All things considered, it might have been the greatest single-game performance by a skater in Blue Jackets history, as he was a cut above everyone else on the ice for just about all of the 28:30 he played.
Not only that, it was Werenski's second consecutive two-goal performance, making him the first CBJ defenseman ever to score multiple goals in back-to-back games as well as just the fourth to do so in the NHL in the past 10 years.
What more is there to say about a player who will be in the running for the Norris Trophy – and perhaps the Hart – and is all but assured of a spot on the U.S. team that will take part in the 2026 Winter Olympics?
To Blue Jackets head coach Dean Evason, it all comes down to Werenski’s singular focus on being the best version of himself and winning hockey games.
“He willed that team last night,” Evason said after Tuesday’s game. “I know a lot has been talked about his production and his Four Nations (experience) and everything, Norris Trophy and all that. I don’t think people give him enough credit for the leader he is in our room. ...
“He’s stepped up, and I don’t know what’s happened prior to last year, but all I’ve seen is a guy that wants to win. He doesn’t give two cents about his production, his points, his ice time. He doesn’t say anything except his willingness to compete and to lead.”
It’s been much needed for a Blue Jackets team that is trying to get out of the throes of a frustrating slump that has seen it lose six of the last seven games and settle in last place in the Metropolitan Division. The Blue Jackets have been in pretty much all of them, only to fall short in the end, and it’s a time where veteran leadership can mean the most.
For Werenski, that doesn’t mean changing anything about the way he plays. While his production and level of play have reached a notable crescendo of late, the 10th-year veteran hasn’t cheated the game or pushed for offense in a way that has hurt the team.
“I just play my game, to be honest,” Werenski said. “I’m at a point where I’m a veteran guy, and I think it’s important to lead by example, and that’s doing what you’re capable of. For me, I feel like that’s driving the offense and bringing our team into it that way, and that’s all I try to do. I don’t try to do anything out of the ordinary or something that’s not in my game.
“I just try to play that, and when the chances present themselves, I obviously like scoring. I feel like I'm decent at it. So you don’t want to change things because you’re losing. You want to keep approaching it the same way, and I feel like that's leadership. I feel like when you’re trying to do too much or trying to be selfish because you’re losing games, it gets harder.”
That’s a notable difference from how Werenski may have approached things in years past. He’s talked often about how when he entered the league as the eighth overall pick in the 2015 draft, he believed he was counted on to produce points, and he felt like he wasn’t pulling the rope if he wasn’t getting on the scoresheet.
As his defensive focus and overall game have improved, Werenski said he’s simply learned to take what’s given to him and the results will follow. After last year’s production pushed him into the discussion for the Norris Trophy – he finished second in the voting – he had one goal and four points in the first eight games this year, but he was happy with the way he was performing and knew the production would come.
“I think I probably handled it differently this year than I would have in years past,” Werenski said. “Maybe my first few years, I’ll use the word selfish, but (it was) for the right reasons. I feel like earlier in my career, I probably would have been trying to create more offense, probably a little selfishly, cheating the game a little bit – all for the right reasons trying to help the team, but I felt like that’s what I was here for.
“Where now I’m at a point in my career where I understand if you just play the game, take what’s given, each night is different. You’ll have no points in two or three, and then you’ll have a random three-point game. It kind of all evens itself out. It’s the law of averages. Just play your game. At least for me, that’s what I learned last season having a good year is I didn’t change anything night after night. I just played my game.”
And night after night, his game has been at a level that has lifted the Blue Jackets. Werenski has taken on more of a vocal role as time has gone on, but above all else, his play and his work ethic have done the talking as the alternate captain’s leadership role has grown.
“When he does talk, the guys listen, right?” Evason said. “You can probably pick a guy from every team that’s like that, that doesn’t say too much but when they do, (it makes an impact). But he doesn’t have to speak, honestly. You just watch how he plays the game and how hard he plays. Not only games – watch practice (Wednesday). I don’t know how many minutes he played (Tuesday) night and how many he’s always played, he’ll just compete his butt off. His teammates respect that.
“I got asked lots last year if he’s the most underrated defenseman and all of that good stuff. No, he’s not underrated anymore.”
