It appears that the Blue Jackets summer of additions hasn’t stopped just yet. They announced today that Jarret Stoll, formerly of the Stanley Cup chamion Los Angeles Kings will be attending Jackets training camp on a professional tryout. The Jackets have plenty of centers in camp, what exactly are they looking for by adding Stoll to camp?
#CBJ have signed veteran C Jarret Stoll to a training camp tryout
— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) August 30, 2016
Stoll has not been the same player since the Kings won their first cup with him on the team. He used to be a player that you could count on defensively and to win you some face-offs. While the face-offs are still there, the possession part of his game has fallen off of a cliff. More importantly for the Jackets, they need a warm veteran body to push the younger players at training camp. After a forgettable year, Stoll will want to prove himself and will be trying to win a job just like a rookie would.
The addition may seem odd from a surface level but the Jackets lineup, save for a couple of spots on the wing seem set. Teams in the preseason have to play a certain amount of veterans and PTO’s are part of the attempt to fill that quota. With that being said I am interested to see what Stoll can do against younger and faster competition. It would seem like his time in the league is done but has his decline been exaggerated?
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