Heading into last year’s playoffs, the book on the Columbus Blue Jackets was that the team was led by their stellar first line of Artemi Panarin, Pierre-Luc Dubois, and Cam Atkinson. After winning the first two games of their series against the Washington Capitals, the Caps made a concerted effort to shut down the top line, and Artemi Panarin in particular, to force the rest of the lineup to beat them. The rest of the lineup was not up to the task, and the Jackets fell to the Capitals in six games in their first round series, the latest in the ongoing playoff-futility saga for the only Big Four sports franchise to never advance in the playoffs.
Secondary Scoring Has Shown Up for the Columbus Blue Jackets In Time for the Playoffs
