We might have to start worrying about Jackets GM Scott Howson’s sense of reality.
While we’ve seen six different teams make coaching changes this season, the Blue Jackets have held on to Scott Arniel despite having the worst record in the league. While that’s noble of Howson to stick to his guy, that’s not the most delusional thing he’s done this year.
Howson still thinks Columbus has a shot at the playoffs. Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch relays Howson’s ability to hang on to that postseason dream and not recognize that the chase could very well be over before Santa Claus shows up.
“Strange things happen in sports. We’ve certainly dug a hole for ourselves. It’s a requirement of being in pro sports to keep banging at the door, no matter what’s going on. So, no, I’m not going to acknowledge that.”
It’s noble that Howson is believing in his coach and his team to get things turned around enough to challenge for the postseason, but last year’s Devils were in a similar position (20 points in 33 games, 18 points out of eighth) and while they threatened to make the playoffs with an incredible run, they fell short in the end.
Columbus is just 15 points behind Dallas for eighth-place in the Western Conference right now, but if Howson is banking on a huge run to get them back into things, he’d better start looking for moves to make to try and fix things up. The Western Conference and Central Division a bit more difficult than what the Devils dealt with last year.
