Columbus Blue Jackets (Official Thread)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Brule won?t be sent to juniors
MacLean tells rookie center to look for permanent residence
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

NEAL C . LAURON DISPATCH Rookie center Gilbert Brule, foreground, won?t have to worry about being sent to the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League the next time he hits the ice for the Blue Jackets.

It?s official: Rookie center Gilbert Brule will stay with the Blue Jackets this season instead of returning to his junior club.
"I told him to get a place in Columbus," president and general manager Doug MacLean said. "I wanted him to have his mind clear, to not have to worry about it.
"We sat him down last week and told him he should go get a permanent place to live instead of living out of a hotel, and for a kid in his position, those are the words you want to hear."
Brule had been living in an apartment on a month-to-month lease.
The possibility of going back to the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League was looming, with rumors swirling in rumor-happy Vancouver.
"It helps a little, in my mind, to know I?m going to be here," Brule said. "But I still have to play well. I know that."
Brule, 19, is too young to be sent to the Blue Jackets? minorleague affiliate in Syracuse.
In eight games this season, Brule has one goal, six penalty minutes, a minus-5 rating and nine shots on goal, mostly playing on the Blue Jackets? No. 4 forward line.
Breakout !

The Blue Jackets spent considerable time in practice yesterday working on their breakout play, the first pass out of the zone, typically made from defensemen to forwards.
"Everybody is frustrated right now," defenseman Anders Eriksson said, referring to the team?s offensive slump ? seven goals in the past six games, resulting in five losses.
"It not just the forwards," Eriksson said. "We (defensemen) have to do a better job of getting pucks through to the net so the guys up front can get rebound chances.
"We have to do a better job of giving them the puck in the neutral zone in a way that they can use their speed. It?s on all of us to do more, to get the job done."
Slap shots

Defenseman Duvie Westcott missed practice because of a slight groin pull. Coach Gerard Gallant said Westcott will be in the lineup when the Blue Jackets play host to Colorado on Wednesday. ? The lines used in practice were: Rick Nash, Sergei Fedorov and David Vyborny; Fredrik Modin, Alexander Svitov and Nikolai Zherdev; Jason Chimera, Manny Malhotra and Dan Fritsche; Jody Shelley, Gilbert Brule and Anson Carter. Winger Jaroslav Balastik subbed for Shelley and Carter at times on the fourth line.
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[jimotis4heisman]

balastik has been put on waivers. it will be interesting to see if he clears and goes down to cuse or if he gets picked up...

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

NHL
Jackets debunk offensive funk
Players insist it?s just matter of time before someone gets on a roll
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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The Blue Jackets have allowed 26 goals in nine games, an average of 2.89 per game, which ranked them 15 th in the NHL as of yesterday. Defensively, they are adequate.
The Blue Jackets have scored 19 goals, or 2.11 per game, the third-worst average in the league. And that is why they?ve won just three games and have fewer points than any other team in the league, save Phoenix.
The Blue Jackets are either a poor offensive team or they?re in a funk.
They say they?re in a funk. They say: With the likes of Rick Nash, Fredrik Modin, Sergei Fedorov, Nikolai Zherdev and David Vyborny, it?s only a matter of time before someone gets hot.
Anders Eriksson, their sage defenseman, offered a constipated condiment metaphor.
"It?s going to come," he said. "We know it?s going to happen for us eventually. We just have to get through this tough stretch. It?s going to be like a ketchup effect. It doesn?t come out for a long, long time, and then it all comes out at once. The most important part is to keep our composure and don?t get frustrated. It?s going to come sooner or later. It has to."
Anticipation.
Danny Gare, the Blue Jackets? television analyst, scored 50 goals in a season for the Buffalo Sabres and finished his playing career with 354 goals. He also had slumps.
"The key is, always go back to what you do best," Gare said. "If you?re a shooter, shoot. If you?re a physical player, hit somebody. Go back to what got you into the league."
Artists must paint and plumbers must plumb.
"That?s right," Gare said. "The other thing is, you?ve got to get ugly, you?ve got to outwork (the opponents). Sometimes, when things aren?t going well, you?ve just got to dig a little deeper."
Coach Gerard Gallant had a 39-goal season with the Detroit Red Wings and finished his playing career with 211 goals. He also had slumps.
"When I think back to slumps, what I did was I just put it in my head I?ve got to work harder," Gallant said. "That?s what I always said to myself, work harder. It may not come the next day, or the day after, but something good is going to happen. I?ve always believed that about hard work."
Fedorov, who has nary a point in three games since returning from a shoulder injury, has had one 50-goal season and two 100-point seasons in his career.
"You have to bump up your own stats before you can talk about anyone else," Fedorov said. "So I can only speak for myself, personally. When you?re in a slump, you look at your overall performance. I try to practice harder, stay on the ice longer, shoot a lot. I try to refocus, and it?s a lot of shooting, basically. Every space you make for yourself, you take it to the net. Do you know what I?m saying? Most of the things you do, you affiliate with the net. And you play more aggressively. You play on the edge."
Take your space to the net. There?s some depth to that answer.
Fedorov was among a contingent of Blue Jackets who lingered on the ice for shooting and tip drills after practice yesterday. Their aim is clear. They want to generate more shots. They?re averaging 24.4 shots, the lowest rate in the league. By comparison, their opponent tonight, the Colorado Avalanche, is averaging 11 more shots and is a goalplus per game better than the Blue Jackets.
"I?m trying to do the same things to make sure I get chances," Modin said. "Some games, you don?t get a whole lot of offense, and in other games you get a ton. If I?m not getting chances, that?s when I say I?ve got to look at things a little differently. I look at my shifts and see the number of times I can do something to create scoring chances. The more chances you can create, the greater the possibility the puck is going to go in the net."
Modin had 31 goals last season for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Nash had 31 goals in just 54 games for the Blue Jackets. He tied for the league lead in goals in 2003-04, when he had 41. Yesterday, he worked overtime at practice.
"You?re looking for any good thing to happen," Nash said. "Some guys on our team would take a puck off any place on their body to score right now. You find that?s how momentum kind of swings when these slumps happen."
Left winger Jason Chimera said, "I?d take one off my head right now."
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Balastik?s status wavers on waivers
If he?s unclaimed, future is uncertain in Columbus
Wednesday, November 01, 2006

By Michael Arace THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH



Blue Jackets winger Jaroslav Balastik was placed on waivers yesterday.
Sometime today, it will be known whether Balastik, 26, cleared waivers or was claimed by another team.
Blue Jackets president and general manager Doug MacLean said that if Balastik clears, the team will have a decision to make.
Balastik will either be kept in Columbus or farmed to Syracuse. There?s also a chance he?ll return to Europe; he was a prolific scorer for Ziln of the Czech Elite League before he decided to give the NHL a shot.
Balastik, 6 feet 2 and 205 pounds, has one goal and is minus-3 in six games with the Blue Jackets.
As a rookie last season, he had 12 goals and 22 points in 66 games. He also converted 6 of 9 shootout attempts, which ranked him first on the Blue Jackets and fifth in the NHL.
He started the season as a fourthliner/shootout specialist. He has been the 13 th forward of late. What, me worry?
Goaltender Pascal Leclaire isn?t one to worry about the offense.
"I don?t even think about it," Leclaire said. "I don?t go into games saying, ?I?ve got to be sharp because the team?s not scoring.? I always think we have a chance to win."
Leclaire has a solid 2.66 goals-against average heading into tonight?s game against the Colorado Avalanche in Nationwide Arena.
"I still think Rick Nash is going to score 50 goals," Leclaire said. "Look at the guys we have. Sergei Fedorov, Anson Carter ? these guys have been scoring goals since I was watching them on TV."
The Blue Jackets have the worst goals-for total (19) and the second-best goals-against total (26) in the Western Conference. Disa and data
Defenseman Duvie Westcott (groin) was back on the ice and practicing yesterday. . . . The workout was dominated by shooting drills. No shock there. . . . Television analyst Danny Gare is in the process of selling his house in Buffalo. He?s fortunate in that he didn?t incur much damage from the recent storm that dropped 2 feet of snow. "I had some water in the basement, but that was the worst of it," he said. "It was like a war zone up there. I was really lucky."
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[jimotis4heisman]

balastik has cleared waivers, while he end up in cuse?

 

[ScriptOhio]

I'm still on the bandwagon. I bought "cheap" tickets on eBay for the game tonight. They are actually pretty good seats (section 203 row C). I guess the only good thing about the Jackets playing so bad is that you can get "cheap" tickets. Anyone think they will turn it around tonight and actually play up to their potential for 60 minutes?

 

[jimotis4heisman]

I'm still on the bandwagon. I bought "cheap" tickets on eBay for the game tonight. They are actually pretty good seats (section 203 row C). I guess the only good thing about the Jackets playing so bad is that you can get "cheap" tickets. Anyone think they will turn it around tonight and actually play up to their potential for 60 minutes?

center ice i believe, nice score.

i hope so.

is waiving balastik enough of a message, or maybe a few more days with mr fedorov healthy will be the thing that makes them click. you know footer will come out with his a game facing his old crew in the avs/nordiques franchise. while nash go back to paying the price in front of the net? will the defense clear the puck and the zone with good passing? will we see that tap to tap end to end team we saw the first few games, or will we see a rag tag bunch of busch leaguers? i really dont know, i know what i hope for. when hockey is played and played well it is amazing to watch if you understand it.

oh and script i dont know what "cheap" is but they should be very very nice upper bowl seats...

 

[Swimmer]

Wow... what can you say about this game? The Jackets can't find the back of the net to save their life. It seemed like the puck just did not bounce their way (literally). They had plenty of opportunities in the 3rd to get back in the game, but the Nash turnover killed any hope of a comeback. Zherdev continues to impress which is good to see. I wish our defense played with more fire, they seem to wait around and allow the puck to stay behind the net. They really need to stop teams from setting up plays back there otherwise this could be a long season. I did like the passion we played with in the 3rd, but it helps when you have a 6-3 man advantage.

 

[osugrad21]

Dispatch

Jackets still Avs-nots
Offense wakes up, but Colorado continues mastery over Columbus
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Sergei Fedorov can?t get the puck past Avs goalie Jose Theodore in the third period.
There might come a night when the Blue Jackets defeat the Colorado Avalanche in a regulation game, but that night was not last night, when the Jackets had their 21 st crack at a once mighty franchise.
If the Avs are in transition, they?re making fleet work of it. They turned a few choice turnovers into lightningstrike goals and held on for a 5-3 victory. An alternately titillated and deflated crowd of 16,007 was on hand. Many left early.
"They made some good plays," Blue Jackets goaltender Pascal Leclaire said. "You make a mistake and they?re right on you."
At 14 minutes, 21 seconds of the third period, Blue Jackets right winger David Vyborny put a snap shot past Avs goaltender Jose Theodore and under the crossbar to cut the Colorado lead to 4-3.
The Avs countered just 27 seconds later, when fourth-line center Brad Richardson picked the pocket of Rick Nash at the Jackets? blue line. Richardson took three strides and ripped a wrist shot between Leclaire?s legs to boost the Colorado lead back to two. Rapid transition, quick strike, killer goal.
"Mistake by me," Nash said. "I?ll take 110 percent of the blame for that play."
Nash had five shots on goal but was thwarted by Theodore, mostly from close range. Nash has gone seven games without a goal, his longest such streak since he had no goals in eight games in February 2004.
"They?re just not going in," Nash said. "I?m not doing anything differently than years past, games past. I?m getting chances. They?ll be going in, but I just don?t know when it?ll be."
That Nash continued to be snakebitten was an underlying irony for the Blue Jackets, who emerged from an offensive funk. The Jackets put 44 shots on net and became only the fourth team to outshoot the Avs this season. The Jackets scored three goals for only the second time in seven games. They scored their first power-play goal in four games.
Sergei Fedorov scored his first goal of the season. Fredrik Modin scored his third. They were buzzing all night. How did they lose?
"Offensively, it was our best game of the year," Fedorov said. "We created so much, I think we got, I?d say, overexcited. I think it kept us from our defense."
Thirteen members of the Avalanche registered a point. Joe Sakic, Wojtek Wolski, Brett McLean, Mark Rycroft and Richardson scored goals. That?s one goal from each of the first three lines, two from the fourth. And Theodore, who hasn?t exactly looked like a Hart Trophy candidate, was terrific.
"When Sakic and (Milan) Hejduk beat you, you can live with that sometimes," Blue Jackets coach Gerard Gallant said. "But they didn?t beat us. We beat ourselves."
They started early. At 5:06 of the first period, Wolski and Paul Stastny, a wonderful rookie with a terrific bloodline, tied the Jackets in knots on a rush. Wolski?s finish was a simple bunt into an open net. McLean scored on another rush at 11:03. The Jackets were down early, and thereafter, they only sniffed at the lead for brief moments.
The Avs pushed their lead to 4-1 by the midway mark of the second period before Nikolai Zherdev fed Modin for a power-play goal at the 18:50 mark. From there, the Avs hung on.
"We?ve played pretty well, but this was one game I wasn?t too crazy about," Colorado coach Joel Quenneville said. "We usually spend more time in the offensive end, and we usually have the puck a lot more. But credit Columbus. I thought they played well."
Yet the Blue Jackets? mistakes were enough to ensure another loss, which dropped their record against the Avalanche to 1-18-2, the one victory coming in OT a couple of years ago.

 

[osugrad21]

Dispatch

If this team is better, when will it show it?
Thursday, November 02, 2006
BOB HUNTER

This was the perfect chance to show everybody how much things have changed.
The Colorado Avalanche, the old Avalanche, used to treat the Blue Jackets like an irksome, wildly flailing kid brother they could hold off with a hand to the forehead. When the Jackets played the Avs, it was always a visual definition of overmatched.
Even though Columbus was 1-17-2 all time against Colorado entering the game last night, these aren?t the old Avs and these aren?t supposed to be the old Blue Jackets. And if you consider losing to the Avs 5-3 last night an improvement over, say, losing 6-2, then I guess that?s true.
Unfortunately, the rows of empty seats in Nationwide Arena suggest that some fans don?t appreciate the upgrade. Although the attendance was announced as 16,007, there were probably 3,000 fewer than that in the building, suggesting that some impatient ? others might say "savvy" ? fans apparently preferred to watch a much-hyped Ohio State men?s basketball team play an exhibition game against Findlay a few miles up the road than watch the Blue Jackets lose again.
Findlay. How?s that for rejection?
"I paid $9.50 for this 26-ounce beer," one fan said. "It?s more than I paid for my ticket from a scalper. They were practically giving them away out there."
Some of this might have to do with the team?s history of shameful drubbings by Colorado, but again, this is supposed to be different. In the old days, you could understand why the powerful Avalanche skated circles around those bums.
"They?ve owned us," Blue Jackets coach Gerard Gallant said before the game. "They?ve always been a great, high-flying hockey team. I still think they?re a good hockey team, but there?s not the skill level there used to be with (Adam) Foote and (Rob) Blake and (Alex) Tanguay gone. They?re still a very good team. They?re still a dangerous team, but I think we match up pretty well with them now."
There were signs of that throughout the game; this might have been the best offensive game the Blue Jackets have played this year. They were buzzing on the offensive end, outshooting the Avalanche 44-22. Because this team was built for offense and has been playing like it has never heard of the word, that has to be taken as a good sign.
Sergei Fedorov, probably the team?s most noticeable offensive force last night, actually found the loss encouraging, which is a reason for discouraged fans to be encouraged, with Calgary visiting Nationwide Arena on Friday night. Fedorov thought that might even explain why the defense was so shoddy.
"The way we generate scoring chances against a good team like Colorado, we were just super-excited about playing well the whole game," Fedorov said, "and sometimes we don?t think too much about defense. In some ways, the result is negative. But in some ways, the way we think, it was very positive for our team."
Gallant didn?t buy it.
"It would have been positive if we would have won," Gallant said. "I?m happy with a lot of things and I think it?s a positive step, but we cannot give up five goals. ? When Sakic and people like (Milan) Hejduk beat you, sometimes you can live with that, but they didn?t beat us tonight. We beat ourselves."
Beat themselves?
Well, maybe. And if that?s true, then it?s entirely possible the Blue Jackets really are better than they used to be and they just haven?t shown it yet.
A Findlay-stung ticket department must hope so, anyway.

 

[osugrad21]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Balastik awaits his next move
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

TIM REVELL DISPATCH Goaltender Pascal Leclaire makes a stop in the second period of the Blue Jackets? 5-3 loss to the Avalanche.
Blue Jackets winger Jaroslav Balastik cleared waivers yesterday. Team president and general manager Doug MacLean said the next step is to "sit down with (Balastik?s) agents and figure out the best thing to do."
One possibility is Balastik will be kept in Columbus. More likely, however, is the chance that Balastik will be reassigned to Syracuse of the American Hockey League. Would he accept such an assignment, or would he prefer to return to Europe?
"Nothing?s decided yet," Balastik said after the morning skate. "I could go to Syracuse for two weeks (or longer) and see what happens. If I?m not (recalled), then maybe I?d look at (Europe). But we?ll see."
Balastik started the season as a fourth-line right winger/shootout specialist and had one goal in six games. He has been a healthy scratch the past four games, including last night?s against the Colorado Avalanche in Nationwide Arena.
As a rookie last season, Balastik had 12 goals and 22 points in 66 games. He also converted six of nine shootout attempts, which ranked him first on the Blue Jackets and fifth in the NHL.
Carter on fourth line

Anson Carter, who signed a free-agent contract to much fanfare on the eve of training camp in September, has wound up in Balastik?s spot on the right side of the fourth line.
This represents a precipitous slide.
Carter signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the idea that he?d play among the top six forwards. Then, Nikolai Zherdev ended his contract stalemate and agreed to a three-year deal worth $7.5 million. When Zherdev got across the pond to Columbus, Carter was bumped to the third line.
Last night, Carter began the game on the fourth line with rookie Gilbert Brule and enforcer Jody Shelley.
Earlier in the day, Carter was asked whether he has been able to find a comfort level with all of his shifting about.
Quite cordially, Carter declined comment.
His new linemate, Shelley, said, "I?m sure he can?t be happy, but all of us know that he?s going to contribute any way he can to help the team."
Heading into last night, Carter had one goal and two points and a minus-1 rating.
Carter was eight goals shy of 200 and five points shy of 400 for his career.
Disa and data

Center Sergei Fedorov has switched skate blades, from a stiffer blade to a more flexible Tuuk blade, the latter a classic. "I?ll use the Super Steels (the stiffer model) on harder ice, like Detroit," Fedorov said. "But here and most places, I?ll use the Tuuks." With a smile, he added, "I feel faster." ? Two important players for the Avalanche ? defenseman Jordan Leopold (hernia surgery) and center Pierre Turgeon (shoulder) ? aren?t yet traveling with the team. Leopold was one of the Avalanche?s key offseason acquisitions. He was acquired, with two second-round draft picks, from the Calgary Flames for high-scoring Alex Tanguay. Leopold is out indefinitely. ? George Parros, the Avalanche?s hulking right winger, is a Harvard graduate with a degree in economics. Parros has been known to finish his teammates? crossword puzzles. ? Parros was a healthy scratch last night.

 

[osugrad21]

Dispatch

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Dispatch

hursday, November 02, 2006

Dispatch

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Dispatch

Thursday, November 02, 2006

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Sadowski: Foote hungers to taste playoffs again

Until he joined the Columbus Blue Jackets as a free agent after the 2004-05 lockout, Adam Foote hadn't played for a team with a losing record since his third season in the NHL.

It previously happened in 1993-94, with the Quebec Nordiques.
"That was a long time ago," the former Colorado Avalanche defenseman said this week.
Foote, 35, was the heart and soul of the Avalanche defense when the team was winning Stanley Cups in 1996 and 2001, but now he's just trying to help the Blue Jackets qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the team made its NHL debut in 2000-01.
"It's a challenge," Foote said. "This is a great dressing room with great guys. You want to try to do everything to help them win. It's going to be fun when we turn it around."
Foote, who wears the "C" as Blue Jackets captain, is one of three players on the team to have won a Stanley Cup. The others are former Detroit Red Wings rival Sergei Fedorov and Fredrik Modin, who won a championship with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
"Colorado was special," Foote said. "We were lucky."
The Blue Jackets went 35-43-4 last season, good for 74 points, the best record in the young franchise's history, and they are expecting to compete for a playoff berth this season with veterans such as Foote, Fedorov, Modin and Anson Carter, along with young talents Rick Nash, David Vyborny, Duvie Westcott and Pascal Leclaire.
"We're in a building stage," said Foote, who is in the second year of a three-year, $13.5 million contract. "I thought the transition last year would be easier. In all honesty, it was tough. We had so many different guys in and out of the lineup, so many injuries. They were trying to find the right recipe or whatever you want to call it.
"This year, it seems a lot more settled down. We made some great additions with Modin and Carter, and everyone's a year older. We're right there; it's just a matter of when the trigger's going to go off."
Ohio State athletics - especially football and basketball - are to Columbus what the Broncos are to Denver, but the Blue Jackets are holding their own in terms of fan interest and attendance. They've only sold out one of six home games at 18,136-seat Nationwide Arena but haven't drawn fewer than 16,000 - well, officially - for any of the others.
"For sure, there's a following for the Buckeyes," Foote said. "But these fans want a professional team to win. They're right there with us."
Most hockey players in Columbus can go about their business in relative anonymity, and that's fine with Foote.
"The only places I walk around are for picking up the kids at school and going to the hockey rink," he said. "If I'm not at the rink, I'm taking my kid to hockey practice.
"But I had one kid that blasted me the other day. 'You messed up on that goal.' He said it right in front of all the kids. I looked at him, he's 6 years old, and I'm thinking, 'Your dad told you that. If you picked up on that, you know the game.' "
Asked if the child was correct in his critique, Foote laughed. "Pretty close," he said.

 

[osugrad21]

Dispatch

Carter?s role reduced as season progresses
Friday, November 03, 2006
Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Anson Carter was the perfect mid-September solution. The Blue Jackets and Nikolai Zherdev were at a stalemate in contract negotiations, there was a hole on the right wing and the upcoming season was paramount to the psyche of the franchise. Carter, to great fanfare, was signed to fill the void. The Blue Jackets got the last big-name free agent with a one-year, $2.5 million contract.
Seven weeks later, the perfect solution is toiling on the fourth line with a rookie and an enforcer. Carter pulled four minutes of ice time Wednesday night, when the Blue Jackets lost for the seventh time in 10 games. Isn?t he a little pricey for eight shifts a game? Is he confused? What?s going on here?
"We?re not winning, we haven?t won, and as an organization we?re trying to turn a corner," Carter said. "We?re making the same mistakes, throwing the same guys out there over and over. It?s frustrating, but we have to learn from it and hopefully get better as a hockey club."
Carter spoke yesterday after practice, which he again spent among fourth-liners. Although he was careful with his words, he managed to get his point across.
"We?re not winning and I?m not playing, which is a bitter pill to swallow," he said. "But I?ve got to do what I?ve got to do to get ready. Hopefully, I?ll get a chance to contribute the way I know how, the way I?ve done in the past."
Carter is a finisher. He had 33 goals playing with the Sedin twins in Vancouver last season.
When Carter signed with the Blue Jackets, the indications were that he would be playing a top-six role, which would place him with one of the team?s two premier playmakers, Sergei Fedorov or David Vyborny. In fact, one of management?s specific selling points was that Carter would be playing with top goal scorer Rick Nash and Fedorov.
Then, at the end of September, Zherdev agreed to terms. The right wing, once a void, was suddenly crowded.
Carter started the season on the second line, playing with left winger Fredrik Modin and center Mark Hartigan (Fedorov was injured at the time). The second game, Carter played with center Alexander Svitov. By the third game, Zherdev had reported and Carter was relegated to third-line duty. Then this week, in game 10, he found himself with left winger Jody Shelley and center Gilbert Brule.
The chicken-or-egg question is this: Has Carter been shuffled around because of a lack of production ? he has one goal and two points ? or has his production been curtailed because he has been shuffled around?
"I like Dan Fritsche on the third line because he fits well there as an energy guy," coach Gerard Gallant said. "Looking at the other two right-wing spots, David Vyborny is one of our top players and the other one is Nikolai Zherdev, so there?s a lot of talent up there. (Carter) is on the outside looking in right now. It?s just a tough time in terms of finding him ice time, and obviously I?m not overly happy with the way he?s playing.
"I?m not happy with sitting a veteran guy like him, but right now the situation is he has got to play better. ? We all know he?s a character guy and a good person."
It?s apparent that Carter is also a frustrated person. His situation has changed drastically in a span of seven weeks because of forces within and outside of his control. His difficult task is to make something out of the few shifts he?s getting.
"I can?t mope," Carter said. "That?s the main thing for me, I can?t mope. I?m still fortunate to be in the National Hockey League. I think about that every single day. This, it?s just a little speed bump. Everyone goes through it."
[email protected]

 

[osugrad21]

Dispatch

BLUE JACKETS NOTEBOOK
Blue Jackets, Flames in dire need of a win
Friday, November 03, 2006
Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

The Calgary Flames were touted as Stanley Cup contenders, the Blue Jackets as their potential first-round playoff opponent. By now, the preview magazines have been recycled into Starbucks cups and the Flames and Jackets are tied for next to last in the conference. They?d be at rock bottom if not for the Phoenix Coyotes.
Tonight, the Jackets and Flames meet in Nationwide Arena. Given their point totals (seven apiece) and their place in their respective divisions (last), this will be as big a game as can be found in early November. Both teams are in danger of losing touch with the playoff race, and the two points are precious.
The Blue Jackets are coming off a 5-3 loss to Colorado on Wednesday night. The Flames lost 3-2 in Detroit.
"I?m sure they were wishing we?d won, just like we were hoping they?d win in Detroit," Blue Jackets captain Adam Foote said. "Now, what you have is two teams that are even more desperate."
In a league in which it takes 90 to 95 points to make the playoffs, is it too early to be looking at the standings ? with trepidation ? in Columbus and Calgary?
"After 10 games, it?s tough to get a good picture of what (the standings) are going to look like in April," left winger Fredrik Modin said. "But you have to know how important every point is. It doesn?t matter what time of year it is, every point is important. Any time you?ve got to get a chance to get a point, you?ve got to do whatever you can do to get it."
One of the teams will skate off with two points tonight and, given their recent struggles, those points will be cherished.
"Both teams think they?re pretty good teams," coach Gerard Gallant said. "Both are struggling to get points. You?re going to see a lot of battling, and if you don?t, something?s seriously wrong."
Balastik farmed

Winger Jaroslav Balastik, who cleared waivers Wednesday, was assigned to Syracuse yesterday.
"I?m going down to Syracuse for this weekend," Balastik said. "On Monday, they?ll let me know what they can do with me, and we will see."
Balastik will remain in Syracuse. Or he?ll be recalled. Or he?ll return to play in the Czech Republic.
Balastik started the season as a fourth-line right winger/shootout specialist and had one goal in six games. He was a healthy scratch the past four games.
As a rookie last season, Balastik had 12 goals and 22 points in 66 games. He also converted six of nine shootout attempts, which ranked him first on the Blue Jackets and fifth in the NHL.
Disa and data

Maybe the Flames can use Balastik. Last season, they were 2-6 in shootouts and scored just six shootout goals. ? Right winger David Vyborny was succinct and dead on (as usual) in his assessment of the Colorado game: "I think it was our best game for us offensively. Tough to find some garbage goals. They (the Avs) scored too easy." ? Rick Nash on his seven-game goal-less streak: "We?ve just got to stick together. The puck?s going to go in sooner or later. I know it."