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State of the Organization: Defense |
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Entering last season Columbus’ one perceived strength was their blue line. With Jack Johnson, James Wisniewski, Fedor Tyutin, Nikita Nikitin and Adrian Aucoin, the Jackets possessed a solid, if unspectacular group of defenders to rely upon. In this part of the Jackets “State of the Organization” series, we’ll look at the Columbus defense corps and see if the Jackets look to be as strong as or stronger than last season.
NHL
Adrian Aucoin – Aucoin signed a one-year contract worth $2MM to provide veteran leadership and stability to the Columbus blue line. He finished with four points, all assists, in 36 games and was a minus-eight while averaging 16:20 per game. He’s again a free agent and I have a hard time seeing him return. Aucoin will be 40 on July 3rd and is nowhere near the player he was in his prime. He doesn’t skate very well and was a liability too often in his own zone last season. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Aucoin hangs up the skates.
Tim Erixon – Erixon was acquired from the Rangers in the Rick Nash deal and saw his first extensive duty in the NHL seeing action in 31 games. He netted five assists and was a plus-four on the campaign. The smooth-skating defender was originally selected in the first-round in 2009 by Calgary. He tallied five goals and 29 points for Springfield in the AHL and was named to the AHL Eastern Conference All-Star squad. He should assume a more prominent role on the Blue Jackets blue line next season and profiles as a steady puck-mover.
Jack Johnson – Johnson is a great skater who excels at the offensive part of the game and struggles in his own zone. He had 19 points (5 goals, 14 assists) in 44 contests but was a minus-five, lowering his career +/- rating to a minus-90. In his defense, Johnson did face some of the stiffest competition of any defenseman in the league, finishing 23rd overall in +/- QoC among all blue liners with at least 30 appearances on the season. He also led the Jackets in ATOI/Game, SHTOI/Game and PPTOI/Game this season. Columbus will continue to lean heavily on Johnson to play important minutes for the Jackets.
Nikita Nikitin – Following a trade from St. Louis during the 2011 – 2012 campaign, Nikitin would score seven goals and 32 points in 54 games for Columbus. Bigger things were expected from the Russian blue liner this year but Nikitin underwhelmed. He finished with just nine points in 38 games but did finish with a positive +/- rating. He is not fleet of foot and was prone to turning the puck over at inopportune times. This will be a big year for Nikitin as he is in the final year of his contract and set to earn $2.15MM before hitting unrestricted free agency. A solid year will put him in line to make a whole lot of money, either in Columbus or elsewhere. He’ll be given every opportunity to stay in the top-four and will see his share of PP time.
Dalton Prout – Prout was the big surprise from a year ago. When injuries hit the Blue Jackets blue line, Prout was bypassed for a recall in favor of David Savard, Cody Goloubef, Nick Holden and Tim Erixon. Prout didn’t make his debut until March 1st against Chicago. In 28 contests with Columbus Prout posted a team leading +15 +/- minus rating and tallied seven points. His play down the stretch as Columbus battled for their playoff lives pretty much guarantees Prout a spot in the Blue Jackets top-six.
Fedor Tyutin – Tyutin led the Columbus defense in scoring last season with 22 points and was the only blueliner to appear in all 48 games this season. He also posted the second highest +/- rating among defenders on the club. He also finished behind only Johnson in ATOI/Game and was one of Columbus’ most reliable players. Expect more of the same next season from the longest-tenured Blue Jacket (tied with R.J. Umberger). Edit: It was actually pointed out to me that Jared Boll, who was a rookie in 2007-2008, is the longest-serving current member of the Blue Jackets. Tyutin and Umberger joined Columbus during the summer of 2008 via trades with the Rangers and Flyers respectively. Thanks for pointing that out and my apologies.
James Wisniewski – Wiz might have been the club’s most important player and despite being part of the club’s slow start Columbus was 16-13-1 overall with Wisniewski in the lineup. He finished with five goals and 14 points in 30 contests last season and tied for the team lead in PP goals. Wisniewski, Tytutin and Johnson are locks for the top-four and will carry much of the load on the blueline next season.
In the System
David Savard – Savard is ranked fifth among Columbus defense prospects by the Hockey’s Future website. He saw action in just four games, finished with zero points and was a minus-three for the Blue Jackets. He had more success with Springfield registering 31 points in 60 games. He’s produced at the minor league level but the question is can he do the same in the NHL. He’s been bypassed on the depth chart by Prout and if Ryan Murray proves ready he’ll get a shot ahead of Savard. Savard is set to turn 24 early next season so It might be time to look to move him to another organization to give him a chance to play at the NHL level. He’s a RFA this summer so Columbus will have to make a decision on him one way or another.
Nick Holden – At this point it’s hard to see Holden as anything but organizational depth; perhaps he can crack an NHL roster as a 6th(best case) or 7th defenseman. He got into two games with Columbus going scoreless. He was one of Springfield’s better performers, scoring 39 points in 73 contests and finishing with a plus-24 +/- rating. Holden is 26 and a UFA this summer. I’d expect him to move on to another organization without so much blue line depth.
Cody Goloubef – Goloubef was Columbus’ second-round choice all the way back in 2007. He just completed his entry level deal and will be a RFA this summer. He saw action in 11 contests this past year and scored a goal. He was also a minus-five suggesting the 23 year-old defender could use some more work. Assuming Murray breaks camp with the big club, I would peg Goloubef as the next call-up in the event of injury.
Ryan Murray – Murray was the second overall selection in 2012 but missed six months this year because of a shoulder injury. If he’s healthy I could see him making Columbus’ roster though assuming the return of everyone else under contract the top-six is filled (Johnson, Wiz, Tyutin, Nikitin, Erixon and Prout). He is a special talent and will add some pizazz to the Blue Jackets defense for years to come.
Mike Reilly – The University of Minnesota defender was a 4th round choice in 2011 who has garnered some attention from the U.S. National Junior squad as he was invited to an evaluation camp in 2012. Last season as a sophomore, Reilly scored 14 points in 37 games for what is traditionally one of the top programs in the country. He’s not a big guy (6-0, 174) and will undoubtedly need to put on some weight but puck moving defensemen have value in this league and that’s what Reilly excels at.
Once again the Blue Jackets look to be solid on the back end. They may not have a true star blueliner in the NHL but Ryan Murray might one day be just that. They have solid depth at the NHL level and some decent options in the minors to guard against injury. Murray is easily their best prospect but there are other solid options in the pipeline to give hope for a strong future defense corps.
Columbus Blue Jackets Blogger • 
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