There's no telling where it came from, but it's the biggest story in the 2024-25 NHL season.
The Columbus Blue Jackets have shot into the stratosphere from being projected as one of the worst teams in the league to a legitimate playoff threat.
Columbus rides a five-game win streak heading into Thursday's puck drop against the San Jose Sharks.
The team has faced a wave of injuries to key players but has still managed to record a 8-2-1 record over their last 11 games. They currently sit in the second wild-card spot for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the Eastern Conference.
The offense is compensating for any deficiencies at 5-on-5 play, ranking No. 7 overall in goals and generating a top-10 power play unit.
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Much of this is on the back of a Norris Trophy-worthy season from Zach Werenski, who leads the team with 50 points in 44 games.
Then there's three forwards all vastly outperforming expectations in Sean Monahan, Kirill Marchenko and Dmitri Voronkov — each of which owns plus ratings and owns 41, 48 and 30 points, respectively.
The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun points out that at the start of the season, Werenski appeared to be a No. 1 defenseman with some defensive flaws, while the other three seemed like solid middle-six forwards. Together, their Net Rating was a respectable plus-10.8. Since then, it has skyrocketed to plus-46.2, reflecting their exceptional performance.
"I think the thing I'm most proud of is just how hard we work every night and how we do it for each other," Werenski said. "It's been awesome."
Werenski has solidified himself as a clear top-10, possibly even top-five, defenseman, while the three forwards have elevated their game to become bona fide top-line players. This success is highlighted by the trio outscoring opponents 22-5 and controlling 60 percent of expected goals, making them one of the most dominant lines in hockey.
On Dec. 18, the Blue Jackets ranked 26th in the NHL standings and trailed a wild-card spot by five points. After dropping eight of their last nine games, the playoffs seemed increasingly out of reach. They have gone 9-3 ever since.
It's a team that's adapting after mistakes and finding different ways to win no matter the circumstance. Their gritty 3-2 shootout victory against the Flyers on Tuesday was a testament to that.
"The guys, you have to play in different ways," head coach Dean Evason said after the win. "It was just a grinding, in the mud, muck game, and both teams were committed. It was a good hockey game."
There's plenty of ways to assess why the Jackets have boosted into relevance on paper, but there's the emotional narrative that is also considered. In the wake of Johnny Gaudreau's sudden and tragic passing in August, the Blue Jackets have rallied around the superstar's memory this season.
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"I think coming into the year before John's passing, I think it was refreshing to have new management, new coaches," Werenski said. "I think there was a lot of excitement just within our room, just to kind of have a new feel. We all kind of knew what we could be. It was just doing it. And then obviously with the circumstances and what happened, you're never really too sure how a team or a group is going to respond."
Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, passed away on Aug. 29 after being struck by a car while cycling in their hometown of Salem County, New Jersey. Heartbroken, the team came together for a candlelight vigil in Columbus on Sept. 4 and attended the funeral in Media, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 9. Training camp began shortly after, on Sept. 18.
The Blue Jackets continue to fight for Johnny, Matthew and the Gaudreau family as they embark on a four-game road trip beginning in New York against the Rangers on Saturday.
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