Just a few questions for all of the learned readers and writers of The Cannon.

Just finished reading Andy Newman's post, "2012 NHL Trade Deadline: Rick Nash's Trade Value" and one line jumped out at me: "This isn't a Jeff Carter situation, where the team wants to cut their losses and get some value while they can."

Why are the Jackets looking to dump Carter? Is it because of his performance this season? He has been injured a bit. Maybe a full season would make a difference.

Is it because he didn't gel with Nash? Move him to another line.

Is it because he is pushing to leave? Both Carter and his agent deny he wants out of Columbus. (I know--players and agents lie all of the time)

Is it because the Jackets are hoping to get something better by trading Carter? I think Carter is (and can be) very good--for us or anyone else.

I realize these answers of mine are probably oversimplification, and I may have missed the reasons discussed elsewhere (apologies) but I am curious why it seems like Carter HAS to go.

Bottom line: The talk around is that the Jackets are looking to clean house and get players that they can build around. Isn't Jeff Carter just like the type of player the CBJ should be building around?

Hi everyone!

I'm an active member at Blueshirt Banter (NYR SB Nation site), and due to recent discussion on the site I wanted to ask you guys, taking fan bias out of it as much as possible, how valuable Rick Nash really is?

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This is from Renaud P. Lavoie:

"renhockey Renaud P Lavoie 2 NHL sources told me that #bluejackets Rick Nash is on the market. Nash have a no-movement clause and will controle his destiny."

True? Rumor? Wishful thinking? The author of the tweet sounds Canadian--I wonder if this is more hoping out of the Toronto market.

Thoughts? Personally, I don't believe that Nash is looking to go. At the same time, I know he wants to win (otherwise why play?)...so he may be feeling like it's not going to happen in Columbus. Interesting.

There has been a lot of rumor about him in regards to the trade deadline. I am curious to see what you guys think of him this year as I don't really get to watch any Jackets' games. Is he just gliding around on the ice or does he always play a hard shift and puts forth as much effort as anybody on the team?

I guess the question that I would most like to pose to you guys is if you would mind seeing him go? Is he the type of player that just won't work out, or maybe he hasn't gotten enough time to prove himself with 35 games played this season. How has he faired this year at columbus?

I'm getting dizzy, trying to keep up with all the trade rumors floating around. And, frankly, some of them are absolutely insane. I've been expecting to hear that someone has developed a time machine and that the Jackets are going to trade Carter, Mason and a handful of prospects/draft picks for Gordie Howe and Wayne Gretzky in their prime. Okay, speculating about possible player movements in the form of trades and free agency is as much a part of any sport as uniforms. I get that and I do enjoy whiling away a little time contemplating which Jackets may be on their way out the door, why and what the Jackets may get in return. But when these rumors enter the realm of fantasy league trades, why does anybody report them?

I have to assume that Howson, Patrick, Priest and McConnell are at least as smart as I am. And when it comes to hockey knowledge, I am sure Howson and Patrick know far more than I do. So, when I read/hear some of these trade rumors concerning the Jackets giving up little and getting a lot in return, I have to wonder about the IQ of the person who originated the rumor. And most of the rumors, lately, center on Jeff Carter.

Now, look, I wouldn't be surprised that some teams are (have been) inquiring about Carter's availability. Actually, I'd be shocked if that wasn't the case. Nor would I be surprised to learn that ownership and management have, at least, considered trading Carter. Yet, as I said before, I have to assume that they are as smart as I am. And I note that Carter has not had a chance to show what he can do on the Jackets, having played only 19 games. Talk about his lack of chemistry with Nash, et al? Consider this, how much chemistry did you have with your co-workers after only 19 days on the job. Talk about Carter being frustrated and angry? I don't know about you, but if I was a professional hockey player on a team which had expectations of making the play-offs and I was spending the majority of my time in the season injured, I'd be frustrated and angry, too.

Seriously, I think the only way Carter is going to be traded is if someone makes Howson a deal he simply can't refuse. That is, a real blockbuster. I think that Carter will be kept simply to see how he meshes with the team when healthy. Besides, Portzline guaranteed that Carter would be traded before the deadline and his record for accurate predictions is horrible. Also, am I the only one who has noticed that the Jackets have never in their history so much as hinted that a player is being shopped? Why change now?

There have also been a few (Thankfully, very few.) rumors concerning Rick Nash being traded. The one's I've seen are of the "And then you wake up" variety, mostly from Toronto concerning Nash being traded there. They can be ignored. Mainly because no team trades it's best player without getting a very substantial return. Yes, it can happen. Many times in all sports a team has traded a start player (The first that immediately come to mind is the 1960 trade of Frank Robinson by the Reds.), but there are invariably special circumstances attached, or - as in the case of the Robinson trade - management miscalculates the return they get. In these days of massive information on players, mutli-million dollar salaries and near continuous scouting of players nearly from the time they first take up a sport as a child, such miscalculations are extremely rare. Might the Jackets trade away one, or both, of their two best players? Yes, if the return is exceedingly substantial. Is such a trade probable? I don't think so.

More likely, we're looking at trades to fill actual needs. So let's start there. What are the Jackets' biggest needs? A goalie, a bit of improvement on defense and, maybe, a bit more scoring (Another reason I don't think Nash and Carter are going anywhere. When you need more scoring, you don't trade away your two best scorers!). There are goalies out there who could help the team and may be available. We've all heard the names, so I won't bother to repeat them. On defense, the Jackets have quite a bit of talent in Springfield nearly ready to contribute at the next level, so I don't see bringing in a star player, saddled with a multi-year contract, blocking the path of those players. Look for another "Russell for Nikitin" type move. That is, enough of an upgrade to make a difference, but a near unknown player. As for scoring, look for a third-liner type, not a big name. Someone who adds a bit of secondary scoring, nothing more. Not with players like Atkinson, Kubilak, Mayorov, Johansen, etc. just waiting to really make a difference.

Who is likely to be traded? Look, if Carter &/or Nash &/or both are traded, that means that the "nuclear option" is being taken and, frankly, the Jackets don't need to tear everything down, then take 3 - 5 years to rebuild. The talent is already there to make the play-offs with only a few tweaks. I think Howson, Patrick, et al are smart enough to see that. Most likely what we'll see is players like Vinny Prospal (Though I'd hate to see him go.), Sammy Pahlsson and others about to become UFA's traded as well as role players (Boll, MacKenzie, that type of guy.) sent away. Maybe Brassard will be traded if the offer is too strong to refuse, but I honestly don't expect any of the Jackets' big names to be gone by season's end.

I actually expect the biggest change in players to come during the off-season. Once the dust settles, we find out just how high up the Jackets' get to pick in the draft and management has a chance to evaluate whom was acquired during the season, we'll all have a better idea of just what the Jackets' needs are for next year.

So, let's hold off on the trade rumors, please. At least, the wildly improbable ones. Though still losing, the team is playing better, lately. And we'll know who is on the trading block when the team actually announces a trade.

So, Nationwide is hosting next year's all-star game. Excuse me while I contain my excitement. (Zzzzzzzzzzzzz) Oh, sorry.

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In lieu of the proposed Jan. 28 protest, I thought I'd share my vision for how to best grab the ownership's attention.

I think the best place to protest is right from our couches. While I'm considering joining the "protest" this Saturday because I'm fully behind the general principle, I think there's a far more effective way of going about things. What I propose is Blue Jacket bloggers and Jacket fans together to put the word out for a month or so to anyone who will listen to simply not attend a designated Jackets game sometime in late Feb/early March.

Imagine a PR build up gaining steam over the course of an entire month instead of just a few days. Think of 30 days of putting the word out via CBJ blogs, Jacket Backers, Facebook, Twitter, E-mail and hopefully getting the attention of the Dispatch and the Other Paper. I'd even go so far as to say we might even generate a little national buzz via Puck Daddy and maybe even a footnote mention from the likes of ESPN if we played our cards right.

If we hit enough of the right notes, I suspect we could get attendance to be as low as 5-6k, if not lower. A massive, empty cave with empty, blue chairs silently watching the game would grab the brass' attention. Imagine the place sounding more like a routine practice than an actual NHL regular season game. That, coupled with equally quiet beer stands and cash registers, would be a statement. Emphatically showing them what will inevitably lay ahead attendance wise in the coming years if things keep going at this rate would be a statement.

As much as it pains me to suggest this, I'd encourage people to not even go near the Arena District that night. While it would hurt profits in that area for one day, if these losing ways continue under the current and failed leadership, business will be a lot worse over long periods of time in the coming years. I would suspect business owners themselves might become a little more vocal in support of change if their wallets get a little lighter on what would have been a relatively busy night.

Every purchase or transaction we make is essentially a vote that people and businesses watch more closely than we think or realize. In the spirit of an election year, we should vote "No" to the current team president, general manager and general state of affairs.

Obviously not everyone is going to agree with this. Some might be of the mind that, "Just because their jobs are safe for now doesn't mean the dramatic change we feel we need is in order isn't on the horizon. We just need to wait." The sad truth is, we've been told to wait and have obliged many a time. Ten years from the team president and five years from the GM and the results they've accrued is more than enough of a sample size to insist upon their removal.

It's drastic, yes. Maybe it's even a little too far reaching, but decisions that have been made over the course of time and this season by the organization have forced our hand. If the head shed isn't going to hold this team and its leaders to a high standard, its incumbent upon the fans to do so in whatever ways they can. We've patiently played the wait and hope card for over a decade, but we've lost out the vast majority of the time.

Ideally, if something like this were to gain enough steam, there might be dramatic, but clearly necessary, change with the current leadership before whatever game we try to essentially boycott.

If the current leadership were yielding the same kind of results for Worthington Industries and the like, they would have been gone a long time ago. While our team isn't anything resembling a Fortune 500 company, we need to hold the powers that be to some kind of a standard if we want and ever expect to see a consistent winner and a worthy product on the ice. I love this team and this city too much to let it be content with mediocrity at best.

If enough of you out there are behind this, I'll lend whatever efforts I can to putting the word out about "You Don't Gotta See it Live!" night.

A recent fanpost by "westside paul" combined with our atrocious season has got me looking to next year for sunlight. It's a terrible feeling to be looking to next season at the All-Star break, but such is the life of a Jackets fan.

I sat down and started poking around, looking at upcoming free agents, NHL trade rumors, and what not. Got a pen and paper out and started coming up with a potential lineup card and what it could look like next year...

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Already, several bloggers have posted their ideas for what the Jackets should do to improve their roster for next year. Now, I'm not going to suggest players to go after, but whom on the current roster, plus Springfield prospects, I would keep and let go. I'm basing my thoughts on three things. 1) Current and recent (The last couple of years) play; 2) Reasonable expectations for future play; 3) How said players would fit into an overall playing scheme. This is, of course, just opinion, so agree, disagree or offer your own thoughts.

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Just received text message that says Blue Jackets relieve Scott Arniel of his head coaching duties, name Todd Richards interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

Just filling in the word requirement:

Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired!Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired!

Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired!Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired!

Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired!Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired! Arniel Fired!