One month ago,
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman
Damon Severson was in the headlines for all of the wrong reasons: garish turnovers, lengthy benchings and healthy scratches, the sad progression of a veteran blue liner who had lost his way.
A funny thing has happened over the last three weeks: nobody’s talking about Severson’s play these days, even though they should be.
The Blue Jackets relegated Severson to the third pairing once they recalled top defensive prospect
Denton Mateychukfrom AHL Cleveland, and his ice time has dipped because of it. But Severson has reclaimed his game by taking a noticeably more conservative approach.
“I’m just being myself,” Severson said. “Simple plays. Those plays we’ve talked about (the turnovers) … nobody says anything about it if it works out, right? But if it doesn’t, you’re in trouble. So why even risk it?
“I’d rather play than have to deal with all of that crap.”
It’s probably hard to imagine what a healthy scratch feels like for a veteran player, much less one in the second year of an eight-year contract that carries a $6.25 million salary cap hit.
Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason, who ultimately made the decision to sit Severson, played more than 800 games in the
NHL.
“All of your emotions come into it,” Evason said. “You’re mad, embarrassed, pissed off … all of it. But he used it in the right direction.
“He didn’t disrupt his teammates because of it. I don’t want to say he accepted it because he didn’t, right? He didn’t want to be out of the lineup. But he handled it the right way. Like a professional. If you’re positive and your attitude is correct, which his was, you’re going to be all right when you get back in.”
Since enduring back-to-back healthy scratches on Jan. 4 vs. the
St. Louis Bluesand Jan. 7 vs. the
Pittsburgh Penguins, Severson is back to being a lineup regular. In nine games, he has 0-3-3 and a plus-6 rating, averaging 16:16 in ice time per game.
The Blue Jackets will lean on him again at 10 p.m. tonight when they open a crucial four-game road trip against the
Vegas Golden Knights in T-Mobile Arena.
“(Severson) has been playing simple and he’s competing,” Evason said. “When you get guys with a skill set like he has, sometimes you try to do too much. That was our only message (as a coaching staff). He’s simplified in areas where maybe there were turnovers in the past. It’s been an effort, a conscious effort to simplify his game.”
Blue Jackets defenseman
Zach Werenskitook exception to some of the criticism that’s been levied at Severson during his two seasons in Columbus.
“I think a lot of it is unfair,” Werenski said. “He’s a guy who’s been around for a long time, 700-plus games. When he makes a mistake and it ends up in our net, it doesn’t look great. But if it doesn’t end up in our net, is anybody talking about it? I make a lot of mistakes, too. That tying goal in our last game (by the
Los Angeles Kings late in regulation on Saturday): I shoot it up the middle twice (clearing attempts) and it finally hits a guy and they score. It happens.“Guys who play a lot of minutes, especially, are bound to make mistakes. Does everyone deserve to be criticized fairly if you’re not playing well? Of course. That’s the job. But he’s playing really well now. He’s been solid. He hasn’t been making those big mistakes. He’s played simple and hard, and he looks like himself again.”
www.nytimes.com
