local culture, but Columbus entry has already sparked a different kind of conversation. The Blue Jackets design leans heavily on gray, a choice that stands out in a franchise whose identity has long been tied to the Union soldier imagery behind its name and branding.
For a team that has spent years building around that historical connection, the new look feels like it is reaching for something modern without fully landing on what the club represents. The article takes aim at the color direction and suggests there were stronger ways to honor Columbus and the Blue Jackets place in it, which is why this jersey is drawing debate instead of simple approval. [Read more 🡒]