New and improved: Motivated Patrik Laine a 'different guy' for Blue Jackets
Pushing to prove himself amid a sea of doubters, the Finnish phenom is off to a great start to his second season in Columbus.
Brian Hedger
Patrik Laine was the only one who hadn’t scored yet.
The other four members of the Blue Jackets’ top power-play unit had all netted goals during the group's scorching preseason start, which meant it was only a matter of time before Laine joined the club.
Most probably assumed he’d do it with a one-timer, sending a rocket blazing past a helpless goalie. Raise your hand if you foresaw the towering forward’s jaw-dropping 1-on-4 dangle at the blue line, sliding the puck between the skates of a helpless Detroit Red Wing before roasting goalie Alex Nedeljkovic with an uncontested wrister.
“I was right behind him and saw it,” said defenseman Zach Werenski, who’d earlier scored the second of the unit’s three power-play goals in a 4-2 victory over the Red Wings. “When I got back to the bench, ‘Beaner’ (Jake Bean) said it was probably one of the coolest goals he’s ever seen. Probably one of the coolest goals I’ve ever seen too, but we saw ‘Patty’ do that last year once, so it’s just really impressive.”
The goal from the past season that Werenski was recalling was a stunner too, a startling end-to-end number at Nationwide Arena against the Chicago Blackhawks that reminded the entire hockey world that Laine is a rather talented player.
But last season’s Laine was not a happy camper. He struggled to gain traction following a trade in late January that ended his time with the Winnipeg Jets, and criticism grew louder about his decline as a prolific scorer.
Is a new Laine emerging in Columbus?
Blue Jackets:Jakub Voracek, Patrik Laine combination already clicking for Columbus Blue Jackets
Photos:Detroit Red Wings at Columbus Blue Jackets preseason hockey
Generally speaking, yes, but he’s still himself with the puck on his stick and a head of steam. Laine can drive a coach crazy with his insistence on flash over crash at the opposing blue line, but that’s ultimately what led to one of the “coolest goals” his teammates have ever witnessed.
“I kind of gave him a little bit of some ‘coaching,’ let’s put it that way,” Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said after his team improved to 4-1-1 in the preseason. “The shift before he made that goal, he turned it over, and he was 1-on-3 in a one-goal game. And he knew it. He said, ‘I’ve got to get that in,’ and that’s the right call.”
Pause.
“And then he goes on the power play and dances through three guys, I think,” Larsen said, smirking. “So it might be tough not to get him to do it again.”
It might also be tough to stop him from scoring goals with the regularity this season, as he is now aided by the playmaking skill of veteran winger Jakub Voracek.
Laine's goal totals have declined every year since ringing up a career-high 44 at age 19 as an NHL sophomore, but he's only 23 and still nowhere near his prime. He's also motivated by a horde of critics, and there’s no telling what that combination might add up to this season. If the preseason is any indicator, he's already at two goals, three assists and five points in just three games.
“I have seen a different guy,” Larsen said. “You can feel it.”
You can also see it.
Laine’s goal was impossible to miss, but it wasn’t like his end-to-end rush goal last year. It wasn’t just a one-off moment out of nowhere during an otherwise lackluster performance. Laine also assisted on Werenski’s goal in the first period and hustled to prevent a goal following a turnover in the Jackets’ zone.
That one stood out to Larsen as much as the goal.
“What impressed me is early in the second period there, when we had a breakdown,” Larsen said. “(Alexandre Texier) came up the wall, shovel pass, and we had a breakdown … and (Laine) busted his hump from the top of the circle and ended up breaking up the play right at the goalmouth. Those are the things that, being the player who wants to get all the minutes and play against top guys, you’re going to have to see effort like that, and he’s been giving it. He’s had a great camp for me.”
A great offseason too.
“He worked out in the summer, he got himself in better shape,” Larsen said. “I think he’s got a little chip on his shoulder. He wants to prove to everybody that he’s still got a lot of game, and he’s a young man still. He really is. He’s had so much success, young, that it’s scary to think that as young as he is still … that there’s a lot of growth left. But I’ve been really impressed with how he’s been handling himself.”
bhedger@dispatch.com
@BrianHedger