Add in Oliver Bjorkstrand, Boone Jenner, Nick Foligno -- not to mention Seth Jones and Zach Werenski -- and a team that is already the highest scoring in franchise history looks downright lethal on the offensive end.
In a Metropolitan Division where no one has been able to pull away from the others, Columbus currently has a roster loaded for bear.
If Dzingel slips into the lineup spot vacated by Anthony Duclair, using the same lines as Friday and Saturday night, here's what the Blue Jackets bring to the table:
Panarin, Duchene and Atkinson: 86 goals
Foligno, Jenner and Anderson: 48 goals
Dzingel, Dubois and Bjorkstrand: 56 goals.
Credit to general manager Jarmo Kekalainen. He
spoke Friday about wanting to show
the Blue Jackets are willing to go for it. This is what going for it looks like.
Another caveat: If Kekalainen decides to make another deal, he certainly now has flexibility, and enough offensive firepower that he can feel good about what might come his way.
As for Dzingel, he's a nifty addition, someone who has improved his production each year. He scored 0.10 goals per game three years ago as a rookie, upped that to 0.17 two years ago, scored 0.29 per game last year, and is averaging 0.39 goals per game this season.
That matches how Dzingel's college career just up the road went. He arrived at Ohio State as a highly regarded recruit and worked his way into being one of the top-scoring players in college hockey, going from seven goals and 24 points as a freshman to 16 and 38 as a sophomore to finally 22 and 46 during a standout junior season.
And oh yes, he's a Buckeye making him the fourth ever -- joining R.J. Umberger, Zac Dalpe and Nate Guenin -- to go from scarlet and gray to union blue. An Illinois native, Dzingel
still has friends around the area
and certainly knows the city. And, as someone who covered Dzingel during his college years at Ohio State, I can add he's an engaging fellow who should fit right in.
If Saturday night's atmosphere in Nationwide Arena is any indication, there's a buzz around the Blue Jackets right now that's hard to deny. The acquisition of another high-scoring forward, especially one who spent three years at OSU, will do nothing to short-circuit the excitement.
