Blue Jackets welcome back a pivotal player ahead of series with Toronto

The Columbus Blue Jackets may have their hands full with the Maple Leafs on August 2nd, when the two teams begin a 5-game series to determine who will advance to the playoffs, but the Jackets are far from an easy out, especially with a player like Josh Anderson coming back into the picture for Columbus.

According to the team's official PR Twitter account, Anderson is recovered from a shoulder surgery that took place in March and looks to continue his rehab as he has been added to the Jackets' 34-man roster and has joined his teammates to prepare for the qualifying round.

Anderson, while not exactly a marquee player in the National Hockey League, is still a very good hockey player and can have an impact in this series, provided there are no setbacks in his rehabilitation. The hard-hitting, no-nonsense Anderson will definitely have the Leafs star players looking over their shoulders, but it's not just the physical element that he brings to the table which is important, it's also the scoring touch.

After flirting with 20-goal seasons in back-to-back seasons in 2016-17 and 2017-18, Anderson not only got over the 20-goal hump, but found the back of the net 27 times in 2018-19, helping to propel the Jackets into the playoffs and to an eventual first round sweep of the heavily-favoured Tampa Bay Lightning.

With the stakes as high as they are for the Jackets, this is very encouraging news and could spell disaster for the Leafs if they aren't careful. Granted last year's Jackets team looked much different on paper, but this year's team is equally capable of pulling off a heist in Toronto, especially with Josh Anderson potentially being available.

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