Columbus, OH - After their fourth win in as many preseason games, the guys are striving to make an impression in the hopes of landing a roster spot. The competition is heating up with just a few opportunities available.
One of the bottom six forwards that picked up where he left off at the end of last season is Corey Tropp. Claimed off waivers from Buffalo last November, he's worked hard to make an impression that was rewarded last season with more time on ice and more responsibility. He ended the regular season playing 44 games and going 2-8-10 (+11).
After signing a two-year contract extension this summer, he doesn't believe that means he can let up on the way he plays. He sees the guys battling for a coveted spot on the opening night roster as motivation.
"Yeah, definitely", Tropp said. "But at the end of the day, I don't really focus on other people. It's more about myself. I just go out and play my game. I'm confident in my abilities that if I play well, everything falls into place."
He had a bit of a tumultuous start to last year, with a broken jaw and a mild concussion suffered in a preseason game when he fought Jamie Devane. The confidence has now returned to his game."I think a lot of it is that I feel more confident and more comfortable in my surroundings."
"Last year was kind of a difficult year with what happened early on in the season in Buffalo and then switching teams. That's always a tough adjustment for anybody. I think I had four different NHL coaches in the span of a year and a half. The biggest thing was learning the systems. Now it's just about going out and playing and having fun."
Halfway through this years' training camp, the pace is ramping up in anticipation of opening night on October 9. "All of the guys have been working really hard. After you play your first (preseason) game, you get your legs under you and start to feel more comfortable. As preseason goes on, each game gets faster and faster."
This is his first training camp under Blue Jackets head coach Todd Richards. What is his impression of the way Richards runs his camp? "Richie does a good job. Camp is camp, it should be hard. It should be up-tempo and have a hard pace. You need to be moving your feet out there and so far we've done that."
A few days ago, Todd Richards made a comment jokingly that players want to play, not practice. Tropp laughed while giving his answer to this quip by his head coach. "Personally, I like games more than practice. I'd rather get my work day in playing in a game. I think most people would say that, too."
"But, it's also good to get the work done in practice. You don't play the games to practice, you play for the games."
This is a team that doesn't have just one leader. Consequently, there's not just one guy pushing all the others to be better. They all work together to make the team better.
"You know what? I think everyone does it by committee on this team. I mean, you've got your Dubi's (Brandon Dubinsky) that play hard every night and you respect that. He's a guy that's always pushing the pace. There's always guys working hard and pushing each other.
"One of the great things about our team is that guys set the tone and tell us to follow. Multiple times last year, different guys were setting the tone. A lot of it is just 'bringing it' every night."
Todd Richards rolled four lines from a very early stage last year as the bottom six players earned more responsibility with their play. This trend should continue this season, as traditionally successful teams utilize their entire bench.
"Yeah, I hope so. I mean, I'm not the coach. That's his decision. Our job is to do the best to our ability and earn more minutes. That's every players' goal.
"At the end of the day, it comes down to how I play. I think he's pretty fair in that if you're playing well, he'll reward you. And if you're not playing well, it's on you. As much as the coach has control, you've got to push his hand to get on the ice."
Tropp sees the added responsibility earned from Richards as a validation of the way he plays each game. "Yes. But at the same time, I don't look at myself as just a fourth line player. I think I have more skill than I've shown. Making plays boils down to being smart about it and doing it at the right time in regards to where you're playing in the lineup."
Much has been said about the budding rivalry with the Pittsburgh Penguins and how that just seems like it will get more heated as time marches on. Tropp, on the other hand, sees other rivalries beginning to form for the Blue Jackets.
"I think there's going to be a lot of rivalries going forward. If you look at all of the good teams in the last ten years, there are the teams that are going the distance and have a competitive nature. To have rivalries, you have to be a successful team."
"I think that the more success we have, the more rivalries we're going to have. Obviously, we have a little one building with the New York Rangers because of the acquisitions and trades. I think there's more to come."
The Blue Jackets showed they were not in awe of the star players on the Penguins roster, such as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. In fact, they were able to throttle them for the majority of the playoff series.
"You respect them as players but you don't admire them. At the end of the day, they're just hockey players. You've got to go out and compete. The competitive nature of hockey, especially when you're going up against guys like that, the better you do against them means the team will do that much better. It also means the organization will be better."
"It's a kind of snow ball effect. The more success you have, your confidence grows. You want to strive that much harder for the next step. That's the mentality of the locker room from last year and I hope that it carries over to this year. When we compete hard, we're a good hockey team."
The "all-for-one and one-for-all" nature of the Blue Jackets held them in good stead last year. Adversity is something they overcome and are not afraid of. With the new season fast approaching, the continuation of that mantra will surely pay dividends.
