Friday Four: Blue Jackets get statement win against Canadiens

Each Friday throughout the season Kevin Weekes will bring you his Friday Four. He will be blogging about four players, teams, plays, or trends that have caught his eye.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Their
6-2 victory
against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday was a statement win and put the Blue Jackets' Stanley Cup Playoff destiny in their own hands. They are even in points with Montreal for the second wild card from the Eastern Conference but have played one fewer game. Columbus has won three straight, including two via shutout.
The Blue Jackets trailed by one goal twice against Montreal before scoring five in a row. Columbus also got 26 saves from goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, who is playing well. We all know about his shortcomings in the playoffs, but he is doing all he can to make sure the Blue Jackets get there.
Cam Atkinson has 39 goals and is one of four Columbus forwards with at least 24 (Josh Anderson, Artemi Panarin, 26 each; Pierre-Luc Dubois, 24). Combine that with a defense that has been playing better and the Blue Jackets could be a scary team if they make the postseason.

Dallas Stars

Great job by coach Jim Montgomery and goalie coach Jeff Reese. The Stars are second in goals-against per game (2.44) behind the New York Islanders (2.40). They have struggled at times, but the team defense for the Stars has been great. Rookie defenseman Miro Heiskanen is going to be a star in this league, and John Klingberg already is. Goalie Ben Bishop has been dominant when he's healthy, though that's been a problem for him.
Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn and Alexander Radulov give the Stars a formidable offensive trio. It has seemed all season that their big players have carried them, and if they're able to get some contributions from their depth players, they have a chance to be a sneaky team.

Colorado Avalanche

Their
4-3 win
at home against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday was a big one, and they got forward Gabriel Landeskog, their captain, back for a 3-2 shootout win against the Arizona Coyotes on Friday. He was expected to be out 4-6 weeks but will return after missing three.
The fact they went 6-2-1 without him shows me a lot. Colorado is playing a tighter style and moved three points ahead of Arizona for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Western Conference.

Toronto Maple Leafs

We know they can score -- forwards John Tavares (45 goals), Mitch Marner (90 points) and Auston Matthews (36 goals) have shown that. Their issue right now is a commitment to defending. Toronto is 3-4-2 in its past nine games and has allowed at least five goals in regulation in five of those games. The defense hasn't been great lately, but neither has goalie Frederik Andersen.
With a likely first-round playoff matchup against the Boston Bruins looming, the Maple Leafs could be in trouble if they don't find their defensive game quickly. They've played well for most of the season and had Stanley Cup aspirations, but they won't get far if they continue to play this way.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

I think that now that the Bruins are healthy, they could challenge the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference. They are more balanced offensively and defensively. And props to defenseman Torey Krug who has 285 points (58 goals, 227 assists) with the Bruins, the most in their history by a United States-born player.
Goalie Carter Hart has been outstanding during his rookie season with the Philadelphia Flyers. He's 10-1-0 when facing at least 38 shots on goal, which shows that he has risen to the occasion. The Flyers probably won't make the playoffs, but it has been a successful first season for Hart and the future is bright in Philadelphia.