This is, perhaps, the final edition of Cannon Blasts for the 2015 calendar year. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster since 1/1/15, eh? Hopefully if you are reading this, you get some time to relax and do a bit more of what you love (read about Blue Jackets hockey here at The Cannon amirite??). From all of us here, we really do appreciate you guys reading and interacting with us in the comments section as well as on Twitter and Facebook. Happy Holidays!
Alright, now to the hockey stuff:
- Get excited, hockey fans. Columbus will host Team USA’s training camp (September of 2016) prior to the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. In case you forgot, John Tortorella is the head coach of Team USA. Nationwide Arena will host a U.S./Canada matchup prior to the tournament as well. You’ll want to stay tuned for ticket information, practices schedules, and more details as that information is released.
- Speaking of CBJ coaches and Team USA (see what I did there?), Todd Richards spoke with Pierre LeBrun of ESPN last week about the NHL’s “executive compensation rule.” Not surprisingly, it was a major deterrent for fired coaches in trying to find a new team. That rule, you’ll recall, expires next week on January 1st. Because, of course it does. #CBJ
- 2015 NHL draft pick Keegan Koelsar inked his entry-level contract this past weekend. Jarmo keeps stockpiling, you have to give him that.
- Ryan Johansen won over Twitter’s heart Monday night. Joey laid a check on Ian Cole in the game against the Penguins, which dislodged the glass. Thankfully, no one was hurt but Johansen took time to give the young fan along the glass a stick.
- John Scott is still inexplicably employed in the NHL in 2015. He just cleared waivers for the third time this season. He leads the NHL All-Star voting. The NHL doesn’t know what to do. To that end, the league has quieted some of the buzz around online voting, including not releasing vote totals each week as they said in their initial press release. Is this to avoid showing how much John Scott leads in voting? Who knows. What happens if he wins the vote but isn’t on an NHL roster? Not sure about that either. I did not include him on my probably-too-soon-to-be-guessing roster predictions for the All-Star Game.
- From Puck Daddy – The Top 10 best pop culture hockey moments of 2015.
- A quick attendance check…hey, at least we’re not Carolina?
- CBJ prospect and 2015 1st-round draft pick Zach Werenski will serve as Team USA’s captain for the upcoming World Juniors. Sonny Milano will also be part of the team.