The Columbus Blue Jackets were arguably one of the best storylines of the 2016-17 NHL season.

The resurgence of Sergei Bobrovsky, the talk of the effectiveness of John Tortorella, and even the stories the kids brought with them from Cleveland. On top of all these fantastic talking points, the Blue Jackets were able to put together a 16-game winning streak, the second best single season winning streak in NHL history.

Despite the fact that all of this happening, and multiple Blue Jackets being considered for awards, they couldn’t turn it into postseason success. Much like the first two Stanley Cup Playoff appearances for the Jackets, they exited in the first round. Here are a few suggestions heading into the offseason to turn this promising young squad into a Stanley Cup contender come 2017-18.

Figure out the third defensive pairing

This is something that could be a relatively simple fix. There are multiple defenseman already under contract with Columbus that can fill in for the third pairing rather admirably. The likes of Kyle Quincey, Markus Nutivaara, Scott Harrington, and even new-comer Gabriel Carlsson could easily work together in any combination to sort out what was likely the most talked about part of the squad this season among Fifth Liners.

You may notice there is one name missing from the aforementioned list, and that is that of Ryan Murray. Murray has shown glimpses of hope in his young career, but has either found difficulties with staying off the injured reserve or, when healthy, found it difficult to find a sense of consistency when paired alongside multiple different defenseman. Both of these reasons raise a big question mark for Murray and how he’s going to be used in the future.

It’s hard to say whether or not the -6.62 Rel.CF% (Relative Corsi-For Percentage) of 2016-17 or the -0.67 of 2015-16 is where Murray is trending, but the former points to a much less useful future. Murray has, because of this and his injury history, become the ire of much of the Fifth Line faithful since being drafted. And with multiple other options moving forward, it may be hard for Murray to continue to perform like he did this season and continue to get time on the third pairing. Only time will tell whether or not he’ll be involved.

As for the other four names, the four of them bring strengths of their own. Nutivaara has shown glimpses, albeit brief, of a third pairing defenseman that can move the puck well, sees the ice well, and can even hold his own in his defensive zone. The problem with Nutivaara is that of consistency, which could very well go hand-in-hand with the fact that this was his first NHL season. It’s hard to determine if his promise or his lack of consistency will be the main talking point of his career, but look for him to draw in to the line-up on a fairly regular basis.

Carlsson has a similar question mark above him that Nutivaara did coming into the past season: what is he going to bring to the table in Columbus? That answer an be simply answered with the fact that he is an intimidating figure that has a good hockey IQ, and can very realistically develop into a shutdown defenseman in the NHL. It will be less than surprising to see the Blue Jackets and John Tortorella continue to give him time, but performances in training camp will dictate what roster he lands on come the first puck drop. Paired alongside Nutivaara, the two of them could come to compliment each other and make a very strong, and young, third pairing.

As for Quincey and Harrington, both are viable options for rotation as well. However, both look to play the part of the seventh defenseman. Both were okay when playing for the Jackets this season, but neither had enough games under their belt with the team to really prove they had what it takes to become a full-time choice. Much like Carlsson, the offseason and training camp could very well determine where the three of them land come October.