In their last 10PM start of the 2010-2011 season, the Columbus Blue Jackets lost, 3-0, to the Phoenix Coyotes in front of 215 people at Jobing.com Arena.
Word is that Rick Nash and R.J. Umberger held a closed-door, players-only meeting after the game. The DBJ blog had a mole in the room, and thus we offer:
THE TOP 10 COMMENTS OVERHEARD AT THE BLUE JACKETS' PLAYERS-ONLY MEETING
1. Rivet, Moreau, Clark, Murray, Hejda, Stralman - Out. You're not going to be here next year anyway.
2. Guys, the season isn't over yet. It's really OK to keep scoring.
Just a few thoughts in the wake of the 2011 NHL trade deadline...
If Upshall makes $2.25 million and Lepisto makes $800,000, and Klesla makes $2.975 million, do the Columbus Blue Jackets REALLY qualify as buyers at this trade deadline?
Considering the lack of salary additions (the CBJ are still $6.9 million under the salary cap), was it a matter of deals not there to be had or was it handcuffs from an ownership/business office still smarting from losing all of those season ticket holders?
Which Blue Jackets players do you really think were in play yesterday?
How are Kristian Huselius, Jake Voracek and Nikita Filatov all under contract with the CBJ this morning?
How long do you think that the TSN guys were on air before they started to feel kinda foolish, considering that next to nothing was actually happening?
Why have I never heard anything good about John Michael Liles, yet so many NHL/CBJ fans were clamoring to get him?
Did Versus have an NHL trade deadline show? Of any length?
Which Blue Jacket(s) do you think were breathing the biggest sighs of relief at 3PM yesterday?
How much do you think that the Anton Stralman knee injury (out 3-4 weeks) in Nashville messed with Scott Howson's trade deadline strategy?
After a month of really interesting trades, where did that adventurous spirit go yesterday?
Was Michael Chaput really the center that Scott Howson was talking about when he said, "We'd like to try and get another center, espeically with Derick (Brassard) hurt. Centers that are available are few and far between in this league." Really? Or might it have been Brad Richards, the Dallas center about whom I gather Howson made more than one inquiring phone call yesterday?
Klesla needs to pass a physical today to complete the trade. Should we be concerned?
Should I really be surprised that I was able to get a nap in between 1PM and 2PM yesterday...and nothing happened while I was out?
I was going to use some heroic shot of Rusty, but this
just tickled my fancy. (Photo from buylisthomes.com)
Act 1, Scene 10
Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson officially closed the door on the first act of the Columbus Blue Jackets franchise in the midst of its 10th Anniversary season in trading "The Original Blue Jacket," defenseman Rusty Klesla, to the Phoenix Coyotes.
With that, Klesla's name and image now can finally retire to the glass cases around Nationwide Arena that celebrate past players like Odelein, Sanderson, Knutsen and Dineen (We can't forget Dineen!); team ownership and historic events in franchise history. While he was a serviceable defenseman, he had ongoing injury issues in recent seasons that made his reliability questionable and greatly impacted his productivity.
The Columbus Blue Jackets started the last significant western road trip of the season this afternoon in Nashville and the host Predators beat the CBJ, 3-2, in regulation.
There are 82 games in the season...there are 82 games in the season...there are 82 games in the season...
Now that I have that blood pressure-lowering Moment of Zen out of the way, let's proceed. In my opinion, this game was lost on two plays:
The first is the easy one. Derek Mackenzie followed up on an R.J. Umberger shot by slamming the puck in at the corner of the net for an apparent goal. Or was it?
[Special thanks to @RyanReal for his letting me know about the television feed. While it's choppy, it gets the point across pretty clearly.]
As the saying goes, it wasn't even that close. The Blue Jackets looked remarkably poised through most of the game, and the Stars honestly didn't look like they had their legs.
Steve Mason was on his game, stopping 29 of 30. I need to do a home/away comparison on Mase because it seems as if he plays a simpler game on the road - like most of the team. Simple isn't bad, though, when you're Steve Mason. It's generally quite good. Like today.
Oh yeah, Rick Nash had one of his "I'm Rick Nash and you're not" goals:
The Columbus Blue Jackets traveled to Joe Louis Arena on Friday night and, to the surprise of many, put together a compellingly solid all-around performance in shutting out the NHL Central Division-leading Detroit Red Wings, 3-0.
A couple immediate thoughts on this game:
First, I suggest you go back and look at Gallos' terrific post about meaningless games. Then try to tell me that this game did not have a very striking resemblance to the 8-2 CBJ pasting of the Wings that Detroit coach Mike Babcock used to such great effect in the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs first round. (Now, just imagine if the CBJ can put together a string of wins to get themselves back in the playoff picture to the point that they would play Detroit again. Wouldn't THAT be something?)
My two week "All-Star Break" has ended, and I'm back in the States after a great, long vacation with Mrs. DBJ, the Dark Blue Toddler and DBT's grandparents. As you can see, the CBJ ball cap (with a stylishly pre-weathered bill) has seen a little bit of fading from the sun at 20° 37' 0" N / 87° 4' 0" W. It was great, however, to see the many other hockey fans down so close to the equator. There were tons of Canadians out there, worshiping the sun during the day and watching CBC and TSN hockey of their favorite teams all night long at the open-air sports bars under palapa roofs.
Two week vacations are a gift from God. If you ever can figure out a way to combine both the money and vacation time from your jobs, I highly recommend such a break. It's soul-cleansing. On a one-week vacation, you're travelling for two days and don't really start mentally "unpacking" from The Real World for a couple of days, so that means you only really get two - perhaps three - days of true relaxation. In a two-week vacation, you can add a whole seven days to the decompressed time. And it's really good...I find that you don't dread returning home after a two-week vacation like you do after a one-week vacation.
But enough of this self-indulgent crap. You come here to read about the Columbus Blue Jackets, not my ruminations on how long one needs to air out the mental dirty laundry. So let's catch up on what happened while I was away...
[The Columbus Blue Jackets] said the magic words to MacKenzie and Wilson: "Get a place." On 2-way contracts, but told they'll be staying w #CBJ.
First, and let's not minimize this, let's congratulate Derek Mackenzie and Kyle Wilson. Both guys are former AHL lifers who have busted their tails off to stick in the NHL and, for both guys, it's the first times in their careers that they will actually do so. I waxed (reasonably) eloquent about Wilson after his shootout winner on Monday night, and my "Time to Step Up" piece on MacKenzie says all I need to say on him. Presuming that the two guys perform at an NHL level, more power to them. It's great to see merit getting rewarded, something that both Scott Arniel and Scott Howson are doing despite the strange world of the NHL collective bargaining agreement, with issues involving waivers, one-way/two-way contracts, salary caps, etc.
Pleasantries aside, let's get to the heart of the matter. Why is the front office telling these two guys to plan on sticking around for the season at this specific moment?
The slumping Columbus Blue Jackets welcomed the streaking Dallas Stars into Nationwide Arena on Monday night and overcame the Stars, 3-2, in a post-overtime shootout.
This was my second regular season game in my ticket package, so my review of the night's events will take on a different tone from having actually been in attendance. As much as I'd like you to think that a recap based off of TV is the same as one based off the in-arena experience, it isn't. So enjoy it when you can!
Mrs. DBJ and I bundled up and headed down to Nationwide very mindful of the Buffalo and Pittsburgh debacles. Our mood heading in was, "Please, don't let it be that bad." Yeah, the Kool-Aid is back in the fridge and likely will stay there for a while.
The Columbus Blue Jackets led the Montreal Canadiens wire-to-wire, eventually shutting out the Habs by a score of 3-0 at Nationwide Arena.
What I found most exciting out of the evening was not the great Rick Nash wrister over Carey Price's shoulder nor the Derick Brassard cleanup goal off of a Jake Voracek breakaway. No, what I was most impressed by was the total control of the game that the Blue Jackets displayed over the Northeast Division-leading Canadiens. This, by my estimation, was the finest win that the Jackets have posted this season.
2009-2010 numbers: 73 games played, 6 goals, 28 assists, 34 points, -17, 37 penalty minutes, 20:29 avg. time on ice
Anton Stralman once again gets to prove that he's worthy of the
big money that goes to high-scoring NHL defensemen
On July 28, we had no idea whether Anton Stralman was going to remain a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets. He was coming up to his arbitration hearing and, at the eleventh hour, chose to avoid the ego-bruising process and took nearly $2 million in the process.
He also gets to go through it all again next off-season. Stralman only signed a one-year deal and is a restricted free agent once again. That means he negotiates with the Blue Jackets, accepts a tender offer from a team that's willing to compensate the CBJ for losing him, or he goes back to arbitration. Makes for an interesting season to come, don't you think?
Apparently Anton Stralman and Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson thought better of going before the arbitrator and agreed at the eleventh hour to a one-year contract. At $1.95 million, it's a definite compromise for both sides.
Shedding the dreaded +/- 'Green Jacket' will help keep Anton Stralman (-17 in 09-10)
around in Columbus beyond this season (photo by Dave Gainer/The Hockey Writers)
The money is neither here nor there in my book as the Jackets likely won't hit the salary cap this year. The term, however, is interesting.
From Stralman's perspective, his agreeing to a one-year deal tells me that Anton (or his agent) still feels that the NHL is a potential goldmine for the young defenseman. They're going to take the good (but not great, despite being nearly triple last season's salary) money for one more year and test the market again. The question I need to look into is whether Stralman would be an Unrestricted Free Agent at the end of the season. From Stralman's perspective, a one-year contract makes sense if that's the case.
Betcha didn't know that Stralman had a nasty streak.
Tomorrow is the Big Day Thus Far in the Columbus Blue Jackets offseason - the steel cage match arbitration hearing between defenseman Anton Stralman and CBJ general manager Scott Howson (backed up by assistant general manager Chris MacFarland).
As best I hear it (and I'm just reading the news sources like everyone else), Stralman and the CBJ are about a million dollars apart. Stralman appears to be pinning his hopes on the 4-year, $14 million Restricted Free Agent offer sheet that Niklas Hjalmarsson got from the San Jose Sharks (which was matched by the Chicago Blackhawks, sending the Hawks reeling into another round of Salary Cap Hell cutbacks - So sad! ). That means that Stralman is pegging his value somewhere around Hjalphabet's $3.5 million cap hit. Take a million off because Stralman isn't half the defenseman that Hjarliwicz is, and $2.5 million is still a lot for our friend Anton.
Luckily for the CBJ, Stralman appears to be a one-year inconvenience to management. Scott Howson asked the arbitrator for a one-year contract decision, as is his right, and reserves the right to walk away if he doesn't like the decision - making Stralman an Unrestricted Free Agent.
1. After everyone in the Columbus Blue Jackets' locker room piped in with comments about the "serious," "critical" and "urgent" nature of tonight's game, the Jackets proceeded to play the exact same type of game that they've been playing recently in losing to the Nashville Predators, 5-3.
1a. The Jackets have lost 11 of their last 13 and currently sport a record of 14-13-6 (34 points).
1. The Columbus Blue Jackets, jumped out to an early lead against the Nashville Predators in the first period but seemed to be swimming in molasses for the rest of the night, collecting penalties like they were this year's hot Christmas gift and eventually losing in the shootout, 4-3. Here are the highlights:
1a. With 27 points, the Jackets sit in the 6th seed in the NHL's Western Conference and only 3 points behind the division leading (and #2 seed) Chicago Blackhawks.
2. The story of the night was the incredible number of penalties that the Jackets took in the 3rd period. And they were perfectly spaced, too....2:34, 5:39, 9:48, 12:38. To the Jackets' credit, they killed all 4 penalties. However, they were losing their legs by the time that the second of the penalties was killed off. It was just a matter of holding on for dear life through the rest of the game - with a little lift on a game-ending power play to keep it interesting.
2b. Considering the fatigue factor - probably the worst I remember seeing out of the CBJ - the Jackets were fortunate to get a point. Nashville could have very easily pounced on them, scored on a power play or two and ended it. That didn't happen, which speaks to the grit and character of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
3. The positive story of the night was the performance of Steve Mason. When his defensive support failed him (and the penalties forced the team to play short-handed), he came up with save after save...and some of the very impressive kind. 45 saves on 48 shots is a LONG night, and Mase held up.
3a. I'm not ready to say that he has his groove back - I've more or less resigned myself that he's going to have a yo-yo type of year - but, for one evening, he was darned close to dominant.
3b. I'll take it a step further. Mase stole the point for us last night, one the CBJ really didn't deserve to get.
4. R.J. Umberger got two goals on the night, both in the 1st period, including this wild stickball shot:
4a. R.J. is perhaps THE unsung hero on this team. He is selfless and versatile, meaning that Hitchcock plugs him into every situation on nearly every night. Center the first line? Sure. Winger on the checking line? No problem. Sit in the crease and take a pounding on the power play? Okey dokey. And he never complains (at least publicly), just goes where he's asked and does a bang-up job wherever he lands. I was thrilled that he got the two goals last night and only wished he could've pulled out a hat trick as reward for his contributions.
4b. Does the fact that the Jackets "won" the day with the Neal suspension and the Umberger goal mean that we've turned a corner in the minds of the folks in Toronto?
5. Mad props to Derick Brassard, who worked his tail off, got two assists and didn't give up all night long. He's a talent, I tell ya...
6. I love Anton Stralman's shot from the point....
7. Where in the world was the first line? Especially Rick Nash.
8. Poor Jared Boll got speared in between the legs.
8a. Male hockey fans across Ohio curled over in sympathy.
8b. The witty wordsmiths amongst us got to play with Jared getting it in the "Bolls." Sigh.
9. Strangely I don't hate Nashville. I don't like 'em, sure. But I respect the hell out of 'em. They always give the Jackets a tough, tough game.
9a. I think that my respect in the Preds is rooted in the fact that I think that Barry Trotz is an incredible coach. To do what he's done over the life of that franchise is nothing less than miraculous. Does he have his boys ready to play or not?
10. I'll be crossing my fingers that the Jackets can regroup and rest up to finish the road trip. Such a long night, with all of those penalty kills, can take a little while from which to recover. Let's hope Hitch gives them adequate rest. If we're rested and ready, we can definitely get three if not more points from the Rangers, Habs and Sens.
Next Up: Monday night in Madison Square Garden. Maybe Nash was resting up for his command performance on Broadway...?
1. Somehow linked to playing one of the worst teams in the NHL, the Columbus Blue Jackets "50 Minute Men" made a reprise appearance...in reverse...last night, offering roughly 10 minutes of inspired play and still beating the Carolina Hurricanes, 3-2.Your highlights:
1a. The win catapulted the Jackets back into first place in the NHL Western Conference's Central Division with 20 points. It's only a 2-point lead over Chicago, who plays the Kings on Monday night, so there's a likelihood that the CBJ will slip back out of contention.
1c. Despite their performance, I'm glad that Carolina came to town as I love their jerseys.
2a. Mase even got an assist on the Boll goal. I love it when goalies get assists...you really know the machine is humming on all parts of the ice!
3. With only 7:26 of ice time to his name - though it sure seemed like more, Nikita Filatov got the CBJ's first score of the night and his second of the season. Playing fourth line minutes with fourth line talent doesn't give you the best opportunity to shine, but Filatov is pushing through and getting noticed. He won't ever be the Nash-like power forward that Ken Hitchcock clearly covets (going back to Mike Modano in Dallas), but he has the tools and spunk to be a goal-scoring step up from Kristian Huselius in the not-too-distant future.
4. Speaking of, did anyone really feel the absence of Huselius from the roster last night? As in, "But for the Huselius injury, the game would have gone in a totally different direction?" I didn't. And Juice is worth $5 million against the CBJ's already-restricted salary cap.
4a. If I was Scott Howson, I'd see if Hitchcock could push Filatov along a little more aggressively and market Juice as trade bait. The CBJ could get some impressive talent at $5 million per year, talent that might be of bigger utility to playing Hitch-hockey.
4b. Is Freddy Modin planning on coming back? Any time this season, perhaps? And do the CBJ want him to come back?
5. On the subject of coming back, Mike Commodore returned after recovering sufficiently from what has to be the worst charley horse in human history. At 14:26 of ice time, 3 shots and a -1 rating, he appears to have done OK for a recovery/rehab game.
5a. When I hear the term, "charley horse," I still think of a calf cramp caused by lack of potassium. A banana or two fixed it in about an hour. Clearly, Commie had something different, but I can't help but think, "Just eat a banana and get back on the ice!"
5b. Happy birthday, Mike. It was your 30th yesterday, and your being one of the "older players" on the roster reinforced how old I really am.
5c. Mike's interviews on Fox Sports Ohio last night reinforce my thinking that that the man should have a job in the booth when he gets out. Plain-spoken, clear-spoken and kinda fun to listen to. You just want to hang out with Commie after listening to him.
6. Continuing the "Who is this person and what have you done with Jared Boll?" theme, last night spotlighted the "Boll the Sniper" persona (as opposed to the "Boll the Feared Pugilist" persona of the other night). Taking a feeder pass from Stralman (via Mason), Boll skated virtually untouched down the ring, did a couple dekes that I'm still trying to master on NHL 10, and top-shelfed against the Carolina backup goalie. Dang. If he can do that consistently, put that man on the shootout crew!
7. In the DBJ media critic section, let's start by giving the fine folks at Fox Sports Ohio a hearty applause for playing with their format and using a throwaway game (Carolina isn't setting the world on fire) to try out some different approaches to their broadcast. I will never criticize those who say, "Why not?" and attempt to innovate. You never know when something great will happen as a result. We got some hits and misses, which I will catalog below:
7a. The opening of the "All Access" game broadcast put a camera in the locker room and followed the team out onto the ice. It used an innovative angle to show the team taking the ice and gave the viewers the feeling of emotional investment through the entire sequence. I LOVED IT and hope that this becomes a staple of all Blue Jackets broadcasts.
7b. The behind the scenes looks at the broadcast trailer and the booth shots were novelty, to be sure, but good for only one such display per season.
7c. If you're going to mike up a player, make sure you use more of his live commentary than, "Let's go, boys!" one hundred times.
7d. The in-game interviews with Ken Hitchcock at the conclusion of the intermissions were gold. Keep it if you can.
7e. The behind the scenes look at the game ops? See my take from 7b.
7f. This is a philosophical discussion, so bear with me. There appears to be two basic schools of thought on how to broadcast a sporting event. One school suggests that one should broadcast it as a journalistic endeavor, reporting objectively on what happens on the ice and throughout the game. The Columbus Dispatch takes that approach in their writing, for example, and the major broadcast networks do, too, in their tv broadcasts of sports of all types. The other school of thought is that the broadcast is promotion of the event as entertainment, which reduces the journalism and plays up the glitz and glamour. Both are reasonable arguments. The "All Access" game clearly emphasized the latter over the former. The problem was, the devastating Cam Ward injury warranted a shift on the fly to the journalistic mode. Fox Sports should have had a camera following Ward down the tunnel to the locker room and on the ambulance pulling out of Nationwide. They should have inserted a Cam Ward question into every interview of the night (in this case, making sure to interview Carolina players and coaches as well as CBJ'ers). This was one of the biggest stories in the NHL last night, and Fox Sports was interviewing the organ player.
8. Anton Stralman is in a quiet groove, getting his 15:11 of ice time, grabbing an assist and not making a showing performance. Is this a European thing - the quietly efficient, professional hockey outing? Anyway, I miss seeing his authoritative control of the point and the slap shots on the power play. But that's nit-picking...I'm just glad he's on the roster.
9a. I feel horrible for the guy - the injury might knock him out of the Olympics and - more importantly for his employer - keep the Hurricanes far away from viability for quite a while. He's a talented goaltender regardless of his team's record, and he should be on the ice.
9b. The Rick Nash skate cutting his leg (knee?) was a fluke. A really, really unfortunate fluke. But as Mase mentioned, Ward doesn't wear knee guards under his big leg blockers.
Ward is one of the goaltenders who doesn't wear knee protectors under his padding, Blue Jackets goaltender Steve Mason said.
"We have the option to wear them, and he chooses not to," Mason said. "You hope everything is OK and it's not too serious, but there was a lot of blood. That's a pretty scary situation and it could happen to anybody, but that's why I wear the knee pads, and (Mathieu Garon) wears the knee pads."
Might want to rethink that, Cam.
9c. I've already mentioned how Fox Sports Ohio fell down on covering this, but it's a big enough point that I'll mention it one more time.
9d. Kudos to Twitterer "derdrache" for being the first to mention that Ward was being taken away in an ambulance. You scooped the "real media" - a hard thing to do when the Dispatch does such a great job in covering the CBJ.
9e. I'm not sure I've ever seen so much blood on the ice, nor have I ever seen it take so long to get all of that blood off the ice. That hockey, it can be a dangerous sport...
10. This was a classic game in the "Only we can beat ourselves" mode. The Hurricanes really didn't play that well. The Jackets played to their level for 40-50 minutes and used the 3-minute, 3-goal spurt to push themselves over the top. They won't get away with this type of play every night, so enjoy it while you can, guys.
Next up, a heavily wounded Red Wings club comes to Masonwide on Wednesday. (Here's hoping Jason Williams gets better soon. He was good to us as a Blue Jacket.) Should be an interesting challenge - to see if the CBJ can play with some snarl against the team that swept them from last year's playoffs.
1. The 6-4 Columbus Blue Jackets hosted the 6-4 Phoenix Coyotes last night at Nationwide Arena and played roughly 25-30 minutes of reasonably solid hockey. The rest of the game made my nephew's squirt league look like NHL All-Stars. The Jackets lost, 4-1.
1a. It's been a tale of two seasons. The Jackets built on the lessons learned in the brief playoff run last year and went 5-1. They then lost Jan Hejda, lost their perspective and started sliding, going 1-4 over this most recent stretch. With Pittsburgh and Washington, arguably the best two teams in a weak Eastern Conference, on the docket for Friday and Sunday, a 1-6 streak is very possible.
2. Contrary to a healthy portion of the CBJ fan base, I do not blame Steve Mason. Let's analyze those goals, shall we? (Seems fitting that the NHL posted the Coyotes feed...)
Goal 1 (video time: 1:35) - Hanzal grabs a rebound while rushing the crease. Mase was on his knees and made the initial low block. The short rebound went right in front of him, and he opened his legs up to grab the puck. Hanzal dropped it in the slightly-ajar five-hole.
Goal 2 (video time: 1:55) - Puck was shot wide, but Tyutin's skate ricocheted it back in behind Mason. Not Mase's fault as he was in line with the shooter.
Goal 3 (video time: 3:35) - Michalek uses the power play activity on the other side of the ice to his advantage, gets a pass from another 'yote, and drops it in behind Mason. I think that was glove side high, which Mase left wide open. Note that the shorthanded CBJ defense bit just like Mason did, offering no backside protection.
Goal 4 (video time: 3:55) - Mase got schooled by Lang. Mase squared up, the angle was relatively challenging for Lang, and Lang blew the puck past Mason. Given Mason's apparent state of mind, I'm going to guess that he mentally had punched the clock on the night.
In my estimation, Mase was uniquely responsible for goals 1 and 4. Goal 2 was a dumb fluke, and goal 3 was a defensive failing on the penalty kill. With a 2-1 game, however, Mase's spirits would have been higher...and the Jackets sure had enough nice looks at LaBarbara to salvage a point if not win it outright.
2a. If we take goaltending guru Dave Rook at his word and believe that Mason is technically sound, then the team needs to focus on the grey matter between Mason's ears and the defense that plays in front of him. Is Mason going to win the Vezina Trophy this year? Most likely not. Will he be the cause for a team meltdown? Without some help, it'll sure seem like it.
2b. I sincerely hope that Mason has shelved the idea of playing in the Olympics for Team Canada and is focussed on getting his game turned around.
3. On a team with fewer and fewer players who are positive in the +/- on the season, the Jackets had to send defenseman Mathieu Roy back to Syracuse because they risked exposing him to waivers if they kept him around too much longer. This was a shame, as Roy was a reasonably solid d-man and would have been helpful.
3a. This move also signals that Jan Hejda is coming back to the team soon, and that won't happen quickly enough. The CBJ need that +8 on the season, with his settling influence, back in the lineup BADLY.
4. Kristian Huselius is a riddle wrapped in an enigma, but it's pretty clear that he doesn't have the chops to play Hitch-hockey. That's a damning statement when you consider that he's the team's second-highest paid player with a cap hit of $4.75 million, eating up just under 10 percent of the Jackets' salary money for the year. 10 percent of the team's money going to player who plays as erratic as Juice? Not wise.
4a. As a counterpoint, Antoine Vermette, with a $2.7265 million cap hit, is really playing quite well. He's driving to the net, working well with his linemates - especially Jake Voracek - and is around the scoring chances more often than not.
5. Jared Boll made his obligatory appearance and got in a fight with a guy who had a longer wingspan. Boll literally couldn't connect on nearly any of his punches, "lost" (if you really want to call it a fight), got a 5 minute major and was on the ice for a whopping 3:34 during the entire game. Someone remind me why he's on the roster?
6. Derick Brassard started getting out of his funk - finally! He netted a power play goal and got the CBJ out in front first for the first time in seven games. He also had his motor running for much of the game, notching 10:20 in ice time and warranting a promotion back up to the top 2 lines. Good to see on a whole number of levels. I like his competitive spirit.
7. Anton Stralman put in another solid night, with 15:36 minutes on ice, a couple shots and both power play and penalty kill service. And he comes across as eerily unflappable. Methinks we have another Hejda in the making.
7a. Another D-Man, Fedor Tyutin, must be getting tired. He was the Jackets' high minute player last night with 18:54 on ice, took 3 shots and only had a -1 on the night. Almost makes the ricocheted goal excusable.
8. I'm still not convinced that the team is missing anything significant with regards to skill or system. More and more, I think that this is a matter of team maturity. There is significant playoff/Stanley Cup experience on the team, but there's an even more significant number of young, young players on the squad. Until the young players begin to realize that they need to play the system to win - and that might be subjugating themselves and their talents to play in that system - it just won't happen for the CBJ.
8a. Even more importantly, there appears to be a lack of player leadership. We all know that Rick Nash is the strong, silent type of captain, one who leads by example on the ice, right? Well, leading by example last night equaled 3 shots and 2 minutes in the sin bin for 15 and a half minutes of play. That's not good enough - he was virtually invisible! He should expect more of himself, and he should DEMAND more of his teammates.
8b. I won't call it a crisis in player leadership, but I won't place the blame on the coaches for what we saw last night. Hitch has pulled rabbit after rabbit out of his hat to get this team moving in the right direction, and it's the players' responsibilities to do their part as well. It's just not happening right now.
8c. Do you think that Michael Peca would come back for cheap - say, Jared Boll's $743,333?
8d. To their credit, alternate captains R.J. Umberger and Mike Commodore both tried to get the team going. Commodore ran Hanzal after the early goal (and got penalized), and Umberger picked a fight in the crease with one of the 'yotes. There is veteran play, but are the youngsters catching on? The lack of fight in the team after the Jason Chimera hit in Los Angeles was downright scary. Where's the fire?
9. I usually don't talk much about the other guys, but Jason LaBarbara was incredible out there last night. As mentioned earlier, the Jackets had a handful of quality shots - all but one turned away by the Phoenix backup. As we CBJ fans know what good goaltending is and haven't seen it on our side in a while, it's only fair to offer compliments where we see it from the other side.
10. Recycling a post from just under a month ago, It's All About Desire. For some strange reason, I think I'll be going back to this well a few times over the next month or two...
Next up, a Malkin-less, 10-2-0 Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night. I am on record with friends in predicting that the Pens will drop between 7 and 9 goals on the Jackets on the presumption that the Jackets won't get the Hitchcock gospel. With Malkin out, I'm predicting between 6 and 8. I'm not being an alarmist, but I sure am being a realist. This is one tough team against which systemic damage can get repaired.
