Columbus Blue Jackets (Official Thread)

[jimotis4heisman]

why should we listen you? youre just a cat...


very very valid points and i agree bk. the question becomes what if the 2nd line adds a solid winger not a pivot man. obviously the first name is malone, who knows. maybe its a guy like michael ryder? who knows.

Nash-Umberger-Modin
Zherdev-Brassard?/Brule?/Novotny?-Voracek?
Chimera-Malhotra-Fritsche
Picard?-Murray--Boll

i think it is also interesting to point out that hitch likes pairs. he sees a lineup as 4 sets of 2s typically. so he may match something like this

nash-umberger-
zherdev-brassard
-malhotra-chimmer
-murray-boll
(this is a wild guess)

like i said i think a lot more pressure is on z. if he shows that hes willing to play two ways he could be rewarded with the offensive ability of brassard and/or jake. that being said i cant put anything down and say HERE IT IS. its just not mixing yet... i expect a trade. i dont know for who and what its gonna take but i think it happens.

columbus needs 1 top six forward. 1 top 4 dman. and one other mid level player. i just dont know what it will take and what pieces it may take for a trade. that being said i think expectations are skewed when people see names like-campbell, marleua, malone, redden. from what it seems peopel legitametly think its realistic to sign 2 of these type players. its not.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

from what it seems peopel legitametly think its realistic to sign 2 of these type players. its not.

Agreed. Just because the money is available to be spent, the front office can't just snap their fingers and have the FA's in the fold. Especially not for an organization that has had as little success as the Jackets have had. Not worth paying an exorbitant premium for a couple LT contracts you'll regret in 3 years.

As far as Zherdev, a Canadian co-worker watched the draft on TSN and mentioned that when the one of commentators mentioned the possible impact of Filatov on Zherdev, the other responded that he doubts Zherdev will be in a CBJ sweater next season.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

One more thing........

why should we listen you? youre just a cat...

 

[jimotis4heisman]

Agreed. Just because the money is available to be spent, the front office can't just snap their fingers and have the FA's in the fold. Especially not for an organization that has had as little success as the Jackets have had. Not worth paying an exorbitant premium for a couple LT contracts you'll regret in 3 years.

As far as Zherdev, a Canadian co-worker watched the draft on TSN and mentioned that when the one of commentators mentioned the possible impact of Filatov on Zherdev, the other responded that he doubts Zherdev will be in a CBJ sweater next season.

the bald guy or old guy?

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

the bald guy or old guy?

Beats me. I was stuck watching VS.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

Beats me. I was stuck watching VS.

wasnt the versus coverage the tsn coverage?

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

wasnt the versus coverage the tsn coverage?

Beats me. I apparently don't know anything. :tongue2:

 

[jimotis4heisman]

Just tell us everything you know and think!

or

?

 

[LitlBuck]

itis. but im also saying that some of the change will come from within.

simply stated the definition of free agency means you have to overpay. im fine with that. but in a market were the cap is likely not realistic how many fas can you have? how much can you overpay? id expect one nice name. 1 decent name and 1-2 that will underwhelm you. if we can piece the right pieces together this is a team that was competitive with detroit than probably any in hockey

I would think the fans of the CBJ would be happy with that. I think the rest of the hockey fans in Columbus would also be happy just to see that the Jackets are trying to improve themselves. I thought that they have $20 mil in cap money to spend. How much of that do you expect them to spend without overspending. The fans of Columbus, as you well know, want to see them in the playoffs and if they do that I think a lot of the fans that they have lost in the past years will start to come back. Maybe I am wrong.

You also mentioned in a post below that they need offense. Why did I hear all this talk before the draft that they needed one center icemen and two back liners. I know that they needed help at center and they have improved themselves there with RJ but now don't they need to go after some good defense men. I don't know I just believe what I read in the Dispatch which probably is not good.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Next up for Jackets: preparing for free agency

Monday, June 23, 2008 3:08 AM
By Aaron Portzline


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

OTTAWA -- Eight days from today, the Blue Jackets will be back on the clock.
Now that the draft is over, the next major event on the NHL calendar is the start of free agency July 1. Between now and then, the Blue Jackets will get their house in order on many levels.
Trading for center R.J. Umberger of the Philadelphia Flyers and drafting winger Nikita Filatov sixth overall will change the Blue Jackets' look next season and in the future.
Filatov might not be ready for the NHL next season, so he could spend a season in junior hockey or the minor leagues, but Umberger is an immediate upgrade.
"With Umberger, we significantly upgraded a spot that was a big weakness on our club," general manager Scott Howson said. "Now, if we can do that even more, I'd like to."

Continued......

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

NHL
Michael Arace commentary: Malone would be perfect fit for Jackets

Monday, June 23, 2008 3:08 AM
By Michael Arace


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ryan Malone, right, is a 26-year-old winger coming off a 27-goal season and a sterling playoff run with the Penguins.

OTTAWA -- Shopping season has arrived. The Blue Jackets will take one Ryan Malone, please.
General manager Scott Howson said he will add three or four players to the roster this summer. In hockey terms, summer gets under way with the start of the free-agent signing season July 1. It is not exactly a coincidence that July 1 is also a national holiday up here, known as Canada Day.
Howson has at least $12 million to spend on unrestricted free agents (and more to tend to the Jackets' restricted free agents, such as Pascal Leclaire and R.J. Umberger). There also might be a trade or two somewhere deep in the summer, as teams try to lighten their salary-cap number and/or fortify one position or another.
But the first order of business is the big auction, the free-agent market. With $12 million, Howson is probably looking at signing two or three players -- one $6 million guy plus two $3 million guys, or some such permutation.

Continued.....

 

[jimotis4heisman]

I would think the fans of the CBJ would be happy with that. I think the rest of the hockey fans in Columbus would also be happy just to see that the Jackets are trying to improve themselves. I thought that they have $20 mil in cap money to spend. How much of that do you expect them to spend without overspending. They have to resign their rfas-umberger, fritsche, pazzy etc. I would also like to see a small buffer left for possible bump in z's and nashs salary in the future. (you dont have to ear mark all of it but id like to see 2-3 set away for that) The fans of Columbus, as you well know, want to see them in the playoffs so do i, so do you. so does management, ownership and the team and if they do that I think a lot of the fans that they have lost in the past years will start to come back. Maybe I am wrong. columbus loves a winner no doubt...

You also mentioned in a post below that they need offense. Why did I hear all this talk before the draft that they needed one center icemen and two back liners. I know that they needed help at center and they have improved themselves there with RJ but now don't they need to go after some good defense men. they will I don't know I just believe what I read in the Dispatch which probably is not good.like anything i wouldnt rely on one source. do you put all your eggs in grads basket for football? or do you take your own, grads, wads, 40s, etc and mix it with the dispatch other poster, your own views and those around you? i hope so...

i think we need to look at things like this.
big names
hossa 7
sundin 5.5
jagr 8.36
naslund 6
demitra 4.5
rolston 2.5
the majority of those are high dollar guys who will want get a raise with the exception of sundin who i think will go someplace to win and jagr. thats an older group of guys who will expect a raise and a premium pay...
campbell 1.75 (6.5-8m)
redden 6.5
those are your two big dmen in the running.

i think you should explore those. but of those 8, how many do you expect the cbj to land? two? no way.

i think the next group provides better value. to be honest i dont see any of those guys as franchise players. and that entire group probably will deman 6+ from a club like columbus.

i think you can look at a guy like john-michael liles who might be had at 3m? and say 32 pts last year he can help columbus a lot. not that i think columbus has to sign jml or that they should. i think many people see marleau, spezza, hossa, olli names and they say oh yeah. those are pretty much household names to casual hockey fans. i dont see the next tier the franchise guy in this free agency class.

rfas
bouchard
bouwmeester
carter
flippula
green
kostitsyn
meszaros
perry
pitkanen

those are the bigger name rfas toss in your vermettes and what not. most of those guys are likely to get offers before july 1 from thier clubs. now to get an rfa the team who owns his rights has the ability to counter, both teams and the player must sign the offer sheet. you can onlyl have offer sheets out on compensation you can cover at one time. then you must give up the corresponding picks

$863,156 or less
none
$863,156 - $1,307,811
3rd round pick
$1,307,811 - $2,615,623
2nd round pick
$2,615,623 - $3,923,434
1st and 3rd round pick
$3,923,434 - $5,231,246
1st, 2nd, and 3rd round pick
$5,231,246 - $6,539,061
two 1st's, one 2nd, one 3rd round pick
$6,539,061 or more
four 1st round picks

as you can see its not a cheap way to aquire talent. so a 3.9m player would cost you the blue jackets 1,2 and 3 next year. so essentially the cbj could sign a player like vermette for 23m over 5 years (4.6m) and theyd have to pay that. the amount for the offer sheet is total compensation divided by years or 5, which ever is less.

 

[LitlBuck]

I guess than the question becomes whether they want to sign a "quality" rfa will could help the team now and give up a first & third pick in the draft who could not help immediately. I would not sign a rfa who is close to the end of his career but I would be willing to give up some draft choices for some guys who could help the team immediately. I don't want to spend all of my money on one guy because that would not fill the needs of the entire team. You can't put all your eggs in one basket that would be foolish.

The problem with hockey is like the problem that professional sports has today is that guys move around from team to team so much it is very difficult to get to know how good a player really is without watching an NHL game or two every night.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

it would be a 1, 2 and 3 for a player in that range. basically that is saying this player is worth that years draft. if you hit 5.2m youre saying this guy is worth the next two years. next years draft is very very good. better than this year. its a ticket for the JT sweepstakes. for a club like detroit its worth it. they wont finnish in the bottom 2/3s of the the draft order for columbus? they will. theyll pick in the top 20 most likely...

i also think that for many in columbus are baseline for profesional sports is football. its not the same way. id compare the draft to baseball. but without so many darn rounds. only 7. so you have 7 picks at 17,18, 19 year old kids each year. its a crap shoot. i mean you have some for sures but even then. it takes time and development. it takes ice time, coaching and a strentgh program to develop these kids. now people can say they rushed kids but you alos have to say 5 years ago did columbus have someone better than rusty? no. thats the way it is. we have good forward depth and unreal skill potential there with brassard, vorchek, fialtov, even guys like brule and fritsches games havent peaked. in the grand sceheme of things they are young players. look at pavel datsyuk, zetterburg etc. they didnt come in and light the world on fire all season adn late in the season.

i think its important to look at all the options and make good sound thought out choices.

agreed with the getting to know players. you also dont see kids in college, in football you know who tim tebow is. you know all the "good" players in all the major conferences. heck you watch the nfl draft i bet half this board knows 80% or more of the picks and some stuff about them. in the nhl a real fan may only know a dozen of those guys. and toss in some of the crazy names...

its time to win. but im not convince dumping loads of money on two players is the way to do it. if i told you player x who is signed this summer is a younger david vybrony. id assume most would be happy. you likely dont know all the 2m david vyborny type players in the league. heck even good hockey fans dont know all the solid role players. thats what im saying, target the vybornyish players. (im not saying highly skilled, undersized players but the ones who fit what role you want and are solid character guys who do the things to win. i think youll see 2 of these type signings. and one of a more elevated status.)


also unrealted to this kyle wellwood of the leafs was waived. he was slotted to be the #2 pivot man for the leafs after a good year two years ago. broke his leg and has been known to be a tad out of shape.

07-08 8/13/21 in 59g
06-07 12/30/42 in 48
05-05 11/34/45 81

25 years old. hey its another tire to kick.. i think he made under 1m last year.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

also a nikita fialtov blog supposedly exists and its in russina and supposedly intersting...