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| Nationwide Arena Looking Good at the All-Star Game |
Nestled among the angst of an injury plagued 2014-15 NHL Campaign
and a disastrously under-performing 2015-16 season, the Columbus Blue Jackets
were a bright star for the NHL over a long weekend in January of 2015 when they
hosted the NHL All-Star Game. During
that time Columbus gave the rest of the NHL a glimpse of the potential of the
market. Ironically, there were ripples
put in motion that weekend that are still rocking the CBJ lifeboat today, a
year and a half later.
The game itself was a bit of a snoozer, in the third year of the
pick-up game format that had the Captains picking their team for the game. Alex Ovechkin campaigned loud for the last
selection, and the car that went with it, as he intended to donate it to a
charity. As one might expect, Honda came
through anyway to take care of the charity, so props to the sponsor for being
supportive. They needed to, because no
one is dumb enough to pick Ovechkin last in a pick up game, I don't care who
you are. And give the NHL props for
recognizing a snoozer when they see one, and changing up the format to a 3 on 3
tournament for the next All-Star Game in Nashville.
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| Johansen at Skills Competition |
However, the overwhelming theme for the weekend was that it was a
really good time, and Columbus showed itself off really well. The snow slide and the outdoor skating rink
were embraced by the citizens of Columbus to such an extent that the outdoor
rink returned to McPherson Commons last winter as well, much to the detriment
of Coach John Tortorella's ribs, as he was taken out by a sprawling Rene
Bourque.
Given the injury riddled state of the Blue Jackets squad, and
their poor record in late 2014, I was concerned that we wouldn't have anyone
that the NHL would dare to name to the All-Star squad. But Ryan Johansen, Nick Foligno and Sergei
Bobrovsky were given the homer nod. In a
case of super scary foreshadowing, Bobrovsky got hurt immediately prior to the
game and was unable to participate. And
Brian Elliot will always get a soft spot in my heart for climbing off his plane
in the Caribbean, and turning around an coming back to Columbus to fill the
spot. I hope things go well for him in
his new gig in Calgary.
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| The Flying-Vee Gets Underway |
As things turned out, both Ryan Johansen and Nick Foligno were
great ambassadors for our city and hockey club, yet the seeds were planted for
future strife during this celebration.
Blue Jackets management was greatly impressed by how Foligno handled
himself at this game, and cemented an inclination to make him their new Captain
the following summer. Ryan Johansen was the star of the celebration for the
home team, especially in the skills competition by wearing an OSU jersey
celebrating Braxton Miller, and instigating a 'flying-vee' of movie fame.
Following an acrimonious contract negotiation with the club, the
All-Star performance seemed a good result for Johansen, and he went on to have
a very good year with the CBJ. In
hindsight we can see that this was the high water mark for Johansen with the
organization, and before another year had passed he would be gone in a trade for
an elite defenseman, Seth Jones. In my
opinion, the organization's resolve to name a Captain, Foligno, deepened the
rift between the organization and Johansen.
During the exit interviews from the injury derailed 2014-15 season,
several of the veterans, led by Foligno, called for a Captain to be named,
while Johansen emphatically declaimed that there was no need for a Captain, and
everything was just fine. I believe this
was the beginning of the end between the CBJ and Johansen. In the clarity of hindsight it is easy to see
that the disastrous start to the 2015-16 season, where Johansen was clearly not
ready to perform, just cemented the rift.
And as we sit here, even today, the CBJ are negotiation with a
center, Sam Gagner, in attempting to fill the void created by the trading of
Johansen. I know it is a long time since
this game happened, and I likely should have tried to write this piece last
summer, but it is easier to appreciate the impact of that weekend from this,
more distant, perspective.
For a weekend, Columbus was a shining spot in the NHL, and the
quality of the event was widely admired.
Yet the choices that flowed from that weekend have altered the course of
the Columbus Blue Jackets, for better or worse.
As we sit hopefully anticipating the 2016-17 season, we anticipate that
a young mobile defensive corps built around draft picks (Murray, Werenski,
Goloubef) and the Johansen trade (Seth Jones) will take the ice. This group will be much different from the
defense that started the 2015-16 campaign in such record setting fashion
(ugh!). And in 2016-17, Bourque will be
spelled Bjork, as Oliver Bjorkstrand should join the NHL club this year, with
his game winning goal in the Calder Cup Championship in tow.
The 'let's see what these guys can do when they are healthy'
approach for 2015-16 survived the preseason.
The record setting 'not so good' message was received prior to
Halloween, and the team that takes the ice in 2016-17 should be quite different. That should be entertaining.
The All-Star weekend was a really amazing, fun event, and we
showcased our City and Team at that event.
But the flow of the history of the game has left that bright spot
behind, and now we look to the future with hopeful eyes. It should be interesting to see what it
brings.
GO JACKETS!!!!
