The Blue Jackets’ latest loss got away from them in a hurry, and Carson Soucy was right in the middle of it.
Columbus was sitting on a 1-0 lead after the first period, but Florida ripped off six straight goals and took control long before the Jackets’ late push produced two goals. By then, the game had already tilted hard the Panthers’ way.
Soucy’s night was the kind of outing that sticks out for all the wrong reasons. After coming to Columbus on a PTO, he has struggled through five games with the Blue Jackets, and this one featured the kind of mistake that can unravel everything. With little pressure on him from the forecheck, he flipped the puck directly to Matthew Tkachuk instead of moving it to an open Blue Jacket, and Florida turned that into the first goal of the game.
That miscue was ugly enough on its own, but it wasn’t the only problem. The Panthers had four power plays, and Soucy looked shaky again on the first penalty kill, getting out of position and failing to disrupt a pass into the low slot. Later, he took a high sticking penalty that didn’t make much sense, with his stick up in the air and contact coming on a player who wasn’t near the puck.
At 446 NHL games deep into his career, that’s not the kind of play Columbus can afford from a veteran defender. And when it’s layered on top of four earlier games that were underwhelming at best, it becomes hard to justify keeping him in the lineup.
The injury situation on the blue line does complicate things, with Dante Fabbro and Ivan Provorov both out. Even so, the case against Soucy is strong enough that the Jackets need to look elsewhere.
Emil Andrae stands out as the better option right now, even if he may not be the choice for penalty-kill duty. Soucy has the size edge, but that’s about where his advantages stop.
The numbers back up that view. Soucy is sitting at a 43.1% on-ice expected goals percentage at 5-on-5, which drops by about 15% from when he isn’t on the ice. Andrae, meanwhile, is at 49.8% in the same category, according to MoneyPuck.
There’s also Guillaume Richard to consider. He’s already put up four points in four AHL games this season and has shown himself to be a strong defender.
But the larger point is simpler than all of that: Columbus needs a different answer. Soucy’s game against Florida was too rough, and he doesn’t offer enough upside to keep running him out there.
Saturday against the Rangers should be without him.
In Other News...
Blue Jackets Culture Reset Is Already Becoming An Accountability Debate
Rick Bowness came back behind the Blue Jackets bench for his first full season with hopes of bringing structure and sharper habits, but early results have not shown much of a reset. Through the first five games, the team has still been too loose with penalties and too uneven in its overall play, a familiar problem for a roster trying to take a real step forward. After losses, Bowness has not hidden his frustration, which has only made the conversation around the team feel more urgent.
What makes the situation more complicated is the leadership vacuum around him. Columbus is still operating without a captain, and the lack of a clear voice on the ice has left Bowness trying to supply accountability from the bench instead. The question now is whether repeated public criticism can actually sharpen the group or whether the message is landing without producing the kind of response the team needs. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Defense Problem Is Making Guillaume Richard Hard To Ignore
The Blue Jackets keep running into the same issue on their blue line: injuries have thinned the group, and the current options have not done enough to stabilize the bottom four. With the defense under pressure and the roster picture getting shakier, attention has started to turn toward Guillaume Richard, who has been building a case in Cleveland with the kind of steady play that makes a call-up harder to dismiss.
Richards appeal is not just about filling a body in the lineup. His AHL work suggests a defenseman who can handle real minutes and add some value beyond simply surviving shifts, which matters for a Columbus team looking for someone who can help rather than patch holes. Ivan Provorov being out longer term only sharpens the urgency, and it leaves the Blue Jackets weighing how long they can keep waiting before giving Richard a look. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets May Have Found One Line They Can't Afford To Disrupt
Through five games of a 2-3-0 start, the Blue Jackets have already settled on one trio that looks like more than a temporary fix. Their third line, built around Cole Sillinger and Charlie Coyle and used together in four of those games, has given Rick Bowness something he can trust beyond the top six. Sillinger has talked openly about the chemistry and the groups ability to handle the defensive side of the puck, and that matters for a team still sorting out its identity early in the season.
Coyle has fit the role especially well since signing a six-year extension, piling up five assists in five games while giving the line a steady two-way base. The numbers back up what the eye test is suggesting, too, with the trio driving play at a level few lines around the league can match when it comes to expected goals rate. For a club looking for stability, the question now is less about whether the line works and more about how long Columbus can afford to leave it alone. [Read more 🡒]