The Columbus Blue Jackets are currently off to one of the hottest starts in franchise history. The Blue Jackets have earned 23 points in 19 games so far this season. 23 points is good enough to put Columbus seventh in the NHL and fourth in the Eastern Conference.
A big part of the Blue Jackets success has been goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. Bobrovksy has a save percentage of .928 and a of 2.16 goals-against-average, sixth best in the NHL. The big question is can Sergei Bobrovsky’s Vezina hopes stay alive the rest of the season.
Sergei Bobrovsky’s Vezina Hopes
What He can do to Help Himself
Coming off his second Vezina Trophy, Bobrovksy is starting the season off strong. With a save percentage of .928, Bobrovsky has kept Columbus in every game. In fact, Bobrovsky has earned 21 of Columbus’s 23 points so far this season, while playing in only 15 games. In his last five games Bobrovksy has a goals-against-average of 2.40 and a save percentage of .920.
Bobrovsky has shown time and time again that he has the skill set to stay at his current level. Something to watch is how will Bobrovsky react if he has a string of bad games. In the 2015-16 season Bobrovksy started the season going 0-5-0 with a goals-against-average of 5.05. Playing in only 37 games that season due to injuries, Bobrovksy still had his second highest lose total in a season (39). The Stanley Cup Playoffs has also shown this side of Bobrovsky where he has a 3-10 record in 14 starts. Bobrovsky also has a GAA of 3.63 and has a save percentage of .887
What His Teammates Have to do for Him
If Bobrovsky is going to keep this impressive start all season long it will also rely on the defense in front of him. In this aspect Bobrovsky should be thankful, because the defense in front of him is excellent. The Blue Jackets defense is led by NHL Network’s top 20 defensemen Zach Werenski and All-Star Seth Jones.
Jones and Werenski are just the tip of the iceberg for Columbus’ defense. Veterans David Savard and Jack Johnson are not premier defensemen, but they are quality starters and leaders. With Ryan Murray on the third pairing the amount of shots on Bobrovsky should be limited.
The Backup is Key
Another person who will affect Bobrovsky’s season is backup goalie Joonas Korpisalo. Korpisalo has not had the start that Bobrovsky has had with only one win in his three games. Korpisalo has a goals-against-average of 3.67 and a save percentage of .886 which puts him at 53rd and 51st in those categories. Right now Korpisalo is not playing like an NHL goalie. He needs to get back there to help Bobrovsky.
Last year Bobrovsky played in a career high 63 games and was ineffective in the playoffs. Korpisalo played in just 14 games last season putting him tied for 59th in the league in games played. If Korpisalo can get to that 20 to 25 game range that will help boost Bobrovsky in the regular and the postseason.
Another thing that Korpisalo could help with is the amount of back-to-backs the Blue Jackets play this season. Sixteen times the Blue Jackets play back-to-back games this season. That will affect how Bobrovsky’s health and energy if Korpisalo cannot reliably fill in on the back half of those 16 back-to-backs. That might force Bobrovsky to play both of the games, something that has shown a notable decrease in productivity for any goalie, in both short-term and long-term performance.
The Competition
There are a couple of people standing in the way of Bobrovsky’s second straight Vezina. There are three players in particular that should be looked at; The first with an NHL leading 13 wins in 15 starts is Andrei Vasilevskiy. Vasilevskiy has a save percentage of .930 and a goals-against-average of 2.32 for the Tampa Bay Lighting.
The second is Braden Holtby who has 10 wins in 14 starts. Holtby has a goals-against-average of 2.68 and a save percentage of .918 for the Washington Capitals. The third and final goalie is Jonathan Quick with nine wins in 15 games so far for the Los Angeles Kings. Quick is tied for the NHL lead in shutouts (2), is fifth in save percentage at .930, and a goals-against-average of 2.32 (10th in NHL).
There is a lot of things that will affect whether Bobrovsky is able to keep his Vezina form this season. Some have to do with himself, like his mental capabilities. Other factors have to do with other people on the team, being a combination of Korpisalo and the defensemen.
If Bobrovsky can keep his stellar form intact, and the men in front of him can suppress high quality scoring chances, there is every reason to believe that he can beat out even the stiffest competition for a second straight Vezina Trophy.
Main Photo:
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