Columbus Blue Jackets management had their say on the Mike Babcock situation at Media Day. Now it’s the players turn to get their say.
Welcome to Part 2 of our Blue Jackets’ Media Day coverage. In Part 1, we discussed the statements of the ownership group, John Davidson and Jarmo Kekalainen. We also touched on some other takeaways from the question and answer portion afterward.
Now we turn our attention to the players. On Monday, captain Boone Jenner, Johnny Gaudreau, Zach Werenski and Patrik Laine all addressed the assembled media. In the cases of Jenner and Gaudreau, this was their first availability since their initial comments of not being bothered by their own interactions with Babcock.
One thing is abundantly clear at least to these players. They want to move on. And it’s time to move on.
Leadership Group Speaks
“For us, we’re ready to move on starting right now today,” Jenner said. “We’re looking forward to camp coming up. I think the last week has brought us together the most to be honest. So right now as it stands we’re looking ahead.”
“We had a great few days meetings together as teammates, young guys, everyone in the room,” Gaudreau said. “When you go through a situation like this, it’s hard but you can come together as a team a lot quicker than you think. Having those hard conversations I think helped us for the better. I think today as a team, we’re better than we were two days ago just the way we communicated with each other as a team.”
“I think we’re all on the same page by the end of it, the whole team. We’re together in this,” Werenski said. “As a group, we’re going to make decisions and have those conversations. However we feel, it’s a group thing, right? Our group is one right now and we’re all united in this. I feel like maybe this could bring us closer together. Today was a good day. Guys on the ice were working hard battling and getting ready for camp.”
“Now we can actually focus on what we’re here to do and not talk about that anymore since at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter anymore,” Laine said. “We have (Pascal Vincent) in charge now and we’re happy about that. And now we can actually focus on TRAINING CAMP and why we’re here.”
Time Will Tell
It’s one thing to say the team has moved on from the Babcock situation. It’s another matter all together to show it in actions. The players are saying the right things by placing focus on training camp. But you have to wonder if there will be any residual effects that linger.
Going into the week, it was fair to wonder if there was any kind of divide between the veterans and some of the younger players. Based on the comments from this leadership group, they believe the team is united after meeting and having several difficult conversations.
The other thing many are wondering is if the players still trust this management group. Kekalainen said he apologized to the team on Monday prior to the start of Media Day. Vincent also addressed the team on Monday. Is that enough for them to move past this? Only time will tell how that plays out.
Moving On Only Way Forward
The players have this one right in words. They have to move forward from the Babcock dilemma. There is no other choice. There’s no going back. They can’t change anything. All they can do is focus and be ready for the upcoming season.
That will not be an easy task though. It will be up to the leadership to keep everyone together and have them on the same page. Difficult situations do one of two things. It either strengthens the team or it can rip them apart. This leadership group is on record as saying that are more united as a result.
But now they have to move forward with a first-time head coach in Vincent. This presents another question. Going from associate head coach to head coach can mean going from a good guy to a bad guy to those that already know him. How will this dynamic work? The players say they’re really happy for him. Evidence of this will come once the season starts and how they respond to everything thrown at them.
Do Not Blame Jenner or Gaudreau
Despite what both Jenner and Gaudreau said before the NHLPA investigation came out, it’s not appropriate to direct any hate towards them for what they said about their initial interaction with Babcock. They both were ok with their own interaction.
But when news came out about other interactions, things did change and they recognized it. They’re using this opportunity to make the team more united. This is a real test for Jenner as captain and for the leadership group as a whole. They were facing higher expectations even without this incident. But now they have to overcome this while still achieving the goals set for them. Remember ownership said those goals can still be achieved this season.
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This leadership group needs to rally around their new head coach. Everyone involved needs to have their focus in the right place if they are to move forward from this without looking back.
These Blue Jackets are improved from last season. But their path to postseason is still a daunting one. If they are to meet the expectations set, they must take Laine’s advice and not talk about it anymore. Babcock is no longer with the Blue Jackets. Continuing to talk about it now takes away from where their focus needs to be.
That focus is on winning games and becoming respectable again. That’s where this group will truly be measured.
