Believe it or not, I'm a Columbus Blue Jackets Fan

I typically don’t use the phrase “Believe it or not” when writing because it ultimately leads to me having “The Greatest American Hero” theme song stuck in my head for hours.  However, believe it or not, I am a Columbus Blue Jackets Fan.  But not a fan in the sense that I see the players as celebrity, I blindly trust the management team, or that I would never say a cross word about the Blue Jackets.  The Blue Jackets are my window to pro hockey.  They are the team that I can pick up the local paper and read about or turn on the local sports radio show and hear about.  They are easy access into a sport I’ve loved as long as I can remember. No one wants to see the Blue Jackets become regularly competitive more than me and my expectations remain high – why shouldn’t they?



There are three shows from the 80's that are unwatchable to me now: Voltron, Thundercats, any guesses on the third?

Personally, being a Blue Jackets fan isn’t entirely different than growing up a hockey player transplanted to Canton, OH in grade school.  When my family moved to Ohio, there was no hockey coverage anywhere, let alone a rink with 25 miles.  Every once in a blue moon, the Canton Repository would list NHL standings on the back page if the Massillon Tigers or Canton McKinley Bulldogs were lean on headlines.  It was the 80’s, so there was only one cable provider in the neighborhood and they didn’t have Sports Channel – No hockey on TV. We got sports illustrated for a couple years.  In doing so, I became accustomed at a young age to reading each issue in reverse order, from the last page to the front page (the punch line being Sports Illustrated buries hockey in the back of each issue).  I was the weird kid in school that wore my Bantam Team jersey to school on spirit day instead of a football jersey.  Hockey was an obscure thing to most folks that didn’t live in the immediate Cleveland area.

I definately need 108" non-waxed laces for my size 8 3/4 Bauer Hockey skate that goes on my right foot.. Definately not 108" for the size 9 Bauer hockey skate that goes on my left foot.  Definately not. 

Fast forward to September 2012 and things haven’t changed too much.  I now live in an Ohio city of roughly 2 million people which happens to have an NHL franchise.  There are actually 2 or 3 kids in my son’s grade who play hockey besides him.  I still read SI from the back of the magazine forward, because I still have to. The only time people in the office talk about hockey is when the Blue Jackets fire someone, trade someone, or reach some miserable milestone.  Not a whole lot has changed in Ohio to truely weave hockey into the fabric of the state's culture, but it has seen modest growth.  However, other things are much more different now for all of sports.  There is twitter, 24 hour sports talk radio, blogs, and something called “Forums” which, if I understand correctly, are where trolls live and George Lucas breaks news.  Incidentally, these modernized forms of social media mean that I no longer have to live in relative hockey obscurity alone.  Definately not.

I’m not going to lie, it is tough being a Blue Jackets fan.  Thanks to social media, any knob with a smart phone can jump on the bashing bandwagon and tease, ridicule and insult the #cbj team and its fans.  It’s easy for them to do, the team is miserable and we fans can open ourselves up to criticism sometimes.  But that doesn’t mean Blue Jackets fans have to take that ridicule lying down.  Don’t think for a minute that it has always been fun times for those other fans who would mock the CBJ.  There isn’t a team in the NHL that hasn’t had its fair share of hard times.  Twitter, blogs, and forums is a place where fans can heap gallons of haterade onto the Blue Jackets just so they can feel better about their own team.  If it were around, I can’t imagine a worse hash tag than #Pens from 1967 to 1987.  I’m still curious what happens if I search #DeadThings, but I digress.

It wasn't always like the "Grind Line" and "The Russian Five" was it?

But you know what?  I remember not too long ago when the Blue Jackets were the darling of Columbus and the arena was alive and electric each game.  No Cannons, No Boomer, No Twitter, No Trolls.  It was a palpable atmosphere that was created by a great mix of hard-working players who inspired a growing fan base eager to see a blue collar group of guys play hard every night.  Nationwide Arena was a tough place to play, not because of a twitter campaign, but because the team inspired the crowd and the crowd made a difference.  Those were the halcyon days and they might be back sooner than you think.

I don’t look at this year’s roster and see playoffs or superstars.  However, I look at the players and I believe this group of guys is capable of bringing back that electric magic to the fans.  That feeling that you knew that every shift all game the guys were going to bring it, and bring it hard.  I see much of that in this year’s Blue Jackets roster.  And you know what, from someone who remembers the pre-lock Blue Jackets, there was no better sporting event than watching the Blue Jackets play a home game at Nationwide Arena.  So, while other fans and media put down the Blue Jackets to feel better about their team’s misery, I’m encouraged as a #CBJ fan that we’re going to have fun watching Blue Jackets Hockey again this season.  I believe that energy is coming back, not from a battle cry, but from the effort we’ll see from the team each game.  I’m looking forward to seeing CBJ Players banging in the corners and mucking one out in front of the net.  I’m encouraged about a better fan experience this season.  But don’t worry, I will continue to bemoan the shortcomings of Blue Jackets in the NHL– but I’ll have a little more fun doing it this coming season, even if I still have to read magazines backwards out of habit…

Not just another depth pickup

It's been my hope all along to bring the best and brightest Columbus Blue Jackets fan minds to the forefront on this blog...to make the Dark Blue Jacket blog a true marketplace of ideas.  I want it to be a place where opinions are valued and respected, where different voices (sometimes contradictory) have their say, where unique perspectives are presented.  In my mind, that's one great blog.  That it discusses Columbus Blue Jackets and NHL hockey...all the better.

To make this happen, I've been fortunate to share the blog with a number of terrific people, some of whose names you know well...and some who only wrote a post or two before going on their way.  Most importantly, I consider myself friends with everyone who's posted on the DBJ blog.

On the cusp of the 2012-13 (non?) season, I'm excited to share that another talented voice and nifty guy will be joining our merry band at the Dark Blue Jacket.

Coulda-shoulda-woulda: Jaromir Jagr

The Blue Jackets tried to sign free agent Jaromir Jagr,
but he chose the Dallas Stars and their larger offer instead.

A fun little tidbit from the Dispatch: The Blue Jackets made a run at signing free agent forward (and, more or less, living legend) Jaromir Jagr earlier in the offseason.

Still a 50-plus point scorer after a zillion years of playing hockey, Jagr would have been a perfect one-year pickup for the Blue Jackets as they try to shake off the feeling of being the 30th place team in a 30-team league.

Dallas eventually signed him, as they offered $300,000 more than the Blue Jackets.  No idea how seriously the Jagr camp was considering Columbus.  It's one thing to fax an offer sheet to an agent - but it's another altogether to be in the running.

Regardless, the Jagr story lends credence to the (Dispatch originated, I think?) story that the Blue Jackets tried to be more aggressive in free agency but couldn't get anyone to bite.  Anyone but Adrian Aucoin, I mean.

Still, it reopens the question box over whether general manager Scott Howson really is a closer.  I don't want to go there (and almost would have rather known that Howson was a conscientious objector from the free agent frenzy this year, perhaps using the looming collective bargaining agreement expiration as a crutch), but the result speaks for itself.

Ground Floor: The 2012-13 CBJ - Executive Floor

As part of our Dark Blue Jacket 2012-13 Ground Floor preview of the Columbus Blue Jackets, it behooves us to take an elevator ride to the floor marked ‘Executive’.  While it might be tempting to toss a bit of verbal abuse in Scott Howson’s direction as we pass down the hall, our real goal in this trip is a stop in Craig Patrick’s work space in the organization.  I debated whether this stop should be the first, or the last, and decided on the former, as it is the vision emanating from this space that drives what we will see next year, and in many ways, gives a sense of clarity to the last half of disastrous 2011-12 season.

Back in mid-December, I took advantage of the opportunity to hear Craig Patrick speak at a season ticket holder open skate, which I describe more fully here.  First off it was very entertaining, providing a glimpse into the life of someone who has lived an awful lot of hockey history.  Much of the journey of being a Blue Jackets fan is attempting to put some perspective on what we are seeing in front of us, at least for me anyhow.  Craig Patrick has perspective born of vast experience.

During this event, the season ticket holders steered the Q & A section in one direction very quickly.  Patrick was asked how he evaluated talent.  The short description of his answer was that he looked for character in a player.  He said you could always find skill, but finding character was more difficult.  In looking forward to our preview, and looking back to the last half of 2011-12, it is clear that in January, the ownership group bought into a re-shaping that was aimed at raising the level of the team’s character, even if it came at the expense of the available skill.  That re-shaping is now complete.

John P. McConnell should vote NO on locking out the players

Readers of this blog know that I'm not overly optimistic about the National Hockey League owners and the National Hockey League Players Association coming to an amicable resolution of their current labor negotiation before the September 15th lockout deadline threatened by the owners.  Because splitting up the pie after accumulating year after year of record-setting revenues is hard.  Hard like when this guy says, "It's hard."

Things were muddling along up until yesterday.  The owners proposed to whack the current salary structure off at the knees.  The players countered by giving the owners a smaller bat, but with the caveat that the filthy rich teams would have to use some of that player pain to prop up the poorer teams.  The owners came back by switching from their original wooden bat to an aluminum one.  The players supposedly responded with another counter that the owners again dismissed.

And the talks stopped.  Cold.  We're now two weeks away from a lockout with less hope for an agreement than ever.

Ground Floor: The 2012-13 Columbus Blue Jackets

The sports saying goes that while it is enjoyable to live life in your league's penthouse, the real fun is in taking the elevator ride to the top.

The transformation from a failed team into a champion brings a host of memories, be they from overcoming internal obstacles and demons to finally defeating those who have profited at one's expense for years and years.  It will involve that return - finally - to the playoffs and perhaps lead to a championship.  Above all, however, the elevator ride is the time where a collection of players and coaches finally become a genuine team.

The Columbus Blue Jackets, fresh off their 30th place finish in the 2011-12 National Hockey League season, are ready to start their elevator ride.  They will be making their journey with a very different cast of characters than we've been used to seeing in Ohio's capital city.

Superstar forward and team captain Rick Nash is gone, as is the arguable 2011-12 team MVP, goaltender Curtis Sanford.  Defender Marc Methot will be patrolling another blue line.  The Jeff Carter experiment is over.  Antoine Vermette, Grant Clitsome, Sammy Pahlsson, Aaron Johnson...all playing elsewhere.

No current Blue Jacket played with the team prior to the 2007-08 season.  In fact, the most tenured CBJ player now is Jared Boll.

Replacing those familiar faces are the likes of Sergei Bobrovsky, Brandon Dubinsky, Nick Foligno, Artem Anisimov, Adrian Aucoin, Tim Erixson and Ryan Murray.  They came by trade, through free agency and the draft and now are going to be looked to for meaningful contributions as the club works to change its recent fortunes.

Interim head coach Todd Richards is now under contract for two seasons, and he added former head coach Craig Hartsburg and Keith Acton to his staff while seeing Brad Berry move along to other challenges.  Only Dan Hinote remains from the staff that started the 2010-11 season.

The Blue Jackets are at the ground floor. They have nowhere to go but up.

Are the CBJ having phun with Photoshop?

Exhibit 1: The masthead of today's blast email from the team to ticket package holders.

What is up with those gloves?  Does Wiz really have shockingly bright red trim and "21's" on the wrists?

Looks embellished to me.  Toward what purpose, I have no idea.

(I fully expect to be informed that those ARE James Wisniewski's gloves, by the way.  But tell me that they don't look doctored up.)

---

UPDATE: Reader Dave tweeted me this full-body shot of Wiz.  Guess the gloves are legit.

Case closed.

And Now for Something Completely Different

My buddy Bill has a saying that the hockey season never turns out the way you expect it to in the preseason.  This has been made abundantly clear to me over the last few seasons, where my preseason optimism is crushed by the reality of the season.  Things just don't always go the way you want them to go, which is why they play the games.

In early 2012, ownership said that they were intent on reshaping the team.  The team the Columbus Blue Jackets are currently planning to field for the 2012-13 season (if played) has seen a lot of change since the 2011-12 team.  From the perspective of a season ticket holder, the upcoming season (if played) stands to be very entertaining.  While the team has not experienced a great deal of success in the past, there is a very new bunch of players that will take the ice.  Win or lose, it won't be the same cast of characters, which should be entertaining, and it will be completely different.

The only people who are currently predicting the fate of the 2012-13 CBJ are the 'know-it-all' national pundits, who predict the team will fail abysmally in everything it does.  While I might counter that "Not Winnin' for McKinnon" is a viable long term strategy for a franchise with 3 first round draft picks in what is looking to be a very strong 2013 draft, this type of argument is a lot like having "games in hand".  They don't mean anything until you do something with them.  So that will be a subject for some future post.

The reality of the 2012-13 season (if played) is that the team HAS been reshaped.  And I'd like to talk some about how it has been reshaped after the jump.

CannonFest 2012 and associated thoughts

[For my wider-scope overview of the goings-on at CannonFest, check out my post at Dark Blue Jacket Plus at FOX Sport Ohio.]

Yup, I was the idiot who brought the fancy camera and then worked the check-in table - making photo-taking impossible.  Met a ton of cool people and "May you win free beer" more often than I can recount, but no pictures.  Sigh.

So in lieu of a photo-filled recap, allow me to simply share the universally-held highlight of the day, Tom Larrow's great fan videos.

DARK HORSES

About those CannonFest tickets

Greg, Matt and I want to thank everyone who registered in advance and obtained free tickets for CannonFest 2012.  Your willingness to play along with our "How many people are going to come out this time?" parlor game helped us get a sense of what size venue we needed...and, eventually, informed us about how we needed to use the generous space that has been afforded to us at B-Dubs in Grandview.  We hope that your assistance results in a fun afternoon of hockey talk and general mirth on Sunday for all involved.

As a special, additional "thank you" to those who have signed up for tickets, we will be circulating an email to  ticket holders only with a special offer.  This offer will never see the light of day on our respective blogs.  Hopefully you'll like what you see.

Expect the email to drop late this evening, probably no later than midnight.  If you are planning on attending and have dragged your feet on getting tickets, there's still time!  Run on over to our EventBrite CannonFest page and sign up.  If you've already signed up for tickets, you don't need to do anything...yet.

See you all on Sunday!