The Blue Jackets playoff run encountered a major speed bump last night when Derick Brassard was forced to leave the game with a hand injury. Brassard left the ice after taking a puck on his left hand and did not return. Today the Blue Jackets placed Brassard on injured reserve and stated that he is expected to miss two to three weeks of action.
This injury will almost certainly cause GM Scott Howson several sleepless nights as he contemplates how to address the loss of the team's top center at a most inopportune time. While Howson has shown extreme patience up to this point, his hand may have just been forced.
The Blue Jackets are staring down the barrel of a crucial four game stretch to end the month that will likely dictate whether or not they earn a birth in the post-season. After traveling to Chicago to take on the Blackhawks on Friday, the Jackets return home to welcome the Predators and the Coyotes next week before traveling to the historically unfriendly confines of Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. If the Jackets manage to walk this plank of pivotal match-ups, the month of March opens with a three game swing through western Canada, topped off by a stop in St. Louis on the way home. While that road trip looms large, it might not matter much if the Jackets don't fare well in the next four critical games.
Howson finds himself at the proverbial crossroads, and he doesn't have much time to consult his GPS navigation app. The Blue Jackets have shown a lot of heart since the All-Star break and have clawed their way back into the playoff conversation. But even with Brassard in the lineup, the perception has been that they were still a couple of key parts short of having what they need to reach the post-season. With Brassard out of the lineup, that perception is now a stark reality.
With the NHL trade deadline less than two weeks away, Blue Jackets fans can be thankful that GM Scott Howson still has time to do something. The question is, will he? Howson refrained from making any significant moves during the extended swoon the Jackets experienced in December and January, a decision he may now be regretting. With time running out and the season in the balance, it's time to cut bait or become the bait.
This is Scott Howson's moment of truth. The Blue Jackets' players have stepped up their game late in the season and have been going all out to make the playoffs. Will Scott Howson do the same?
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