Columbus Blue Jackets (Official Thread)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Fritsche lands on injured reserve
Jackets put Brule in middle of fourth line

Thursday, October 12, 2006

Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




Blue Jackets center/winger Dan Fritsche, who suffered a shoulder injury in a 5-1 victory Monday over the Phoenix Coyotes in Nationwide Arena, has been placed on injured reserve.
Fritsche?s injury is a subluxation, which means his shoulder popped out of joint temporarily. He?s eligible to come off injured reserve Oct. 17.
"Fritsche had a real good training camp and he played real well at the start of the season," coach Gerard Gallant said. "I don?t think this is a long-term injury, but we?ll see. Gilbert Brule is back in the lineup and this is a good chance for him."
The Blue Jackets play at Minnesota on Saturday night and then have five days off. So there?s no pressing need to make any other roster moves at this point.
Brule, a rookie, was scratched Monday night. He?ll take Fritsche?s place in the middle of the fourth line, flanked by Jody Shelley and Jaroslav Balastik.
As Gallant said, it?s a good opportunity for Brule, who was penciled in as the second-line center before training camp but had a below-average September. When Sergei Fedorov (shoulder) returns ? which could be as soon as next week ? the Blue Jackets might have to decide whether to keep Brule or send him back to his junior team, the Vancouver Giants. There are already rumors circulating in Vancouver that the kid is likely to return.
"We?ll put Gilbert right in there on the so-called fourth line," Gallant said. "Obviously, we can move him up in the lineup and switch some of our centermen around. I like (Alexander) Svitov playing with Shelley on a big line, depending on matchups. So there are a lot of different options."
Mental adjustments

After allowing 44 shots in their opener, a 3-2 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks, the Blue Jackets have limited their past two opponents to 24 shots apiece. Not coincidentally, the Jackets won both games, 5-4 in Chicago and 5-1 over Phoenix.
Most goaltenders will assert that the more rubber they see, the better they feel. Pascal Leclaire is in this camp.
"When you see 40 shots, I can?t really explain it, but it?s just easier," Leclaire said.
Although more shots make it easier to get in a groove, fewer shots mean fewer scoring opportunities. Fewer shots also put more gravity on the "big save," especially in a tight game.
At the end of the second period against the Coyotes, with the Blue Jackets leading by two goals, Leclaire made the big save on a short-handed breakaway on crafty old Owen Nolan.
"Fewer shots means it?s more of a mental game, which is something I?m working on," Leclaire said. "I?m used to seeing a lot of shots. Now, I?ve got to focus more. You have to keep your eye on the puck, even in the other end. I don?t want to go into la-la land."
Gallant would be a happy coach if the Jackets give up fewer than 25 shots every night.
Leclaire might have to get used to it.
"If we play like that," Leclaire said, "we?ll win a lot of games."
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[Fungo Squiggly]

Hey thanks, do the Blue Jackets and Sharks have any "goal girls", "ice crew". or "ice girls"? They should be on the list of "who to watch".

Under the TTIWWP, here you go:
Pepsi Power Patrol

Mountain Dew Ice Crew:

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS
Carter still adjusting to changes on, off ice

Friday, October 13, 2006

Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




Blue Jackets right winger Anson Carter has played for the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings and Vancouver Canucks. He has had two stints with the Washington Capitals. In the past 10 years, he has moved more times than Larry Brown.
"People think you pull your equipment out of a bag and you?re ready to go," Carter said. "It doesn?t quite work that way. As much as I?ve moved around, I never get used to it. Anyone who tells you it?s easy is lying."
Carter has a wife, Erika, and a 4-month-old daughter, Mikayla. They?re not quite moved in yet.
Earlier this week, the dog was sick and, um, issuing forth in the house. For Carter, the problem was exacerbated. First, Zeus is a Great Dane, which has the size, weight and sensibility of a high school freshman. Then there are all the New Guy difficulties. Where?s the phone book? Where?s the nearest vet? How do I get there?
A hundred other errands are put on hold for an afternoon.
"Fredrik Modin is going through the same thing, getting the cable set up and the furniture in place," Carter said. "You just want to get your dog and your family squared away. Once you do, everything is easier. But you?ve got to get to that certain point."
The hockey is the easiest part, but even that is in a state of flux.
Carter was the last major freeagent signing of the summer. He accepted a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Blue Jackets on the eve of training camp in September. At the time, Nikolai Zherdev looked as if he was going to spend the season in Russia. Carter came on board with the idea he?d be among the top six forwards.
Then, Zherdev signed. On Monday night, Zherdev scored two goals in his 2006-07 debut, a 5-1 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes. To make room, Carter was moved down to the checking line.
What Carter says about getting settled in a new town also applies to his new situation.
"It?s a business and you?ve got to be a professional," Carter said. "We?re fortunate to be able to put on the skates every day."
The way Carter sees things is the way coach Gerard Gallant does and the way his new linemates, Manny Malhotra and Jason Chimera, do. If the Blue Jackets had a nice corps of forwards before Zherdev returned, then they?re even deeper now. And the so-called third line is capable of performing more than a mere shutdown service.
"Obviously, he?s a smart player ? he?s been around for more than 600 games," Chimera said. "It?s easy to read off him. ?Cagey? might be a good way to describe him."
Malhotra said, "It?s a pleasure to play with him."
Malhotra set up Carter for Carter?s first goal as a Blue Jacket on Monday. There might be many more to come. When Carter is healthy and untraded, he?s usually good for about 25 goals. Granted, he has taken on extra defensive duties and lost some power-play time, but in the up-and-down NHL, there is more of a propensity to roll lines and more offense is expected from the checkers. Down the stretch last season, Chimera, Malhotra and Trevor Letowski were a force.
"Nothing really changes," said Carter, a man in the throes of change.
"We?ve got a lot of depth up front. I?m playing with different guys and playing in a bit of a different situation, but we?re still capable of creating offense. That?s a positive. From the standpoint of preparation and scoring goals, nothing really changes. I?m still trying to go out and do the same things."
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Test result pleases Fritsche
Current injury to left shoulder hasn?t compromised forward?s past surgery

Friday, October 13, 2006

Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




The injury to Dan Fritsche?s left shoulder could have been worse.
Indeed, there was a pang of fear when Fritsche, a center/right winger for the Blue Jackets, got hurt in the first period of a 5-1 victory Monday over the Phoenix Coyotes.
Fritsche had his shoulders surgically repaired in 2001. Was that surgery now compromised?
"One of the positives is the MRI result," Fritsche said yesterday. "It showed that the old surgery was intact. This incident had no impact on it at all."
Fritsche suffered a temporary separation, or subluxation. He was placed on injured reserve Wednesday. He?s eligible to return Oct. 17.
"The trainer and me, and everyone, knew I wasn?t going to be ready this weekend," Fritsche said. "Hopefully, the swelling will go down soon, and we?ll go from there. Right now, I?m just day to day, waiting for it to settle down."
The Blue Jackets play Saturday night at Minnesota. Then the team has five off days.
Fedorov skating hard

Top-line center Sergei Fedorov, who sufferd a sprained left shoulder three weeks ago, has been skating with assistant Gary Agnew. Fedorov won?t play Saturday night.
"The rehab is going excellent, but so far there are no results," Fedorov said. "I?m excited, but I haven?t progressed much after two weeks. I?m limited to things I can do."
If that sounds confusing, there is a simple explanation.
"Ligaments," Fedorov said. "They need time. At least I have time to skate. Gary?s waiting for me, every day."
Disa and data

The Blue Jackets worked on defensive zone coverage and had a hard skate Wednesday. Yesterday, they worked on special teams and had a practice shootout. Believe it or not, Anders Eriksson emerged as the shootout champion. He beat Nikolai Zherdev in the final. "I?m going to buy a lottery ticket today," Eriksson said. ? Blue Jackets coach Gerard Gallant, after he was informed by a radio reporter that the team had never before won two consecutive road games in October: "Have we ever won two games in October?" ? The Jackets won their first road game in Chicago last week. They?ll shoot for two in a row Saturday night in St. Paul.
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[Brutus1]

In an unrelated note, did anyone see that hit Phaneuf laid on Denis
Hamel ? It was quite impressive.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS
For now, Hartigan living large as center of top line

Saturday, October 14, 2006

Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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Mark Hartigan is loving life these days as the Blue Jackets? No. 1 center, taking a regular shift between goal-scoring machine Rick Nash and playmaker supreme David Vyborny and drawing power-play time, too.
That?s where he will line up tonight when the Blue Jackets (2-0-1) play the Minnesota Wild (4-0-0).
"I could live with a whole season like this, are you kidding?" Hartigan said.
And yet he?s torn between living in the moment and fearing the future. As soon as Sergei Fedorov?s shoulder heals ? and that could be days from now, not weeks ? Hartigan could be facing a return to the Blue Jackets? minor-league affiliate in Syracuse.
"I?ve been thinking about that," Hartigan said. "I?m trying not to, but ? my wife and I call Syracuse the ?S? word. It?s a bad word in our house.
"It?s nothing against the city or the team. If the Blue Jackets were in Syracuse and the minor-league team were here, we?d call Columbus the ?C? word. I just feel like I?ve moved on (from the American Hockey League). I don?t have anything else to prove at that level."
The Blue Jackets, particularly coach Gerard Gallant, don?t necessarily disagree.
Hartigan was always considered in hockey circles as a ?tweener, a "four-A" player, meaning he was good enough to dominate in the minors but unable to cut it long term in the NHL.
That might have changed last season, especially during the Blue Jackets? strong finish. In their final 11 games, Hartigan had eight goals, three assists and a plus-1 rating. Only Nash (eight) had as many goals during that span.
On opening night last weekend, Hartigan had a hand in both of the Blue Jackets? goals in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Hartigan scored the first goal and assisted on a score by Vyborny.
"He?s played well," Gallant said. "He?s done a solid job in the middle for us, and I know he?d rather play on the left wing."
Gallant talked yesterday as if a demotion to the minors wasn?t a done deal for Hartigan as soon as Fedorov returns, which could come as soon as Friday, when the Jackets play host to Toronto.
"You can always find a place for Hartigan," Gallant said. "He can play all three spots, and he?s a power-play guy. He?s important for us. He?s a key guy. He?s played well and he deserves to be here. Right now, I?m not even considering (sending him to Syracuse) as a possibility."
The numbers game may force the issue, though. Center/right winger Dan Fritsche could return for the Maple Leafs? game as well, giving the Blue Jackets 14 forwards ? two above the minimum.
Hartigan knows the math. He also knows he?d have to clear waivers to return to Syracuse, and heaven only knows how that might unfold.
"I don?t want to consider the options right now," he said. "I just know that I want to be here, in this dressing room, with these guys ? with the Blue Jackets.
"I don?t what to be anywhere else."
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Berard might need more back surgery

Saturday, October 14, 2006

Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




Blue Jackets defenseman Bryan Berard might be facing more back surgery.
Berard will meet with Dr. Robert Watkins, who performed season-ending surgery on Berard?s back in January, on Wednesday in Los Angeles.
"(Surgery) is definitely a possibility," said Berard, who hasn?t played this season after the pain flared early in training camp. "I?m tired of it. I?m just really tired of it. I?ll do whatever it takes to get back on the ice."
He said the pain is similar to what forced him to miss 38 games last season, including the final 31.
"I don?t want to say the surgery wasn?t successful," Berard said. "They fixed what they had to fix. But getting back into the swing of things (just before training camp), the symptoms came back. Even with exercise, the nerve pain just doesn?t seem to go down."
Berard cautioned that more surgery might not rule out a return this season.
"It just depends on what it is," Berard said. "If we?re talking surgery, I?m in good shape, and hopefully I could recover pretty quickly. My goal, definitely, is still to play this season."
Mighty Minny

The Blue Jackets play the Minnesota Wild tonight in the Xcel Energy Center.
The Wild, at 4-0-0, are off to the best start in franchise history. With a win, the Blue Jackets (2-0-1) would be, too. They started 3-1-0 in 2003-04.
"I watched them (on television) the other night, and they?re really quick now," goaltender Pascal Leclaire said. "But we?re a better team, too. I don?t think we?re worried about other teams. We have to respect them, though. We can?t run and gun against them, because they really expose the other team?s mistakes."
The Blue Jackets and Wild have relied heavily on special teams. The Wild are 8 of 23 (34.8 percent) on power plays, second in the NHL. The Jackets are 8 of 25 (32 percent), third best.
Minnesota, which lost 28 games by one goal last season, has won all four games by one goal ? two in shootouts (Vancouver and Washington), one in overtime (Colorado) and another on a goal by Brian Rolston with 71 seconds left against Nashville.
Stickin ? up for Sparty

Right winger Anson Carter played four years of hockey at Michigan State, graduating in 1996. He?ll watch his alma mater today against Ohio State.
"It?s been a tough few weeks for us," he said. "But I?m a glass-is-half-full kind of guy, so I?m trying to be optimistic. I believe in Michigan State, whether it?s tiddlywinks or college football."
Slap shots

Two signs have been hung in the Blue Jackets? dressing room. One, in the main room, reads: "One team, one mission." The other, above the doorway that leads to the ice, reads: "Never outworked." ? Former center Andrew Cassels, who retired after the lockout, stopped by after practice to have sweaters signed for a local charity.
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[Fungo Squiggly]

Someone should give the guys a call and let 'em know there's a game tonight. :!

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

WILD 5 BLUE JACKETS 0
Wild has its way with Blue Jackets in posting shutout

Sunday, October 15, 2006

Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




St. PAUL, Minn. ? That tremendous thud you might have heard last night was the Blue Jackets crashing back to Earth.
The Blue Jackets looked rusty, disjointed and a half-second behind the Minnesota Wild, falling 5-0 before an overflow crowd of 18,568 in the Xcel Energy Center.
Coach Gerard Gallant begged to differ with the half-second behind assessment.
"It was a full second behind," Gallant said.
It was the first regulation loss of the season for the Blue Jackets (2-1-1). For the Wild, which entered the NHL with Columbus in 2000, it was a franchisebest fifth straight win to start the season.
"We were just flat," defenseman Duvie Westcott said. "I don?t know if it was the (four-day) layoff or not, but we were flat. You have to play a simple game against those guys, and we did just the opposite. We were too loose."
The Jackets were puffing their chests all week after a 5-1 rout of Phoenix on Monday. Last night, they were hanging their heads after their first shutout since March 2, 2006, a 1-0 loss to Colorado.
"It seemed like the puck was bouncing on us all night," right winger Anson Carter said. "One of those nights where it just wouldn?t flatten out for any of us."
Brian Rolston had two goals and an assist for the Wild, and Mikko Koivu had a goal and an assist. Marian Gaborik and Keith Carney also scored. Goaltender Manny Fernandez had 24 saves for the 12 th shutout out of his career.
The Wild led 1-0 after one period but scored three goals in the second to pull away. Minnesota so dominated the second period that Gallant made a goaltender switch out of mercy, pulling Pascal Leclaire in favor of Fredrik Norrena with 5:57 left .
"Pascal had no chance on three of the four goals," Gallant said. "And really, none of the four were bad goals. I just wanted to shake the team up a little bit, see if we could get a spark going."
Leclaire stopped 14 of 18 shots. Norrena, making his NHL debut, stopped 11 of 12.
Say this about the Blue Jackets, though: For all of their lapses and brain cramps, they didn?t go quietly into the night, as they have done so many times in previous seasons.
Jody Shelley and Alexander Svitov picked up fighting majors; Shelley squaring off with 6-foot-7, 270-pound Derek Boogaard, and Svitov going against Stephane Veilleux.
But there was more than fighting.
The two best hits of the night were administered by Blue Jackets. Manny Malhotra corked the Wild?s Mattias Weinhandl early in the second period, and Gilbert Brule dropped a shoulder into Minnesota?s Pavol Demitra about six minutes later, a textbook hit that separated Demitra from the puck at center ice.
If only the Blue Jackets weren?t so flustered with the pucks on their own sticks.
The Jackets had two scoring chances early, with left winger Rick Nash getting stuffed by Fernandex twice in the first five minutes.
"If one of those goes in," Gallant said, "maybe that changes the game a little bit."
Minnesota opened it up with goals by Carney and Gaborik in 2 minutes, 11 seconds during the second period, making it 3-0. At 13:19 of the second period, Koivu got behind Blue Jackets defenseman Ole-Kristian Tollefsen and poked in a pass from Veilleux off a rush to go up 4-0.
The Wild made it 5-0 when Rolston teed up a slap shot from the left dot at 3:43 of the third period.
So disappeared the Blue Jackets chance at a 3-0-1 start that would have been the best in franchise history.
Now, with an ugly loss to lament, the Blue Jackets face another break, this one longer than the last.
They get five days off before they play host to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday in Nationwide Arena.
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Brule told he can relax
MacLean in no hurry to send center back to juniors for more seasoning

Sunday, October 15, 2006

Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




ST. PAUL, Minn. ? Blue Jackets president and general manager Doug MacLean said he sat down earlier this week with rookie center Gilbert Brule.
Brule has had a hard time finding playing time early this season, and rumors started cropping up last week in his hometown of Vancouver that Brule might be headed back to his junior club.
"I just wanted to make sure the kid?s not worried about anything he shouldn?t be worried about," MacLean said. "I told him to relax and play. Just play. And he told me that he?s fine, that all he wants is a chance to play."
MacLean then was hit with the $1 million question: Are the Blue Jackets planning to return Brule to juniors?
"For now, I would say no," MacLean said. "That?s not something we?ve even discussed."
But, MacLean acknowledged, it hasn?t been entirely ruled out, either.
Brule was pegged as the Blue Jackets? No. 2 center at the start of training camp. He didn?t have a bad camp, but he didn?t have as good a camp as Alexander Svitov, Geoff Platt or Dan Fritsche, all of whom play center.
Svitov holds down the No. 2 center spot with left winger Fredrik Modin and right winger Nikolai Zherdev. Platt is playing in Syracuse. Fritsche is out at least another week because of a shoulder injury.
So Brule, who was dropped to the No. 4 line for the first two games of the season and scratched for the third, was back in the lineup last night when the Blue Jackets played the Minnesota Wild.
Can the Blue Jackets find enough ice time for Brule to justify keeping him in the NHL?
"That?s the major issue," MacLean said. "We?ve got to do what?s right for the kid."
On the flip side, is there anything Brule can gain from a fourth season of major junior hockey?
"That?s the other issue," MacLean said. "Those are the two big things we?ve got to juggle here."
There are also financial ramifications.
If Brule plays a 10 th game this season in the NHL, the first year of his entry-level contract would be engaged. The Blue Jackets wouldn?t have to keep paying him if he went back to Vancouver, but his current contract would expire in 2008-09 instead of bumping back another season.
Perhaps a bigger milestone in the Blue Jackets? decision-making process is the 41-game mark.
If Brule is on the Blue Jackets? roster for the 41 st game of the season ? Jan. 5 in Anaheim ? he?d be credited with a year of NHL service, re: one year closer to unrestricted free agency.
Brule earned a year of NHL service last season, when two serious injuries kept him on the Blue Jackets? roster until Jan. 17.
For his part, Brule has kept a low profile.
"All the other stuff is out of my control," Brule said earlier in the week. "What?s in my control is on the ice. I?ve got to make the most of the opportunity."
Slap shots

Defenseman Aaron Johnson was a healthy scratch for a second straight game. ? Coach Gerard Gallant hinted that backup goaltender Fredrik Norrena could make his first NHL start Saturday in Pittsburgh, a day after the Blue Jackets play host to Toronto in Nationwide Arena.
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Gallant plans harder practices
Ugly loss after long layoff prompts coach?s decision

Monday, October 16, 2006

Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




It won?t be an easy week for the Blue Jackets, even though they don?t have a game until the weekend.
After the 5-0 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Saturday night in the Xcel Energy Center, coach Gerard Gallant said he?ll seek new ways to keep the players game-ready during another long stretch without a game.
The Blue Jackets had four days off before the debacle Saturday, when the Wild made them look more rusty than rested.
"I hope it wasn?t (the layoff)," Gallant said. "Because now we?ve got five days before we play again. We?ll have some good, hard practices this week, and hopefully we?ll be ready to go. More ready than we were (Saturday), for sure."
The Blue Jackets return to practice today after a day off yesterday. They don?t play again until Friday, when they play host to the Toronto Maple Leafs in Nationwide Arena.
"It?s not easy to play one game a week," right winger Anson Carter said. "Ideally, you?d like to play every other night.
"But we can?t use that as an excuse. I mean, it?s the schedule. It?s not going to change. We?re professionals. It?s our job to deal with it. It?s our job to be ready to play."
Not ideal

Blue Jackets goaltender Fredrik Norrena made his NHL debut Saturday, replacing Pascal Leclaire with 5:57 left in the second period. The Jackets were down 4-0 when Norrena entered.
"Not the perfect situation," he said. "But that?s part of the game for a backup. You have to be ready to step in when they need you.
"For me, personally, it was good to get a few pucks, make a few saves. Now I?m more ready for next time."
Norrena made 11 of 12 saves.
Brule?s play

Rookie center Gilbert Brule played almost 11 minutes Saturday, the most he has played this season.
For long stretches of the game, Brule was the Blue Jackets? best player, and Gallant rewarded him by giving him ice time with all four forward lines.
"He was all right," Gallant said. "He competed. He worked hard. It?s hard for me to say too good things about anybody after a game like this, but, yeah, he was all right."
Brule had three shots on goal, second only to David Vyborny?s four. He also had a highlight-reel hit, separating Minnesota?s Pavol Demitra from the puck at center ice.
Scary thought

The Wild, at 5-0-0, is off to the best start in the NHL this season, not to mention the best start in its franchise history. But you wouldn?t know it listening to right winger Brian Rolston, who scored two goals Saturday.
"I truly believe we haven?t played our best hockey yet," Rolston said. "We?ve got a few new guys, and it?s all still in the process of fitting together. Guys are learning about each other.
"We?ve got a long way to go, a lot of getting better to do. You don?t win the Stanley Cup in October ? or even make the playoffs ? but it?s a good start."
The Wild has won eight straight in the Xcel Energy Center, dating to last season.
Slap shots

The Blue Jackets? top power play unit the past two games has included Rick Nash, David Vyborny and Nikolai Zherdev ? three wingers ? down low. It?s not ideal. Vyborny takes most of the faceoffs in that scenario, but he?s a lifetime 29.5 percent face winner, including only 3 of 14 (21.4 percent) this season. ? In the words of Wild coach Jacques Lemaire, forward Mattias Weinhandl will be "out a while" after getting crushed by Jackets center Manny Malhotra early in the second period. Weinhandl, who has 10 percent vision in his left eye, never saw Malhotra coming. ? Defenseman Adam Foote still has swelling and bruising over his left eye after getting struck by an errant puck during warm-ups on opening night. "Never saw it coming," Foote said. "It felt like a baseball bat." Foote has 12 stitches under the eye, 15 above the eye. "I was on the table for 40 minutes," he said. "And yet I know I got off pretty lucky, really."
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[jimotis4heisman]

Someone should give the guys a call and let 'em know there's a game tonight. :!

i missed the game being up in el, apparently i didnt miss much minus a malhotra and brule hit...

 

[Thump]

Nice write up by Linda Cohn.

Luck might be on side of Blue Jackets this season


By Linda Cohn
Special to ESPN.com
Archive





It was definitely a turning point.

Late in March, the Columbus Blue Jackets trailed 3-0 against the Detroit Red Wings, who were on their way to another Presidents' Trophy. Then, Columbus posted a third-period comeback en route to a 5-4 shootout win over Detroit.

Jonathan Daniel/Getty Image
Rick Nash's healthy start is another plus for the Blue Jackets.




After that game, the Blue Jackets finished an injury-plagued season with a 7-3-1 final stretch, posting the seventh-best record in the league over the second half. Although they were out of the playoff hunt, they showed a maturity they didn't have before. In the past, Columbus would win a game, then lose three.


Now, the Blue Jackets are starting off the new season strong, and relatively healthy. And like the Edmonton Oilers before them, the Jackets have a chance to make the playoffs this season. Don't believe me? Well, I'll tell you why it's more than possible.

The Buckeye Factor
There isn't one hockey team in the United States that wouldn't love more attention. But the Jackets will always have to battle the hoopla surrounding the top-ranked Ohio State football team. Heck, even one of the Jackets' main PR guys is an OSU grad! It's a tough battle. The team purposely doesn't schedule a home game on Saturdays because they know they can't beat the OSU crowds. (And let's face it, it's even hard to get sports fans in bigger markets like New York interested in hockey when the Giants, Jets, Mets and Yankees are still in the hunt.)


Still, the team doesn't feel like it is an afterthought, and in the Jackets' sixth season, they still get the crowds coming at Nationwide Arena. And this season, the expectations are higher than ever. Why? The club has yet to make the playoffs. Imagine if they did? The community would respond, big time. Look at what happened in Carolina.

Grassroots effort
One example of the community's dedication to hockey is its effort to promote the sport from the ground up. Hockey is in action at every level: youth leagues, high school, the USHL. Hockey is working in Columbus. Obviously, a playoff berth would help even more.


There is an undercurrent of hockey hysteria in Columbus. They are doing it right there. People are ready for an NHL team. You can't just put an NHL team in a town without there being some desire within the community to have a team.

Experience, experience, experience
One of the reasons the Jackets can turn the corner is the presence of Adam Foote, a Cup winner in Colorado before heading to the Jackets. Foote is the type of player that can come in and give his team confidence in the locker room; the type of player that can skate up to his teammates when they're down 3-0 and say, "Hey, c'mon, let's go!" His favorite saying for the team: "To be successful, you can't be on the roller coaster." It's a clich?, but it's so true in hockey. The Jackets never had any middle ground; they'd be really high or really low. That seems to be changing. Momentum and belief are crucial for teams, especially in the postseason.


The big deals
In June, the Jackets acquired left winger Fredrik Modin from the Tampa Bay Lightning for goalie Marc Denis. I think this trade was a steal for Columbus. Modin can be a 25-goal scorer. He is not a "rah-rah" kind of player, but his lead-by-example attitude will help the team gain more confidence. His best season was with Tampa Bay in 2003-04, when the Lightning won the Cup. He had 57 points in 82 games.


Later in the summer, the team signed free agent Anson Carter. Some have said the only reason he had a successful 2005-06 season in Vancouver was because of the Sedin twins. But he believes he has more scoring power left, and his arrival gives the Jackets more depth up front.

Nash is healthy
Outside of the early injury to Sergei Fedorov, the Jackets have been off to a decent start and they have a healthy Rick Nash in the lineup to start the season, something they didn't have a year ago. There's no doubting how important Nash is to the lineup. Remember the Jackets' strong second half last season? Well, it was no coincidence it happened with Nash back on the ice. There were only nine games from Feb. 1 through the end of the season in which Nash was held without a point. Through Thursday, he already has three goals and three assists in three games. Oh, and he's only 22!


Strong in net
The, you have young netminder Pascal Leclaire. Some goalies are off the wall, but the 23-year-old has a quiet confidence. He doesn't go too high or too low. The players also like him. In Saturday's game against Chicago, the Jackets were down 2-0 early in the first period. Foote skated over to Leclaire to make sure he was OK. The goalie said, "Yeah, I'm fine. No big deal." The Jackets went on to win 5-4.



In the NFL, teams sometimes get nervous when they have to put in a backup QB (a kid out of college, in some cases). In hockey, a successful, young goalie can have a ripple effect for your team. Look at how Cam Ward came in for the Hurricanes last spring. Look how confident Carolina became with each win from the rookie. Leclaire, now the go-to goalie with Denis out of town, could bring the same thing to the Jackets.

Now, I'm not a moron; the Western Conference is a difficult group. But all the Blue Jackets have to do is get into the playoffs, like Edmonton last season, and anything is possible.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

In an unrelated note, did anyone see that hit Phaneuf laid on Denis
Hamel ? It was quite impressive.

i saw the interference, err i mean hit.
if you havent seen it hit youtube.com search hamel and phaneuf

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

NHL
Jackets behind curve on stick rules
Players stay with smaller bend for better puck control
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH



Last season, the NHL mandated that goaltenders cut down the size of their pads. This season, the league gave skaters more leeway in the curve of their sticks.
The aim is the same.
"Fans want to see a lot of goals, I guess," Blue Jackets goaltender Pascal Leclaire said. "Us goalies, we?ve just got to limit the damage."
Skaters can now put a 3 /4-inch curve on their stick blades, up from a half-inch, which was the league standard for 36 years. There is some romance in the new rule, for any kid who has ever put a skate on a pond has first spent hours putting a nice banana curve on his stick. There is a power in that curve, both real and imagined. It provides zip and height to the shot, just like it did for Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita when they were shredding the league in the 1960s for the Chicago Blackhawks.
As legend has it, New York Rangers sniper Andy Bathgate helped bring on the introduction of the goaltender?s mask when one of his shots broke the cheek of Montreal Canadiens goalie Jacques Plante in 1959. The next time Plante was seen, he was wearing a mask. It?s not a coincidence that Bathgate, along with fellow Hall of Famers Hull and Mikita, was on the cutting edge of the curved-stick revolution in the late 1950s and early ?60s. They threatened goaltenders with decapitation ? especially Hull, who shot bullets ? which is why the league introduced a 1-inch curve rule in 1970, and then further cut the standard to a half-inch in 1971.
Now, for the first time in generations, the rules are bending back the other way. Is this a major development? Does Leclaire need thicker pads?
"Nobody has changed," said Tim LeRoy, the Blue Jackets? equipment manager. "At least, nobody has changed as of yet. The problem is the production of sticks. It takes time to make all the new molds. It just doesn?t happen overnight."
David Vyborny and Fredrik Modin still use old-school wooden sticks, which have a better feel and are preferable in terms of puck control. The rest of the Blue Jackets use composite sticks, made from graphite, Kevlar and other high-tech materials. These sticks come out of molds, and to change the blade curve, one would have to change the molds, which would mean retooling a factory.
On top of that, there is a sense that the old standard of a halfinch curve is enough. Even Modin, who can put more curve on his wooden blade with a little blow-torch work, is standing pat.
Blue Jackets winger Rick Nash said, "You stick with what works. Obviously, a bigger curve is an advantage because you get a better shot. That said, it?s a matter of personal preference."
Defenseman Rusty Klesla is one player who is using a bigger curve, but the curve is in the middle of his blade to augment puck control.
Heel curves help get the puck up in a hurry. Toe curves help passers corral the puck and deliver it with accuracy.
Every player has a preference, and most, if not all, are sticking with what they?ve used in the past.
"Personally, I think the big curves hurt you," coach Gerard Gallant said. "You don?t handle the puck as well, and it?s harder to accept a pass, especially on the backhand."
Of course, there might be some spot substituting. Players have been known to go with a bigger curve in specific situations. Ever notice a forward changing his stick before and after a power play? In the past, a lot of players would risk a penalty and use an illegal curve if there was an onus to score. Jaromir Jagr got caught twice in one game. The thinking now is, players have more leeway and won?t feel the urge to cheat.
Or, will the envelope continue to be pushed?
"Now that," LeRoy said, "is a good question."
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