No introduction needed. We are now on the slow, sad march to April 11th. There’s not even the hope of seeing some young guys play until the current glut of nine defensemen is figured out – and it’s apparently a conundrum the front office is comfortable with. Fun. Looks like we’ll get to see what Anton Forsberg can do in net tonight as well as Kevin Connauton and/or Jordan Leopold at left wing. Anywho…those links:
- Portzline wrote a piece over the weekend on the cautious optimism of Nathan Horton – we don’t know the extent, but any good news is welcome. At the very least, I hope he can go on to be fully functional (physically) as a father for his kids and if he somehow can come back and play hockey, well…that’s just icing on the cake.
- From Fox Sports Ohio – the Jackets power play has lost its spark recently.
- A Prospect Update from The Union Blue.
- BS Hockey looks at potential trade targets on defense as the deadline approaches in a month.
- Rick Gethin (FSO) talks about maturity for Columbus.
- As I sated in the opening, the FO is ready to roll with nine D for the time being.
- Here’s a couple of interesting things I found – BS Hockey’s Jeremy Crowe with the assistance of Domenic Galamini pulled together “HERO” graphs for both the forwards and defensemen. These HERO graphs pull together a variety of advanced stats (mostly per 60 minutes of ice time) and then show where each player fits on a typical team – i.e. 2nd line or 3rd pair. The data goes back to the start of the 2012-2013 lockout season, so a guy like Ryan Johansen who has greatly improved may appear to have diminished numbers, in my opinion. Either way, two great reads.
- A quick update down on the farm – Springfield is struggling. Switch out Forsberg and bring in Dansk and boom…losing streak? Coincidence? I’d say Dansk Party is on the Struggle Bus right now./
Finally, a nice picture of The Lost Season (note that the CBJ are winning in “CHIP” and MGL):
Update to NHL man-games lost and CHIP (Cap Hit of Injured Players) figures through 1 February pic.twitter.com/rfuJGznFtX
— LW3H (@LW3H) February 2, 2015