Some teams are defined by points, systems and injuries. The Columbus Blue Jackets, for the moment, are defined by something much stranger and far more entertaining: they appear to have two separate sets of teammates who look so alike that everyone keeps doing a double take.
First came the Damon Severson and Charlie Coyle comparison, which has already been so widely noticed that the Blue Line Team store leaned into it with merchandise. Then, shortly after Cam Talbot arrived in Columbus in 2025, fans and teammates started saying the obvious thing out loud again: he and Erik Gudbranson look like they could be related too. That is not just a passing gag anymore. It has become part of the Blue Jackets' identity in a season that clearly did not need another odd storyline.
When even teammates need a second look
The best part of the Severson-Coyle situation is how quickly it became impossible to ignore. Two days apart, Damon Severson and Charlie Coyle were interviewed separately and both gave nearly identical answers when asked when they first noticed the resemblance. “Ah... that's a good question,” was the line from both players, which is either perfect timing or the sort of coincidence that makes the whole thing even funnier.
Coyle said young kids at camp thought they were speaking to Severson and had to be corrected. “There were young kids when we were at camp who thought they were talking to [Severson], and they're talking to me,” he said. “I told them I think you think I'm Severson. I'm Charlie. I'm new. Sorry!” That is not exactly the kind of first impression a veteran forward usually has in mind, but it tells you everything about how far the resemblance has spread.
Severson, for his part, has clearly decided the best response is to enjoy the joke. “We lean into it. We say we're brothers,” he said. “We grew up on opposite ends of the spectrum, with him being East Coast- Boston, and me being a West Coast Canadian. That's kind of funny. So, we just lean in.” In other words: if the room is already laughing, why fight it?
Gudbranson, Talbot and the Blue Jackets' second mirror image
The other comparison has been just as quick to take hold. Erik Gudbranson said the first thing he heard about Cam Talbot was the resemblance. “It was the first thing I heard about him,” he said. “I didn’t know he had signed, and Jet Greaves told me that he was bringing my brother in, because we look alike.”
Talbot does not seem bothered in the slightest. If anything, he has embraced the whole thing with the sort of straight-faced confidence that makes a comparison like this work even better. Asked about the resemblance, he answered, “Oh, definitely me. One hundred percent,” and then added, “Most guys think goalie is an easy job in practice, but I'd love to see how their body feels after one day.” That is a veteran goalie's way of saying: yes, I know exactly what this is, and yes, I am happy to play along.
The broader point is simple. The Blue Jackets have stumbled into one of those rare locker-room quirks that fans remember because it feels tailor-made for social media, team-store shelves and the kind of camp chatter that spreads fast. It is not a hockey story in the traditional sense, but it is very much a hockey story in the modern sense: personality, identity and a little bit of ridiculousness all rolled into one.
For a team that already has to handle the usual grind of an NHL season, having two separate pairs of lookalike teammates is pure theater. And in a league that takes itself very seriously, that is probably worth enjoying while it lasts.
