Blue Jackets: 20 for 20
An interest stat of note: the Jackets are on pace to have the most 20-goal scorers in a season in the team's history.
The other night, something odd occurred to me, and so I did some digging through the archives. Throughout the team's history, the Blue Jackets have never finished a season with more than four players having scored 20 or more goals. They've had four players do it on two different occasions:
2002-2003:
Geoff Sanderson (34)
Ray Whitney (24)
Andrew Cassels (20)
David Vyborny (20)
2009-2010:
Rick Nash (33)
Antoine Vermette (27)
Kristian Huselius (23)
R.J. Umberger (23)
Why do I bring this up, you might ask? Well, because as the Jackets head into their final 20 games, they sit at seventh in the league in goals-per-game. How does that translate into the random stat I unearthed above? Let's look:
2013-2014:
Ryan Johansen (24)
Cam Atkinson (18)
Artem Anisimov (18)
R.J. Umberger (17)
Nick Foligno (16)
Yes, there's a legitimate chance that the Jackets will end this season with FIVE 20-goal scorers for the first time in the team's history. How likely? Let's look at their goals-per-game rates and extrapolate:
Atkinson: 18 goals in 62 games = .29 gpg - five goals over last 20 games - 23 goals
Anisimov: 18 goals in 62 games = .29 gpg - five goals over last 20 games - 23 goals
Umberger: 17 goals in 62 games = .27 gpg - five goals over last 20 games - 22 goals
Foligno: 16 goals in 56 games = .29 gpg - five goals over last 20 games - 21 goals
So, yeah, it's entirely possible. With the lineup shifting back to the lineup that seemed to be the best generator of offense over the last several weeks, I like their chances.
This holds no bearing what-so-ever about anything. I just thought it was cool. :-)