Blue Jackets/NHL Season Thread

[swerb]

I think Arniel coached his last game for CBUS tonight. I would be shocked if he is still the coach Monday Morning.

What a mess.

[skatingtripods]

St. Louis Blues just canned their coach and hired Ken Hitchcock.

Jackets were too slow on the trigger. Marc Crawford or bust now.

[Govbarney]

Since Hitch was under contract with CBJ, I wonder if they got any sort of compensation for him... Arniel and Howson were at practice today, talking to the team Prez, looks like they survive another week.

[Govbarney]

Columbus Blue Jackets acquire Pittsburgh Penguins' Mark Letestu for fourth-round pick in 2012 draft.

Stanley Cup here we come....

[RickNashEquilibrium]

Read this little gem from Arniel.....

“Prior to (now) we probably were playing a high-risk game,” Arniel said. “Ultimately it’s the way I’ve coached and played. It’s the most exciting hockey. Players love to play that style. Coaches love to coach that style. But it’s also one that can give you fits when you don’t have good goaltending or you don’t have the defense that can sustain that.”

So basically, he throws his goaltender, defense, and GM under the bus. That....is....awesome. This coach, this org, are utterly unbelievable. I had some faith at the beginning of the season, but with how bad this start has been, its mind-boggling that ownership has sat on its hands.

http://www.bluejacketsxtra.com/content/stories/2011/11/09/arniel-alters-pace-style-of-offense.html

[skatingtripods]

What can ownership do besides admit a mistake and start all over again? They handpicked Arniel after Boucher told them no. They come out looking like idiots no matter what.

At the end of the day, the players have to perform. They aren't doing that.

Mason's single-handedly killing this organization. They gave him a premature (and now un-tradeable) contract extension. They neglected to address goaltender over the last couple of drafts. They failed at getting a good backup to replace Garon because they wanted Mason to play 65-70 games.

And this draft is not deep at all at goaltender.

Arniel's just speaking out of frustration. He's not wrong. He's just not right for saying what he's saying at this time.

[RickNashEquilibrium]

What can ownership do besides admit a mistake and start all over again? They handpicked Arniel after Boucher told them no. They come out looking like idiots no matter what.

At the end of the day, the players have to perform. They aren't doing that.

Mason's single-handedly killing this organization. They gave him a premature (and now un-tradeable) contract extension. They neglected to address goaltender over the last couple of drafts. They failed at getting a good backup to replace Garon because they wanted Mason to play 65-70 games.

And this draft is not deep at all at goaltender.

Arniel's just speaking out of frustration. He's not wrong. He's just not right for saying what he's saying at this time.

Agree with you on that last point. My beef isn't so much with Arniel as a coach, I simply couldn't believe he got quoted saying that to the media. Wrong forum to put something that blunt out there.

I don't think this is as simple as "the players have to perform". Does Arniel have the right horses in place to run his system? If not, that's directly on Howson. Howson made the same mistakes with Hitch (Filatov, Stralman to name a few). He also prematurely signed Brassard after a 3rd of a good season. If Arniel's take is that they don't have right blueliners in place, Howson needs to fix that. This team needed to be built from the back forward like any good organization and they have failed to do that year after year after year. Pathetic.

[RickNashEquilibrium]

What is Mason supposed to do? He was unproven and got paid. Sure, he can be a goat for bad play, but the choice to not address it was Howson's fault. The state of chaos on this team falls directly on him and Arniel's shoulders. Don't read my prior post and endorsement to Arniel, its not. This team is vastly underperforming and a good coach would get better than 2-11 out of this bunch.

[Govbarney]

Issue starts with McConnell, he has no interest in hockey, and no idea how to run a franchise. The Blue Jackets where his fathers baby, and I assure you if his Old Man was still alive the CBJ would be a contender right now.

J. P. McConnell has no interest in Hockey or running a Hockey franchise , and he would have gladly sold the team if it wasn't for the fact the buyer would most likely move which would have tremendous negative impact, on his Worthington, Ohio business.

Its been reported in the Dispatch on more then one occasion that JPM is seeking a buyer who will keep the team in Columbus, the sooner that happens the better.

[skatingtripods]

I don't think this is as simple as "the players have to perform". Does Arniel have the right horses in place to run his system? If not, that's directly on Howson. Howson made the same mistakes with Hitch (Filatov, Stralman to name a few). He also prematurely signed Brassard after a 3rd of a good season. If Arniel's take is that they don't have right blueliners in place, Howson needs to fix that. This team needed to be built from the back forward like any good organization and they have failed to do that year after year after year. Pathetic.

Depends. Arniel can't play one set system because he doesn't have the personnel for it. There are conflicting skills and attributes all over the team. I haven't watched enough of the season to break down what they're doing, so I can't add much here.

They're screwed either way, though. They can't play a pressure forecheck because they don't have the team speed. They can't play a passive forecheck because if the opponent can play dump & chase, they'll beat up the defensemen all night. The D can't make the first pass out of the zone quick enough.

What is Mason supposed to do? He was unproven and got paid. Sure, he can be a goat for bad play, but the choice to not address it was Howson's fault. The state of chaos on this team falls directly on him and Arniel's shoulders

Stop the puck? Defensive breakdowns happen to every team. They happen more frequently to the Jackets, but it's Mason's job to bail them out. They've been down 1-0 in damn near every game so far. It's deflating.

The choice not to address it was Howson's fault. But there are only so many things you can address per offseason. Mason was supposed to be the farthest thing from Howson's mind. I realize it should be in the forefront now, but there's only so many times you can plug the boat before it sinks.


I can't speak on the ownership situation. Though, I would be shocked if the current McConnell owner is 50% as passionate as his father was. He probably hasn't sold the team yet just because he'd be guilty to sell his father's baby, like you said Gov.

[skatingtripods]

Another abortion in progress tonight.

Arniel can't last long.

[skatingtripods]

Wow.

Tyutin to NYI for Evgeni Nabokov.

Russell to STL for Nikita Nikitin.

Huge message from Scott Howson.

[skatingtripods]

And then it appears that Tyutin for Nabokov was just a rumor. No deal has been made.

The Russell-Nikitin deal is done, though.

[swerb]

What a mess.

Disappointing.

On a brighter note, just got my tickets for Red Wings at Sabres on Fri Dec 2, 15 rows behind the Sabres bench. Making a little roadie with my 6 year old. Cannot wait.

[skatingtripods]

On a brighter note, just got my tickets for Red Wings at Sabres on Fri Dec 2, 15 rows behind the Sabres bench. Making a little roadie with my 6 year old. Cannot wait.

Even though the Sabres are my favorite team, I've only seen one game at HSBC (now First Niagara Center).

Electric atmosphere, terrific fan base. Should be a lot of fun. I hope you guys enjoy.

[swerb]

On a brighter note, just got my tickets for Red Wings at Sabres on Fri Dec 2, 15 rows behind the Sabres bench. Making a little roadie with my 6 year old. Cannot wait.

Even though the Sabres are my favorite team, I've only seen one game at HSBC (now First Niagara Center).

Electric atmosphere, terrific fan base. Should be a lot of fun. I hope you guys enjoy.

They're one of the teams I pull for too. Wanted to see a different arena, and I heard the atmosphere was great from others too.

Next stop Joe Louis.

[Govbarney]

Last nights game was dedicated to the plight of blind squirrels everywhere

[skatingtripods]

There are TONS of blue seats without asses at Nationwide tonight and that's just the ones we can see while they're following the play. I can only imagine what the rest of the place looks like.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

So how about Shanahan now? No punishment for that subhuman piece of shit Lucic for his classless dickless hit on your boi Miller.

The trash that run the NHL need to shit or get off the the pot when it comes to getting the dirty plays out of the game. Shanahan is a pathetic joke and should be mocked for his pussified nature.

[skatingtripods]

Yeah, Lucic should have been suspended. The Shanahammer has taken a step back after how much scrutiny the Wisniewski suspension got. Far worse hits have gotten lesser penalties since.

Whatever, he's done more than Colin Campbell.

[bac5665]

I'm sure I'm jinxing it by posting, but the Jackets are up in NSH for the first time in forever and this Sanford guy just looks better than Mason. Made some saves that I don't think Mason would have come close with.

[Spin]

Sid the Kid is back, 2 goals and 2 assists in his first game back.

Bring on the Caps and O-veggi.

[skatingtripods]

Sid the Kid is back, 2 goals and 2 assists in his first game back.

I didn't watch the game, but can I assume that if an opposing player got within five feet of Crosby, they were penalized for intent to injure?

[Cerebral_DownTime]

We buttfucked the Sabres. 2 goals in like 15 seconds.

[skatingtripods]

Capitals fire Boudreau, Hurricanes fire Paul Maurice.

At least Boudreau will always be known for this:




I will say this about Boudreau. He proves to me what we all know about Mike Hargrove. Hargrove was a great manager. Sure, we could all fill out the lineup card every game, but the egos he had to deal with on those 90s teams were unreal. Boudreau had the same problem in Washington. It finally caught up with him.

Also, Paul Maurice will have another NHL job before the end of the season.

[swerb]

Email from my buddy in Virginia about the Boudreau canning, die hard Caps fan. Season ticket holder in like the 5th row, never misses a game:

Unfortunately needed to happen. At the game Wednesday, Ovie was just loafing except for on 2 or 3 shifts, one of which was a score. He needs a kick in the butt from someone new. Huntsie’s just the guy to give it to him. Hope he doesn’t turn into Mike Keenan quickly, but this group of guys was just ridiculously good in the first 8-10 games or so, and it’s just mind-numbing.

[skatingtripods]

Real concern as a Caps fan would be that Ovechkin and Hunter don't get along from the start and Ovie pouts about it. Hunter's a no bullshit guy. The die hard Caps fans who are old enough to remember Dale Hunter should have this same sentiment. He'd be bleeding from the face and not come off the ice.

He may demand too much from the players because of his personal style of play. We'll see.

[StewieG]

Any chance of Paul Maurice in Columbus? Always liked him as a coach.

[Govbarney]

SkateTripod recent CBJ article hit it right on, a complete bio-thermo-nuclear war style blow up is needed if there is any hope of salvaging the next decade plus of Hockey NHL Hockey in Ohio.

For a blow up to work Howson needs to go immediately before any deadline trades are made , he cannot have the opportunity to fuck up the foundation for the new rebuild, which by all accounts should begin with a pre-deadline fire sale.

[skatingtripods]

The thing that keeps getting me is that they are constantly alienating skill players to the point where they demand a trade.

Filatov, Zherdev, Brule and now Brassard. Look, he's a bust. He's under-performed. But he's still more skilled and talented than 75% of your forwards.

It's a mess. They're playing better and Sanford's been unbelievable.

The problem with a rebuild is that, outside of Nash, Carter, Tyutin and Wisniewski, they won't get back shit for the pieces that they have. Tyutin could net you a high 2nd, possibly low 1st round pick to the right team.

[Govbarney]

Either Howson has a habit of hiring coaches who treat the players like children which breeds resentment, or Howson just acquires players who naturally have no drive and act like Children. I don't know ... probably a combination of both.

Carters agent has supposedly already asked for a trade, honestly I cant blame him.

[skatingtripods]

Carters agent has supposedly already asked for a trade, honestly I cant blame him.

Carter refuted that. It's so hard with Twitter nowadays. It came out that Texas A&M coach Mike Sherman was fired. He found out when he went to a recruit's house for a visit and the kid's mother told him that she saw he was canned.

I don't think Carter's asked for a trade because then he'll look like the asshole in all of this. There was enough bad press about him when he left Philly.

[skatingtripods]

Aportzline Aaron Portzline
Told Carolina offered D Tomas Kaberle and a 2nd round pick to #CBJ for C Derick Brassard last month, but #CBJ GM Scott Howson declined

Wow, Howson, why?

[skatingtripods]

The Blue Jackets are terrible. Good god.

[skatingtripods]

NHL play there by Ryan Johansen. Beauty. Started with a great play in the neutral zone.

Kid's one of the few bright spots of the year.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

The team is lazy and doesn't appear to give a fuck. It's a bad joke and i'm embarrassed I paid for tickets.

I'm also impressed with Johansen, kid seems to have it.

[skatingtripods]

Reverse jinx works. Bet the Jackets -1.5 when the Taylor Hall news broke. EDM seriously banged up.

But the Jackets still do suck. Rick Nash pissed me off tonight. That was honestly the first full game I've watched all season. Man is he lazy. Floating all over the ice. Pass glances off his stick and he lets someone else go get it. Embarrassing.

I'd sit him for a game or two. Needs to get motivated in a hurry. He dug this grave by signing that extension. He better learn to live with it.

[Govbarney]

Its time to push the button and nuke this franchise. Starting with the President Mike Priest, then Howson ( how he still has a job is beyond me, he is starting to look like the Isiah Thomas & Matt Millian of Hockey ). After that Nash should be firmly in the cross hairs if the price is right.

[skatingtripods]

Its time to push the button and nuke this franchise. Starting with the President Mike Priest, then Howson ( how he still has a job is beyond me, he is starting to look like the Isiah Thomas & Matt Millian of Hockey ). After that Nash should be firmly in the cross hairs if the price is right.

McConnell's too lazy. He inherited this team from his father and only cares enough to hold on to it for nostalgia. According to Portzline, he was in the upper bowl last night shaking hands with fans. Picked a good night to be up there since it was mostly empty.

Amazing that he'd have the audacity to put himself in front of people buying $15 tickets rather than be proactive about bettering the team.

Trade deadline doesn't look like it'll help the Jackets much either. Prospal might fetch a 2nd or 3rd rounder and maybe a 3rd or a marginal prospect for Pahlsson, but beyond that, they have nothing of value to offer anybody. Martinek's concussion issue renders him pretty useless, maybe a 4th or 5th rounder if he plays a few games prior to the deadline. Extended Tyutin and Umberger already.

Yakupov will help immediately starting next year, but he won't be a savior.

[Govbarney]

Here is what I would like to see happen going forward:
-Trade Nash to a potential 2013 Lottery team for draft picks and a goalie prospect(a tough sell).
-Draft Yakupov or Grigorenko in '12 and keep them in the OHL next season.
-acquirer as many ping pong balls in 12-13 as possible, and god willing they can draft Nathan MacKinnon, then you got yourself a potential franchise savior

[skatingtripods]

Here is what I would like to see happen going forward:
-Trade Nash to a potential 2013 Lottery team for draft picks and a goalie prospect(a tough sell).
-Draft Yakupov or Grigorenko in '12 and keep them in the OHL next season.
-acquirer as many ping pong balls in 12-13 as possible, and god willing they can draft Nathan MacKinnon, then you got yourself a potential franchise savior

It's a nice list.

For one, teams who have the cap space to support the addition of Nash are few and far between. Along those same lines, in the salary cap era, lottery teams are better off keeping the pick, paying an entry level contract + bonuses at/around 3.5M.

As far as goalie prospect goes, they're a lot like pitchers. You can see the talent and the skill set, but projecting their ceiling is really hard to do. If they did that, it'd have to be an almost NHL-ready goaltender. Or, they could always try to pluck a Cory Schneider/Jonathan Bernier type who is blocked by a more developed goaltender.

Regarding Yakupov, play him right away. Yakupov is talked about as being just as NHL-ready as anyone in the last few drafts. His size is a bit of an issue, which is where the Jackets might be cautious. But, you need the fan base to get excited about something. Yakupov could be it.

Regarding Grigorenko, he is dropping down scouting charts despite a good WJC performance. I'm thinking that's a work ethic/skating issue. I'm avoiding him because you can't screw up the first or second pick. If you pick second, you take Ryan Murray. I know he's a defenseman, but he's a two-way kid who is already being called a future NHL captain. Jackets need an identity and accountability.

Mackinnon would be nice in the 2013 draft. That said, if the Jackets have another season like this year's any time soon, it'll be too soon for the fans and the core guys they have locked up.

[RickNashEquilibrium]

Always been a fan of Porty but he's usually shied away from taking jabs at individuals in the organization. He pulls no punches here and I applaud him for it. Very well written and doesn't have the scornful overtones as say a Grossi writing about the Browns. Top this with the planned rally/protest at Nationwide tomorrow, this awful season is going to get more interesting (if at all more unwatchable) over the next 2 months.

http://www.bluejacketsxtra.com/content/blogs/puck-rakers/2012/01/lost-season.html

[skatingtripods]

Portzline was money in that article. It goes from the top down. Nobody in the organization knows how to navigate through a problem. You could sense that there was an issue on the horizon when all of Howson's assistant coaches abandoned him this offseason to go back to jobs that they were more comfortable with.

There's no direction on the ice or off of it. The players don't know how to play together, the front office doesn't know how to acquire guys who can play together. They aren't a checking team or a skill team.

It's one giant mess that needs to be nuked.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

I'm going to the fan gathering/protest/whatever Saturday.

I've backed this team since the start, they owe us more than a lazy group of whiny assholes.

"WAAAAHHHH! KEN HITCHCOCK IS TOO MEAN HE MAKES US WORK HARD IN PRACTICE WAHHHHHH!"

Fucking pillow soft crybabies! Get rid of them all! BOO! BOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

[skatingtripods]

"WAAAAHHHH! KEN HITCHCOCK IS TOO MEAN HE MAKES US WORK HARD IN PRACTICE WAHHHHHH!"

Apparently the Blues don't mind Ken Hitchcock behind the bench.

[skatingtripods]

This came in my email today from John P. McConnell:


Dear Blue Jackets Fan,

My father held a longstanding belief that a major league sports franchise would prove an important catalyst in the growth and development of Columbus. After more than 30 years of effort, the opportunity to make his belief reality presented itself with the NHL awarding a franchise to Columbus in 1997. To my mind, it is clear he was right in his vision. With the Blue Jackets and the Arena as the anchor, Nationwide Insurance has brought vibrancy to our downtown in the Arena District that simply wouldn't have happened without the team.

That said, there is no question our on-ice performance is nowhere near what it needs to be. All of you are disappointed and many are angry. I and the entire Blue Jackets organization share these feelings. I thought as we approached mid-season at the All-Star break, it would be a good time to reflect on where we've been and offer some thoughts about how we go forward. We have taken actions and will continue our push to improve.

Toward the end of last season, we did a thorough evaluation of our team's strengths and weaknesses. From there, a plan was developed balancing our needs against our tradable assets. During the summer, we believed we executed the plan well and took a good step forward. Most people seemed to agree and we were excited for the season to start.

Unfortunately and surprisingly, we opened the season terribly and have struggled ever since. Disappointing is not a strong enough word.

We began looking at why our team was not performing at an acceptable level very early this season and assessing where we are and where we want to go. We added Craig Patrick, an experienced and highly respected figure in the hockey community, as a senior advisor to assist in this endeavor. While this process is not complete, we have clearly defined our options and are finalizing our plans.

I understand you want to know what we're going to do to fix this, but it is important for us to maintain a degree of discretion to prevent putting ourselves at a competitive disadvantage. I can tell you action will be taken in the coming weeks and months, be it around the trade deadline, the entry draft and/or free agency that will be indicative of our direction.

Our goal as an organization is to build a team that wins consistently and competes for the Stanley Cup. Anything less is unacceptable! Everything we do in the coming weeks, months and years will be done to that end and everyone in our organization – myself, management, staff, coaches and players – will be held to that standard.

I am very thankful and appreciative of the dedication and passion you have shown as a Blue Jackets fan and I am committed to giving you a team of which you can be proud.

Sincerely,

John P. McConnell

[RickNashEquilibrium]

Saw that this morning over on the HF Boards. Absolute joke of an owner, and now in some capacity, businessman. That letter is full of lip-service and bullshit it would make Dan Gilbert blush.

[Govbarney]

Well it's not all bad , Cbus will have the All-star game next season.

As bad as the product is on the ice , you can't argue with the arena and the district around it. Nationwide has got to be in the top 5 of best hockeye arenas around.

[Cerebral_DownTime]

The arena is great, too bad the Buckeyes have to play hoops at the awful VCA.

[Govbarney]

The arena is great, too bad the Buckeyes have to play hoops at the awful VCA.

Agree 100% The town is not big enough for two arenas that size, and Its just a god awful place to watch College Basketball and College Hockey.

I would have rather seen a major renovation of St Johns. And then see the university build a 6-8000 seat Ice Arena. Instead they built that eyesore VCA, and the city, University and CBJ has been paying for that blunder ever since.