If I Were Don Waddell, This is What I'd Do Ahead of the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline

So, a few days ago, I wrote a blog post that I hoped wouldn't hold up. I think my hopes have been realized. In that post, I centered on how our captain, Boone Jenner, had been listed as out against the Nashville Predators under 'maintenance'. I got an uneasy feeling this could result in a trade due to the timing and the reason he wouldn't play. Tonight, he not only played against the Florida Panthers but also had the game-winning goal. So, although anything can still happen, I feel less anxious about Boone leading us tomorrow before the NHL Trade Deadline at 3:00 p.m. So, with that said, what would I do if I were Don Waddell? 

Nothing. 

You read that right, 5th Line, I wouldn't touch this team. I say this for two main reasons. First, our best player and defenseman, Zach Werenski, has been out ill for the last three games. This team has rallied without him to win once in overtime and twice in regulation in those three games. Further, the first game they won without him in regulation, their captain, Boone Jenner, was also out with a maintenance/lower-body injury. That's impressive. 

Second, tonight, we were winning 3-0, but then the Panthers scored two in the third period. Then, it appeared as if the Panthers had come all the way back, but Rick Bowness won a challenge for goaltender interference, bringing us back to a 3-2 lead. The Blue Jacket kept their composure and drive throughout all of this, and then Mathieu Oliver scored an empty net, and we won. That's impressive. 

When a team can accomplish wins without key players, especially without their captain and/or one of their alternate captains, you don't touch that dynamic. When a team can allow a few goals and not be shaken, then push for a win, you don't touch that team's dynamic. When a team hires a new Head Coach in the middle of the season, and he's 13-2-0 in his first 15 games, you DO NOT touch that team's dynamic. It is hard to say what will happen in the future, but in my eyes, this team has the best ingredients to make a playoff push of any team I've covered since I started writing for Skullking Spoints in May 2020. Will this team combine and bake up a Stanley Cup? Who knows! That said, I wouldn't change any of the ingredients when what's in the mixing bowl now is consistently rising to the occasion. 

Now, Don Waddell has more information than anyone. So, as I've said before, in Don we trust. I'm curious to see what, if anything, happens tomorrow before 3:00 p.m. That said, I will be at work. So, if anything happens, you'll have to wait for my thoughts until I get home. With there being no game for us tomorrow night, I can promise you that if anything happens, I'll make my blog post worth your wait as always. 

Go CBJ!        


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Is There a Team Altering Trade Forming in Columbus? 3/3/2026

I'll start out by saying what I normally do the first week of March every season: Unless under special circumstances, I only allow myself to speculate one week a year, and that is NHL Trade Deadline Week.  I could be wrong, and I only have information avalible to the public. I am not an insider, and I've never claimed to be. That said, something has happened tonight that gives me a gut feeling our General Manager, Don Waddell, could be up to something. What I am about to lay out is either a coincidence or a fact, and only time will tell. Here are my thoughts. Let me make this very clear: I have multiple reasons to love each of our players. So, what I'm about to say comes from a business standpoint only. Kent Johnson had been a healthy scratch for the last two games. He's a young player with decent numbers, which could be an asset to any of the other 31 NHL teams. I firmly believed that he'd be leaving us, and, if he did, I would of course wish him nothing but the be...
Read more

Ottawa Senators @ Columbus Blue Jackets: 2024-25 NHL Season Game 76

A few special moments before we begin the recap tonight. First, congratulations to Meredith Gaudreau, her children, and the extended Gaudreau family on the birth of Carter Michael Gaudreau. I sigh in relief, knowing that he is here and both mom and baby are doing well. I love seeing the photos of him with his big sister, Noa, and brother, Johnny Jr. In addition, the fact Carter was the same size and weight as his dad when born could move you to tears, it has me.  Another big moment tonight as the puck dropped; congratulations to Erik Gudbranson on game 800 of his NHL Career! He would have a point tonight, too, but I'm getting way ahead of myself!  Yes, the cannon still works at Nationwide Arena, and it got a workout tonight! After being shut out at home and on the road, back-to-back, you can only go up, and the Blue Jackets rose to the occasion out of necessity tonight. Dimitri Voronkov would add goal twenty-one to his season, giving the Blue Jackets their first goal in three ...
Read more

Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau: One Year in Memoriam

I've never lied to my readers, and I won't start now; I do not want to write this post. Then again, who would want to? It's been one year since we all learned the devastating news that an 'alleged' drunk driver had killed Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau while riding their bikes. Honestly, 'devastating' doesn't feel like a strong enough word for how I still feel, and how I know many of you all do, too. It had been the evening before their sister's wedding. We already knew that Matthew's wife, Madeline, was expecting their first child, a son later named Trip, but at the funeral, we'd also learn that Johnny's wife, Meredith, had been expecting their third child, another son they named Carter. The fact that both women had healthy babies amid the stress of losing their partners is nothing short of a prayer answered. The strength of these two women is incredible, as they don't just raise their combined four children without the loves of their l...
Read more