The Cannon: FanPosts

A One-Sided Argument with a Stubborn Red Wings fan.

2010-07-30T11:47:48Z

I literally had to come straight home from work and vent some of my frustration out here. Let's just say having an extremely one-sided argument with a 'fanatical' Detroit fan, isn't necessarily the best discussion you could ever have at work. Let's just put it this way, by night's end, I was ready to Jared Boll this dude's ass.....sum it up for you? Good.

I'm gonna break this down to some of the categories that we touched on with the basis being a Detroit fan(who is so completely Detroit (for the reason that they wear red? yet he is an OSU fan...trust me that is only the beginning of the frustration and mystery that is this man's brain) that he won't even let you say one thing about your club without having to insult it because...well...his club is better.)

One of the subjects we 'discussed' (and I do use this word to the loosest extent) was players. According to Detroit Man (that's what I'll call him to assume anonymity for this poor lost soul) Detroit is loaded with players and Columbus has only Rick Nash (who he does confess a love for but that's about all he will admit or give to CBJ) He started listing off every player: Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Lidstrom, Rafalski, etc. and then insulted Columbus about having no one, other then Mr. Nash. He went on to say if I was to ask someone from Philly (because he knows I'm a big Flyers fan) or Boston or the likes that no one would be able to name 3 players off the Columbus roster....I find that hard to believe, maybe he is just hiding the fact that he frequents Nationwide to watch Detroit and still can't seem to remember names against a team with his team's own division. ::shrugs::

Next is the absurdity of Columbus in his eyes as a team.

Blue Jacket? What's that? I hate that name! Why are they wearing blue and not OSU colors? I would love them if they wore OSU colors. (great reason to like a team btw.) This is pretty much the tip of the iceberg too. He went on to say that Columbus hasn't done much of anything in the past 10 years of being conceived and delivered into the NHL and are no more then mere basement dwellers. Mind you, I don't think I have been this critical towards his team the way he was consistently bashing Columbus with every other sentence. I believe the most critical thing I said to him was that Detroit is getting older and eventually the empire will have to re-tool to stay relevant (something along those lines) anyways, that didn't sit too well with him neither, drawing even more hate and ire for not agreeing that Detroit is just the bee's knees.

Finances.

We talked about finances even. I told him CBJ isn't a salary-cap team. WE HAVE A BUDGET! We are having problems paying for our arena. We literally don't have to type of cash that Detroit does. Nope, Nope, Nope...you're wrong. Columbus just wants to keep money in their pocket instead of spending it on product on ice. This was his response and then went on to rant about how Detroit spends X amount of dollars on this and that..."Well" I said, "When you have been around almost 100 years and able to build yourself into what you are, it tends to work out that way"...his response was along the lines that Columbus has had 10 years and have still done nothing...throwing out the sad fact we went to the playoffs, got swept by his team (him making a brooming gesture) and then we didn't make it the next season into the playoffs. He continued by saying that his team has the most playoff appearances or whatever, I tried my best to listen but it became increasingly clear that this conversation wasn't really going anywhere.

Players.

I brought up a couple facts. A.) Columbus IS the youngest team in the NHL B.) We did get hit hard with some pretty key injuries, esp. to our blue-line. No change in his attitude or response. "Detroit was hit with injuries and we still won" Ok? Well I don't think you lost the type of key players we did, or at the same time like we did...plus I mean Columbus isn't Detroit. I tried tirelessly to point out that comparing Columbus to Detroit was a terrible way to compare the teams. His consistent response was they are both NHL teams, in the same Conference/Division. Ok. Point in the fact that they are in the same everything but that doesn't make them the same team. Detroit is like Rome and Columbus is like Attila's barbarian army....probably bad analysis of it but I am too tired to think of anything different. Plus I like to think that Detroit will collapse just like Rome did....MMMMmmmmm, what a thought right now!

Anyways, I told him that Detroit has prime-aged, veteran type players and yes, they are the stronger team because of it. Columbus is working with a lot of youth and a problem with that is the ? that leaves. Are they even going to pan out? I don't know, I'd like to think so. He went on to ridicule the fact that we been at the bottom and yet we don't have 8 Patrick Kane-esqe player to show for it. He also went on to salt the wound that our best D was basically Anton Stralman (at least point-wise) and how bad that was. Again, I tried to tell him that we got hit hard with injuries, What is a team to do? We have a lot of young players, are we suppose to throw them to the wolves? Do we just spend all of our money on a top name just so people can say that we have him? This is the logic of a man who doesn't know this team, because he isn't a fan, but instead of hearing out someone that is! He would just as soon poo-poo any notion that the Jackets will become a threat to his team soon enough. He said that when that day comes he will be senile and probably won't care anyways......great argument Jack! (no, not his name)

I told him that we finally have some stability in the office, they have a plan, they aren't going to rush anything. They are ACTUALLY breaking the Ohio mold of running a sports team!!!!! That's not good enough for him because Detroit has it all figured out....again, 100 years to 10 years....BIG DIFFERENCE.

I think my favorite part of it all was when he made a snark comment that his team was. oh yeah! A Dynasty! What is Columbus? I made the point that the Oilers were a dynasty, Islanders were a dynasty, Habs have had dynasties....they don't last forever. He didn't seem to like that in the least bit. I told him eventually Lidstrom will leave because he is getting older, a lot of Detroits players are getting older and frankly, I haven't seen enough of their rookies come up and impress me all that much. See but I'm not a raving Red Wings fan, so I'd rather not make allegations of something I'm not sure of. Just going off what I've seen and what fans tell me because...I listen.

He also threw out the fact that Chicago lost a lot of people but since they still have Kane, Toews, Hossa, Keith, and Seabrook...they will be the same Hawks....Really? I told him he was crazy then he went and insulted my Flyers and that was about the end of the convo because I had enough of that.

I'm sure there is more but right now I can't think straight and I'm hungry and tired. I needed to put this up for 'real' hockey fans and CBJ fans that aren't completely stubborn as a mule's ass end. Please feedback, comments, snarky comments towards Detroit Man.....if I think of some of the other parts of this heated argument because that's what it boiled down to and put them on here later. Til then CARRY THE FLAG.

Oh yeah...since I can't say it at work and I apologize now for the language but FUCK YOU DETROIT MAN AND YOUR F'N RED WINGS!

Down Goes Salo, Bieksa Off The Table?

2010-07-23T17:17:47Z

A Finnish newspaper is reporting that Canucks defenseman Sami Salo has injured his Achilles tendon playing floor hockey, and could be out for up to four months.

The Canucks are "looking into the report", and no has any thing official, though Nucks Misconduct does make a great point that Salo's just a little injury prone. If he is unable to go to start the season, it could mean that Kevin Bieksa, who the Jackets have looked into as a possible trade target, will be kept by the Canucks to make sure they can fill out their blue line.

While I hate to cast doubt on anything from the country that gave us tar flavored vodka and Salmiakki, ~~this is still an unconfirmed report~~, (Whoops, never mind, it's confirmed now!), but you have to wonder if it will change some of the game plan for Scott Howson if Bieksa was his insurance policy against an unacceptable arbitration award for Anton Stralman.

Top 50 Remaining UFAs

2010-07-15T14:28:32Z

Yahoo! Sports posted a list of the best 50 remaining UFAs that are on the market (who's name doesn't rhyme with Shmilya Shmovalchuk).

I'm going to throw some of those names out there and see what you guys think...Yay, or nay?

Forwards:

C Brendan Morrison - "Rejuvenated his career with a solid 2009-10 season in Washington, he’s an attractive option as a No. 4 center who can step onto a top line and contribute on the power play."

C Eric Belanger (even though I still hate him for knocking Chimmer goofy last preseason) - "A perfect pivot for the third or fourth line, he’s hard-working and hard to play against."

LW Raffi Torres - "The fact he ended the 2009-10 playoffs sitting in the press box rather than suiting up for the Sabres shows the pickings are already getting slim up front. Torres plays a hard-hitting game and should be a 20-goal scorer…but he isn’t."

Defensemen:

Shaone Morrisonn - "Not a great sign when the Capitals don’t bring you back, but Morrisonn’s size and skating ability should land him a job."

Andreas Lilja - "Third-pairing D-man for the Wings is a good skater and has an offensive touch."

Do You Bleed Hockey?

2010-07-10T13:38:23Z

Just a friendly reminder from the Jacket Backers about their upcoming Blood Drive! The Jacket Backers have teamed up with American Red Cross.

July 17, 2010 from 9am-3pm

Capital University's Schneider Lounge in the Campus Center

745 Pleasant Ridge Ave, Columbus, OH 43209

Come to donate and enter to win Blue Jackets Prizes!

We will be having refreshments including a pot luck, so if you have some great recipe you'd like to share with your fellow Backers, please contact Kelly Patterson at the email address below.

To schedule an appointment visit www.redcrossblood.org and enter sponsor code "JacketBackers" (one word) or contact Kelly Patterson at community_service@jacketbackers.org.

Odd coincidence

2010-07-06T11:26:38Z

Just something I noticed reading through the coaches' bios...Since the current format was set in the 1970s, only four teams have won back to back Memorial Cups. One is the Windsor Spitfires under new assistant coach Bob Boughner.

The first team to do it? That'd be the Cornwall Royals in 1980 and 81, lead by their captain (and new CBJ head coach) Scott Arniel.

R.I.P. Probie

2010-07-05T23:12:03Z

The hockey world lost a true tough guy today. Bob Probert died today while boating with his family after complaining of severe chest pain... he was 45.

I used to be a huge Blackhawks fan way back when and Probie was always one of my faves. He had a way of getting under the other teams skin and was big and bad enough to back it all up. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

Boll, Stralman file for Arbitration

2010-07-05T16:56:40Z

According to Aaron Portzline's Twitter feed, both RFA winger Jared Boll and D-man Anton Stralman have decided to file for arbitration. Signs are that Boll is looking for a 2-3 year deal, and Porty seems to think he will get a deal done before the hearing.

Stralman seems to be more of a question mark, and with some reason. Point producing defensemen going to arbitration over the last three seasons have almost always received a positive award from the arbitrator, or were settled prior to hearing for a nice contract extension. In Stralman's case, I'd guess he's looking at a raise from his current $750,000 salary to the $1.5 - 2 million dollar range, and there's several players (Milan Jurcina, Carlo Colaiacovo, etx) in that salary range that they'll likely offer up as comparables. That's where things get interesting - if Stralman is signed to a new deal, or given an arbitration award, and the team does complete a trade for another puck moving defenseman such as Bieksa or Ehrhoff, does Stralman become potentially tradable? If I had to guess, I'd say yes, he does. He's got a lot of potential in Arniel's new system, but he could also be very attractive to teams looking for blue line help at a reasonable rate.

Hearings will be scheduled by the NHL this week, and teams normally have a 2-3 week window before the hearings take place to attempt to settle on a contract beforehand.

For a good look at the arbitration process, check out the Mock Arbitration that Copper & Blue did for former Jacket Gilbert Brule.

Something Special In the Works for D-Camp?

2010-07-03T19:41:12Z

According to Aaron Portzline of the Dispatch, the team has "something special" planned for tomorrow's closing session of development camp.

I usually try to attend D-camp, but due to work commitments this year I haven't been able to. I'm going to make an effort to attend tomorrow.

Are you going? Have you already been? Let us know in the comments!

Filatov Trade Poll

2010-07-02T15:58:17Z

A (maybe not so) simple question. There has been a great bit of discussion following the possible Vancouver-Columbus trade involving Filatov, and I'm curious as to where everybody stands. I've limited the options here on purpose - it's not very nuanced and gives a knee-jerk reaction. Clearly the exact nature of any trade would matter, but this is more of a Filatov gauge.

I personally don't think we should move Filatov at this point, but I'm sure there are other ideas. What kind of trade (if any) do you think would justify movement of the young Russian? Would it need to be another young forward, or a better defenseman?

Poll

Should the Jackets Trade Nikita Filatov During this Off-Season?

Yes, Let's Do It

24 votes

No, Not This Year

34 votes

58 votes | Poll has closed

Thinking out loud

2010-06-29T20:10:26Z

How much would Modano help Columbus if we were to pursue him this summer? I know Columbus loves to pick up washed up players (the sting of Peca is still felt) but I think Modano could be a steal. Maybe we can move somebody down to 4th line center and have Modano on the second or third line? I know he's a goal scorer, not a grinder, but with his age he's not as mobile as he used to be. Just something to think about.

Cap spending for 2010-2011 Season

2010-06-28T04:47:59Z

Why dont the Blue Jackets spend more money on players to reach the cap and compete better? It a very simple question.I am a die hard fan. We need to make it to the playoffs and win some games.It has been ten years. Its hard to compete against teams that are willing to spend to the cap.Why are we not doing the same so we can compete.The organization owes it to the players and the fans.We all want to win and have fun.

POV of not-to-distant future

2010-06-27T15:11:07Z

I forget who said this, whether or not it came from the Cannon or BSH, but top line centers aren't exactly garden-variety. You can't just go out and 'get' a top line center. Well...scratch that you could but you are going pay for it just like you would with anything of quality. I was quite surprised to hear this kid's name being called out by Scott Howson on Friday at the draft, esp. when me and probably most of the 'Flag Bearers' (made that up for CBJ fans, pretty smart huh?....no? ok....) thought it would be Fowler, Gudbranson (well he was drafted 3rd so maybe not so much), or Gormley. Obviously, it is just facing up to the facts that CBJ needs to solidify it's blue-line. Taking one of those names would of been a giant stride in the way towards solving that little problem of ours but when thinking about it more, I'm sort of relieved that we did take Johansen.

Now I'm not going to speculate anything trade-wise or who might be the 'one' to go but I will say that I do believe Howson has something in the works. It seems like there is plenty of obtainable talent for the blue-line this July 1st that will be available and with some breathing room with the cap, this should come at just basically luring someone with the right $$$$. (again, I'm not saying someone won't be dealt but there are possibilities out there) So we could essentially fill that hole now and get our possible #1 C anyways. Sounds like a win/win situation to me but what do I know?

Back to Mr. Johansen....

If you look at his intangibles and see what this kid brings - good size, soft hands, ability to score, I mean this kid could be the future Mr. #1 C for Mr. Nash....yes? but he does have a draw back and no I'm not talking physicality or size issues. It's a simple combination of words that I just used. Future and could be. Both are words CBJ has heard too much and feel slightly sour towards when they hear that particular combo muttered about anything involving the Jackets. We've been waiting and some more angry about it then others (not Mr. Wagner, he'll give you plenty of reasons why...neither am I tho. so.) We could be waiting another 2-3 seasons til we see this kid on the ice and even then, he might not pan out to be 'that' guy and then what? What if Fowler does? Gudbranson? Gormley? ...what if? What if he does become that kid though? Nash booms, the depth of our lines becomes much deeper, we get further and further into the playoffs til...whew! Got to slow myself down...

...

I guess we will have to continue to wait and look on to see what this upcoming season and beyond will hold for our boys in blue. We're right on the cusp of getting the team we've always wanted, but for now, let's just make the minor tweaks necessary Mr. Howson that will ensure our prospects that they will have the needed amount of time to become NHL-ready so they can do what you drafted them for.....kicking everyone else's ASS! ha.

Just remember fans: this team has tons of potential, forming a hard-hat work ethic identity and developing a fanbase that is more hungry then ever.

Only thing left for us to do is just simply....Carry The Flag.

The Hockey Writers Live Draft Webcast & Chat

2010-06-25T18:57:53Z

For those either in the Columbus area or looking for a way to take part in the draft festivities, please join us over at The Hockey Writers draft party at the R-Bar downtown at the Arena District in Columbus! THW will be featuring an online chat and live webcast including THW draft guru Christopher Ralph, Ten Minute Misconduct's Jeff Little, and I'll be there chatting and contributing as well!

Why I'm Not Angry

2010-06-13T23:12:07Z

(Note: I"m posting this as a FanPost, rather than a front page article, because I consider it more of an editorial / opinion piece. Everything you're about to read is just from me, not Mike, Andrew, or Andy.)

I had an interesting encounter with another CBJ fan yesterday, while watching the US / England World Cup match. He opened with one hell of a hook:

"What does it take to piss you off, man?"

He feels I'm too lenient, or too positive, about the Blue Jackets. That the squad is the laughing stock of the NHL, and that we shouldn't be giving out any free passes.

At the time, I told him that last year was a huge screwup, but that I thought the team was improving, and wondered why I was supposed to be getting angry when I thought that the team was doing the right things.

I still think that, but the more I chewed over the conversation, I felt like there was more that I could say about this, so here we are.

First off, let's get the elephant out of the room: We root for a team that's been to the playoffs once in ten years. There's no ifs ands or buts about it - that sucks.

But whose fault was that, really? From where I sit, a lot of that blame rests on the shoulders of Doug MacLean. Doug was a fantastic salesman, and he did a wonderful job of selling NHL hockey to Columbus. But he was a poor manager, and an inconsistent coach. He let his ego drive too many decisions, and became fixated on quick solutions rather than trying to build the program the right way. He didn't trust his scouting staff, and he pushed young players in too quickly in an attempt to sell tickets rather than develop their talents.

But here's the thing: Doug is gone.

Scott Howson came in with a terrible situation to try to fix, and a team that dearly needed to get back on its' feet.

How's he doing?

2007-2008: Missed the playoffs, but set a franchise record for wins and points. Dealt with the Adam Foote situation about as well as could be hoped for. Got Sergei Federov's contract off the books.

2008-2009: Grabbed Umberger. Made free agent moves to bring in Commodore. Brought in Raffi Torres. Added Tyutin. Made moves mid-season to grab Jason Williams and Antoine Vermette. Made the playoffs.

2009-2010: Fell back to Earth. Tried to kick-start the team by trading Chimmer for Clark and Jurcina, had that move backfire as much due to Hitchcock as the players themselves. Made the best of a bad situation with Filatov. Brought in Garon during free agency, who was a big piece of keeping our heads above water when Mason struggled. May have waited too long to part ways with Hitch when the team went into the crapper, but can't be blamed for giving him a chance to fix his mistakes. Hired Scott Arniel after a long coaching search. Team missed the playoffs but still delivered the third highest point total in team history.

So that's two seasons of clear improvement, and one season of struggles in which Howson did everything reasonable to try to get the team going again, and made the best decisions he could when that didn't work.

I don't see reasons to be angry there. And I look at our drafting and our cap situation, and I actually see quite a few reasons to be pleased. No matter what happens with Filatov, I see a lot of promising talent in our system, the cap room to add players if we need to, and the freedom to keep that talent in-house with good contracts when they're ready to play in the NHL. (In fact, I only see one real obvious draft strikeout under Howson - Stefan Legein - and that situation was out of his control, too.)

Alright, so with that covered, where else do we look? I suppose the Head Coach is the next step.

Once again, if we divorce ourselves from the MacLean Era, we get...Ken Hitchcock.

Hitch was exactly what this franchise needed when he came in. He gave it a lifeline after free-falling for so long, and helped the team pull its' collective head above water. He pushed them harder than anyone had ever pushed them before, and for awhile the results were brilliant. The problem is that when he'd pushed them too far, he didn't understand that you need to back off before you push them straight off a cliff. If there's anything that concerned me about Hitch as a coach, it was that he kept Gord Murphy and Gary Agnew as his assistants - I do wonder if a total refresh of the coaching staff when he came in might have helped, but on the other hand, there's probably things that went on behind the scenes there that we'll never know about.

Hitch was asked to coach a team that would be young, dynamic, and tends to work better with a more open game plan than strict defensive assignments and trapping, and he couldn't manage it past a certain point. Once it became clear that both he and the team were at the ends of their rope, the front office did the right thing by removing him, but leaving the door open for Hitch to potentially return to the front office down the road.

Claude Noel helped the team pull themselves back across the finish line. I think he's a good man who made the best of a bad situation, and I do wish him luck wherever his next step might be.

Now we have Scott Arniel. Aside from his (excellent) reputation, all we have to judge him on in Columbus so far is a few press conferences and some interviews. We'll have to see what this first year holds, and how long the honeymoon lasts, but so far, I think the signs are positive.

Perhaps I'm supposed to be angry about the fact that we are talking about Scott Arniel, and not about Guy Boucher. I don't see that as a reason to be angry with the Blue Jackets. I don't even see it as a reason to be angry with Scott Howson, Mike Priest, or J.P. McConnell.

The news that Boucher was offered the job was leaked. The Dispatch has said repeatedly that the leak didn't come from the Blue Jackets. That tells me it came from Boucher himself. So he created a firestorm to put pressure on Montreal and Tampa, and probably never had any intention of taking the job in Columbus, despite asking for time to consider the deal.

There's exactly one person that reflects badly on: Guy Boucher. Him, I am not terribly fond of at this time. But I still don't see that as a reason to be angry at the Blue Jackets. As soon as they knew Boucher wasn't going to take the offer, they got the man they felt was the best fit, and honestly, I'd rather have the guy that leaps at the chance to be here over the guy who felt our best use was as leverage against other suitors any day of the week.

So that leaves us with the players.

First off, let's talk about the 'culture of losing'. That's horseshit. The team's certainly come out and played poorly at times, but I doubt that they've ever gone into a game saying "Guys, there's no point tonight." These guys made it to the NHL by being driven to win. If they really didn't have any desire to compete, they wouldn't go through the abuses and demands of an NHL season. We tend to say "Oh, he's getting paid millions to play hockey" and forget that means thousands of miles of travel, 16 hour days, tremendous amounts of physical conditioning, even greater amounts of physical punishment, 9-10 months out of the year of an incredibly monitored diet, and automatically forfeiting a good chunk of your personal and professional privacy.

Oh, and did we mention that this "dream job" will put so much stress on your body that most hockey players retire around age 35, because they can't make their bodies put up with the abuse any longer? Not to mention shrugging off injuries that would sideline us for a lot longer. I sprained my wrist this past winter working out. I could barely use my injured hand for the better part of a month. A hockey player sprains his wrist and he's usually expected to be back on the ice within a week - sometimes less if the team is in the middle of a playoff push.

If these guys didn't think they had any chance to win, there are a lot easier ways to make a living.

Even if you don't agree with me on that, and say that the team as it stands should be blamed for the losses of the past...who do I blame, exactly?

Look at the current roster. I can count the players who have been in Columbus for more than three years on one hand. Of those, only two - RIck Nash and Rusty Klesla - have been with the team at the NHL level for longer than four.

People have accused Rick Nash of taking games off, or playing with less heart for the Blue Jackets than he did for Team Canada in the Olympics. I don't agree. I certainly think there are times when he's looked dead tired on the ice - exhausted, even. But that's what happens when you get double or triple-shifted more often than not.

Is he a relatively quiet guy for being a Captain? Yeah, I'd agree with that. Does he seem to want to lead by example? Yes, he does. Are there times I wish we saw a little more fire out of him? Yeah. But on the other hand, we've also seen that Nash seems to have a very calm nature and a pretty long fuse. We can't make him something he's not. Do I think that perhaps Rick might have been better remaining an assistant captain on the team, and perhaps giving the "C" to R. J. Umberger instead? Sometimes. But on the other hand, there's also a lot to be said for a captain who can keep himself and the team on an even keel while he lets some of the other leaders give the room an ass-kicking when it's warranted. Not the least that it makes it that much more effective when the captain does it himself.

Did he play his heart out for Team Canada? Yeah, he sure did. But on the other hand, he was also only being asked to play 15 minutes a game, put mostly into a defensive role, and only had to play 7 games over the course of two weeks - a much lighter load than his NHL schedule. Maybe part of the way we get Nasher to put some of that jump back into his NHL game is to make him feel like the game isn't constantly on his shoulders.

Nash has an ATOI of 24 minutes a night. His normal linemates (Huselius, Vermette) average 19. That's an extra five minutes a game, on AVERAGE, that he's out there pushing. He's also got over 100 more shots on goal than either linemate. Maybe part of the reason he seems tired is he's putting a lot more of himself out on the ice than he usually gets credit for.

Klesla? No matter what you think about Rusty, he's probably swallowed more abuse than anyone else on the team - questioned when he didn't show the offensive flair he was drafted for, pushed into the lineup from day one, held up as an example of the team ruining players under MacLean, asked to reinvent his game...yet he comes back.

Klesla has had ample chances to get out of Columbus. We know he's been the subject of trade interest before, and he's been through the free agency cycle twice now. (Not to mention that he certainly could have chosen to stay in the Czech Republic or the FNL after the lockout.)

Yet he comes back.

I don't know if Klesla will continue to be a part of the team's blue line after this off season - he may not be able to reinvent his game yet again for Scott Arniel. But when I look at Rusty, I see someone who clearly loves this city, and this team. I see a guy who has tried to provide his best effort to the franchise that drafted him, and clearly feels a sense of loyalty to them as a result.

I don't see a reason why I should be angry at either player.

When I look at the rest of the roster, I certainly have questions. I wonder how the team will adjust to Arniel (and vice versa). I wonder if Steve Mason can keep improving the way he did at the end of last season, and be more like the franchise goaltender we all thought he would be after his rookie year. I wonder how we're going to handle our blue line, and if this is the year that we see John Moore start his NHL career, or if Nikita Filatov will come back to Columbus and become a true part of this team.

But those are questions. They aren't reasons to be angry.

If anything, I see a lot of reasons to be excited about this team. We're in a tough division, and we're gearing up to really challenge for it. We're in a position where the growth of our younger players is starting to pay off, and between guys like Matt Calvert, John Moore, and Cam Atkinson, I think we're going to see some really exceptional talent putting on the Union Blue sooner than later. I started last year believing we would compete for a playoff spot. I'm coming into 2010-2011 believing the same thing.

Should I be angry about the questions of the arena lease?

Let's be honest - if the news hadn't been leaked to the media last summer that the Jackets were investigating options with Franklin County by the liquor distribution lobbyists, how many of you would know that the arena lease was a problem? I certainly didn't, until that time. I'd be willing to bet a lot of you wouldn't have either.

On the other hand, we also wouldn't have known that the team had been working with the NHL for two years to find good solutions, or that they'd been working with the City of Columbus, Nationwide, and Franklin County to get the lease under control.

Do I wish that they'd handled it better? Sure. Do I wish J.P. Mac had come out and said something then, rather than wait? Yeah, I do. But on the other hand, the fact that the team is still working on it, and have demonstrated to the city and the state of Ohio that they are committed to finding a long term solution is a very good sign.

Not counting the fact that the city would take a horrific PR hit if they lost the Jackets, let's also keep in mind that they've proven that this team brings in BILLIONS of dollars to Columbus and Franklin County every year. Do you -really- think that they're going to let that money walk away if there's any way to avoid it?

I have no doubt that it will probably get debated, and I wouldn't be shocked if it ends up coming down to a clandestine meeting or five between public and private interests, but I do believe that a deal would get done. As long as the team is clearly working to solidify the long term future, I don't see any reason why I need to get angry about that, either.

There are always reasons to be worried. There are always reasons to be scared. There are always things that you can point to and decide that they're signs of the worst possible outcome. But there are also things you can point to and decide they're reasons to hope.

So. That's why I'm not angry.

How about you?

Leave it for the Professionals

2010-05-26T22:04:08Z

I'm not a pro. At anything involving hockey. Just a fan.

So when Mr. Geoff Detweiler (Broad Street Hockey) came to the Cannon in hopes for finding the answer to his Holy Grail (being the Jackets prospect Matt Calvert) he wanted to know what it would take to bring him to Philly.

I can only provide little banter to quell the questions he had so I wanted to pose it here, to you guys.

I'm not saying that you have to agree with the trade but what do you feel is a viable trade for Calvert where both parties aren't getting royally screwed and both come out on the + side of things.

He (Geoff) wanted to know what would it take to make a trade along the lines of: Jon Matsumoto + blank blank blank for Matt Calvert + blank blank blank (if there is some blanks to fill).

So that's the deal, has to include both players mentioned and then any other incentives for either side you feel would make this trade agreeable for both clubs. Remember this is just fun, nothing more.

So pro's, what do you think?

Malkin to the CBJ?

2010-05-14T16:51:22Z

I read this article over at TheHockeyNews.com and it talks about the Pens and their need to possibly dismiss Evgeni Malkin sooner rather then later. Here's the link: http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/33579-THNcom-Playoff-Blog-Penguins-must-trade-Malkin.html

So in my usual fashion, let me pose the question on what you think about this situation and the situation as a whole for our boys in blue. The off-season has already started for us (unfortunately) so this isn't really a stretch to already begin the talks for what is possible next season. Jackets fans or hockey fans...what do you think? (coaching talks are def. welcome, just what do you think?)

So was R.J. Correct in saying that the Caps play the game wrong

2010-04-29T23:46:24Z

via media3.washingtonpost.com

If only this picture was from this series

After the Upset of the decade, I know its soon but unless a expansion team beats a team in the playoffs I don't think you can top this one, our own R.J. Umberger's comments from earlier in the year started to float around again. To quote him on his feelings about how the Capitals play the game of Hockey.

"I don't think any team in the West would be overmatched by them," Umberger said. "They play the wrong way. They want to be moving all the time. They float around in their zone, looking for breakaways and odd-man rushes.

"A good defensive team is going to beat them (in the playoffs). If you eliminate your turnovers and keep them off the power play, they're going to get frustrated because they're in their zone a lot."

Now on the surface it looks like R.J. is a prophet, or a prophet of doom if you are a Capitals fan, all but saying that the capitals will collapse in the first round of the playoffs if they face a good defensive team. Well in the wreckage of the Capitals playoff collapse lets look at a few contributors to this playoffs failure

Jaroslav Halak playing out his mind
The Capitals inability to score on the Power Play, the went 1-34 in the last three games
The Capitals inability to score in general, 3 goals in the last three games by the team that scored 384 in the regular season
Bruce Boudreau's bad managing during the Series
The Canadiens doing what Washington feared most, manning up on Ovie
The Caps are built to play the way they play

First thing Jaroslav Halak played out of his mind during this series. After being pulled from game 4 of the series he came back and a Save% of .978 in the last three games of the series, let that sink in for a second of 134 shots face he stopped 131 of them and had countless other blocked by he other players. The statistic of the Washington Capitals with all of their fire power went 1-34 and the man advantage is stunning. Add that to the fact that they scored 3 goals in three games you have to start wondering the Habs made a deal with the devil to win this series. Now on to Bruce Boudreau and his handling of this series, First off he pulls the goalie he said he would pull, who was that Goalie you ask Jose ~~Threeorfour~~ Theodore. That should have been red flag that said this was about to be handled poorly, one of the Caps leading scorers for the regular season Tomas Fleischmann was benched for game 7. Now on to the fact that Ovie doesn't like it when people man up on him, why you ask simple he just tries to skate around guys and that hard to do when you have the entire defense of the other team manning up on him because they know he isn't going to pass the puck, think about it how do you score 50 goals a year by passing the puck, so when Alexander the "great" was shut down so went the rest of the Caps offense.

Now on to the last thing if the caps are built to play this way and in the last three years they are 1-3 in game sevens shouldn't that be a sign that mabye the team is built the wrong way.

Hey look, something new!

2010-04-23T13:32:48Z

Hello Cannon faithful! Things have been pretty dull around here the last few days, with everything centered around the playoffs, and all. I'll be posting some new content pretty soon, and until then I'm coming to you for some advice. First, a little background. My first (and only) CBJ jersey is that of Rick Nash. Its getting pretty old, it was his jersey pre-"A" and obviously, pre- "C." Not to say its in bad shape, I'm very very picky about keeping my jerseys in great condition.

The time has come for me to buy a new jersey, and with the help of a recent birthday gift (a gift certificate for shop.NHL.com, cheap plug) I am starting to look around. I already have established a collection of jerseys from various athletes in every sport. My goal is to someday have a jersey with every number from 1-99 on it. Sound crazy? Could be.

My current collection includes:

#2 - Malcolm Jenkins

#10 - Troy Smith

#17 - Braylon Edwards

#20 - Greg Oden

#25 - Antonio Pittman

#33 - James Laurinaitis

#36 - Chris Spielman

#46 - Me (high school football)

#47 - AJ Hawk

#48 - Travis Hafner

#61 - Rick Nash

So here's what I'm looking for. Since I have a CBJ forward's jersey, I'd like to get a defenseman's, and a d-man that is or has been a staple of this team. This narrows it down to: Commie, Hejda, Rusty, Methot, Russ, Fedor.

I'm also trying to eliminate duplicate numbers, if at all possible. That takes Russ out of the picture. Although I'm not against making an exception - I think it would be great sporting his jersey around town. Plus with him being so young, I figure he'll be around at least a few more years, probably make it easier to get him to sign it.

Now I ask you, Jackets fans, what do I do!?!? Do I pick a current player or go back in time, and go with an Anders Eriksson, Lyle Odelein, Jaroslav Spacek, Jamie Heward maybe? How about a Dick Tarnstrom (just kidding) or a Christian Backman (definitely kidding).

FYI, if you haven't been to shop.NHL.com you can buy a blank jersey, and have it customized with a player and their number. This is the route to go if you can't seem to find your favorite player's gear in the Blue Line (I just know you're dying to get that Nathan Paetsch jersey). It also allows to re-create a jersey from someone who is no longer with the team.

Please vote and leave any other ideas you have!!!

Poll

Which CBJ jersey should I buy next?

#3 Marc Methot

0 votes

#8 Jan Hejda

1 votes

#10 Kris Russell

7 votes

#22 Mke Commodore

0 votes

#51 Fedor Tyutin

1 votes

#97 Rusty Klesla

7 votes

16 votes | Poll has closed

Derick Brassard

2010-04-02T22:57:10Z

Hello! I'm a Blue Jacket fan living in San Jose. I don't get to watch a ton of Jackets games, but I was wondering what you guys think of Derick Brassard? I've followed him pretty closely since he broke into the NHL, but I wanted to know what Blue Jackets fans in Ohio think his career potential is??? (i.e. franchise player? first line center? second line center?) I know he hasn't had a great season this year, (I think he has 35 points, -15 rating as of today) but do you think he can put up 80 pts consistantly one he really hits his prime? Lastly, what NHL player would you most compare him to? I already received my Brassard and Voracek sherseys in the mail...go Jacket in 2010-2011!!!

Thanks,

Vondy

MY Jackets

2010-03-07T07:02:26Z

Finished watching the Jackets game against the San Jose Sharks and I must say, what a bad taste it left in my mouth...It did, however, motivate me to get on here and type this whole thing out because of the frustrations that I feel at the moment.

I have to start by saying that some of my comments made during the trade deadline was from being fired up about some things that didn't really go the way I was hoping. I love this team and always hope that things will turn and change into something miraculous. CBJ, all the way.

I have a few rebuttals, 1.) Commodore, I gave some thought on, and yes he is a player that Columbus could really use but I won't get over the fact that he REALLY IS overpaid. 2.) Howson needs a little slack from me, again yes, he is trying his heart out I'm sure for our team in hopes that he can really solidify a group of winners but I think he still needs to try to make a splash in THIS off-season.

Ok, first off, now that all that is out of the way...Steve Mason, I'm still 100% behind you. You are the goalie of the future for us and we need to really start looking at ways to give this kid as much help as possible, because THIS KID CAN WIN US GAMES but not alone (not entirely, sorry Mase) He can stand on his head every night but a combination of internal/external factors really hinder Mason's ability to put up more W's for us. That is also another thing, with the type of poor play from everyone, it disintegrates all momentum and winning comes at a premium.

Now I'm not accusing the Jackets of a lack of effort, not at all, just that what we have isn't enough. Ok, I'll also admit this season is essentially done, I don't see enough improvement in play for us to really make a legit push from the playoffs...I admit it. Watching them play tonight, it is still so evident that we just don't have the scoring touch on this team. Another reason why I didn't like the Torres trade because he plays consistent and has been finding the back of the net for us (even if it was for 1 season) but instead of getting someone that can come in and pick up where he left off, we get guys that don't even produce half the numbers of the guys we trade. Again, Chimera, I miss you....Chris Clark wasn't enough for you and Jurcina is gone so that trade was crap for us.....

So since the focus is going towards next season since this season is done...what are we thinking? what is Howson thinking? I did have a couple thoughts though, so please, call me crazy if you think so...

a.) I think the idea of maybe getting Plekanec (however its spelled) He might be what the doctor has been trying to prescribe for Rick Nash for the last few seasons. Good hands and very capable scorer, got plenty of upside and I think is coming up to the end of his contract in Montreal. Good call by Mike MacLean on prospecting him.

b.) Marleau is the big name being dropped in the off-season, honestly, I'd rather skip that and wait til Thornton becomes available....why? you should know why. Chemistry. Him and Rick are good friends and play very well off each other....I'm not sure what he has left for a contract so someone could fill that blank in later. Just saying that out loud...maybe just run with the Centers we have now and play it cool til Joe is free from the Shark Tank.

c.) Defense....what to do? Make a move for the more offensive, like Mr. Dan Boyle (remember, I said 'like', doesn't have to be Boyle) maybe someone more like Hamhuis...personally we need more offense at the blue-line. With grit like Klesla, Commie, Tyutin, Methot....don't need much more.

Also, can anyone tell me all the picks we have for the 2010-2011 season???

I got to say that I was so thrilled for the beginning of the season and the highlight had to have been the day I saw Columbus in the 3rd seed in the Western Conference...that is all a beautiful memory now. Offense. gone. Defense. doesn't show up. Goaltending. inconsistent. I think that we have relied on scoring a goal or two and getting ahead then coasting but with the NHL getting faster and seeing more production out of players, it is too tough to just win games when you score 1-2 goals a night. Just doesn't cut it. So I will end this with a question to all you Jackets faithful....

What do you see for the off-season going into the start of the 10-11 season? Stick to the youth trend, go for offensive bulk and try to get some scoring, or try to find D to help out young Mase and solidify our back end????

That's my rant...I could go on but probably wouldn't make sense