DBJ's 5 thoughts on Game 5: Dallas

Dallas 4 - Columbus 2
0-4-1, 5th in Central Division, 15th in Western Conference

In front of a whopping 8,305 announced attendance at American Airlines Arena, the Columbus Blue Jackets lost their fifth game of the 2011-12 NHL season to the Dallas Stars, 4-2.

Yeah, I blew an evening watching this one, and I'm lacking in humor.  Let's go straight to the five thoughts:

1. The Blue Jackets had 15 shots on goal.  Not in a given period - in the entire game.  4 in the 1st, 6 in the 2nd, 5 in the 3rd.  Inspired offensive hockey, indeed.

2. The Blue Jackets let three nearly identical backside goals in, each by different shooters abusing different defenders.  Inspired defensive hockey, indeed.

3. Coach Scott Arniel, after being overly protective of his players in prior postgame press availabilities, tossed the team en masse under the bus tonight in the presser.  He did not suggest a single positive, which is appropriate considering that the team played like they were in quicksand for most of the game.



4. SCORING!

Alexandre Giroux, the late-week call-up from Springfield, got his first CBJ goal on a beautiful breakaway.



And the team finally scored a power play goal, which was nice because it was getting embarrassing.



5. While I was conducting a silly little "Guess the Attendance in Dallas" contest, I also was having a very serious dialogue with one of my acquaintances up in Winnipeg about Scott Arniel and his time with the Manitoba Moose - trying to draw some hope about our coach from the site of his past successes.  In fairness, I won't directly quote anything he wrote to me.  Long story short, he still thinks that Arniel is a decent coach.  But he also saw a coach that was playing in the AHL with Vancouver's minor league prospects. As for me, I still think that Arniel can be a good coach but also guess that he's never seen the collective dysfunctionality that the Blue Jackets present.  Our coach has a mess on his hands, and I hope he either knows how to fix it or is burning up the phone lines to pump his mentors for counsel.

NEXT UP: Tuesday at 7PM, the Stars wrap up the home and home with Columbus at Nationwide Arena. Good seats surely are available.