The Columbus Blue Jackets are in that tricky middle ground every NHL team eventually has to answer for: good enough to matter, but not yet proven enough to be taken for granted.
That’s the real debate around this group. Making the playoffs is one thing. Becoming a team people expect to see in the mix every spring - the kind of club that can push for the division or land in the top three and do damage once it gets there - is something else entirely.
Around the league, there are examples of teams that crossed that line. The Montreal Canadiens climbed from the bottom of the standings in 2023-24 to a wild card berth in 2024-25, then finished third in 2025-26 and tied Tampa Bay with 106 points for second in the Atlantic Division before reaching the Conference Finals.
The Sabres finally snapped a 14-year playoff drought, won the Atlantic, and made it to the second round before losing to Montreal. Carolina needed time, too; after breaking through in 2018-19, the Hurricanes had some early exits before growing into one of the NHL’s most consistent contenders and eventually winning their second Stanley Cup.
Those are the kinds of teams that stop being “hopeful” and start being expected.
Columbus isn’t there yet.
The Metropolitan Division remains a brutal place to live, and last season only three teams got in. The Capitals finished with 95 points, the Blue Jackets had 92, the Islanders 91, the Devils 87 and the Rangers 77 all missed. With 84 games on the schedule now, the bar for feeling secure about a playoff spot figures to be even higher - probably at least 100 points.
So the question hanging over Columbus is simple: do the Blue Jackets really stack up?
That question cuts deeper than a single playoff race. It’s about whether the franchise has actually narrowed the gap between being a bubble team and being a legitimate Eastern Conference threat.
Because the next step is not just sneaking into the postseason. It’s becoming one of those teams that can be trusted when the games get tighter and the stakes get real.
And that’s where the uncertainty comes in.
Rick Bowness is the club’s fifth head coach, counting Mike Babcock, since 2021-22, and he’s on a one-year deal. Zach Werenski is in his prime and can hit unrestricted free agency in two years.
Adam Fantilli is still on the rise. Denton Mateychuk, who posted 13 goals, 18 assists and a plus-12 rating, is just getting started on what Columbus hopes will be a long NHL career.
The roster has veterans trying to win now and younger players still climbing. The talent is there, but the timelines don’t exactly line up cleanly.
Kirill Marchenko’s future has also become part of the bigger conversation about whether Columbus can become a place where its stars want to stay.
That’s the challenge for the Blue Jackets: trying to compete while still sorting out what comes next.
In the end, the only answer that really changes the conversation is winning. A spring filled with meaningful hockey would say more about where this franchise is headed than any speech, any plan or any contract talk ever could.
If Columbus gets into the playoffs, that can be called a successful season. If Florida or Carolina only barely sneak in, that’s treated as a letdown. That’s the line between a hopeful team and a contender.
And for a franchise that has lived through plenty of disappointment - plus star players wanting out, including the 2018-19 club, its best season to this point, which kept everyone together and went all in before those players eventually left - the skepticism is understandable. Past results don’t guarantee future ones, but it’s easy to see why the Blue Jackets haven’t fully shaken the reputation built by years of frustration and departures.
For now, Columbus looks like a team trying to become a regular playoff participant more than one expected to challenge for the top of the Metropolitan Division.
That doesn’t mean the next leap is impossible. NHL teams can change fast. But the hardest jump is the one the Blue Jackets are chasing now: going from a team people think can make the playoffs to one people believe can win once it gets there.
In Other News...
Yegor Chinakhov Just Put The Blue Jackets In A Tough Spot
Yegor Chinakhovs time in Columbus has never quite settled into the clean progression the Blue Jackets hoped for when they drafted him in 2020. Injuries, uneven production and the usual growing pains of a young NHL forward have all been part of the picture, even as the club showed continued belief in him with contract extensions in 2023 and again in 2024.
Now the situation has taken a sharper turn, with Chinakhov and his camp raising concerns about misunderstandings with the coaching staff and how communication has gone behind the scenes. The issue has already reached Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell and Chinakhovs agent, and the two sides are trying to see whether a resolution can be found before the season begins. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Fans Have Another Painful Media Shakeup To Process
The Blue Jackets have already asked their fans to adjust once this week with the news that radio play-by-play voice Bob McElligott would not be retained, and now another familiar name is out of the organization. Jeff Svoboda, who has long been one of the teams most visible media figures, is no longer employed by the Blue Jackets, adding another layer of uncertainty to a stretch that has already unsettled the clubs communications side.
For fans, the timing is what stings most, because it has quickly turned a routine offseason shuffle into something that feels much bigger. There has been talk around the team about a possible move toward AI-driven content, though nothing has been officially confirmed, and the lack of clear answers only makes the changes harder to process. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Lose Another Familiar Part Of The Fan Experience
Another familiar part of the Blue Jackets game-night routine is gone. Jeff Svoboda announced his departure as the clubs insider after eight seasons with the organization, adding to a stretch of changes that has already altered how fans hear and follow the team. Columbus has been in the middle of a broader shift in its broadcast setup, and each move has felt like another thread being pulled from the fabric of the franchises daily presence.
The timing only sharpens the reaction because the organization had already decided to simulcast television and radio broadcasts for the 2026-27 season, a move that ended Bob McElligotts 17-year run as the clubs radio play-by-play voice. For a fan base that has long valued the people who have helped define the teams identity, the departures have sparked plenty of conversation about where the Blue Jackets are headed and what they want the experience to feel like going forward. [Read more 🡒]