After surging to a 16-2-4 record in their last 22 games, the Columbus Blue Jackets have earned a much-deserved break. The players who carried the load can rest up, and those that have been injured can continue to heal. In the meantime, what the heck are we supposed to do this week? Here are some ideas:
Admire some art!
I often walk my dog at Schiller Park in German Village, and I’ve been quite taken by an art installation that has been on display since October. The exhibit Suspension: Balancing Art, Nature, and Culture by Polish artist Jerzy Jotka Kędziora features over a dozen metal sculptures suspended on wires over the walking paths. Not only are they visually striking, but they’re an engineering marvel as well, to balance so perfectly over a thin steel wire. Somehow even on windy days they haven’t tipped over. You have until the end of February to see it for yourself, so make the time on a nice afternoon (nice by the standards of Ohio winters, of course) to walk around the park for 20-30 minutes or so.
Get caught up on one of the best television series of the 2010s
Thursday marks the season finale of The Good Place on NBC. If you’re not familiar with the show, I don’t want to explain too much so as to not spoil the various twists and turns of the series. It’s an incredibly creative series that manages to be laugh out loud funny while also addressing the complex questions of “what happens when we die?” and “what does it mean to be a good person?” The first three seasons can be found on Netflix and all of the first 51 episodes can be found on Hulu.
Watch some hockey
Just because the Jackets aren’t playing doesn’t mean there aren’t still opportunities to watch live hockey. The Ohio State women’s team hosts Bemidji State this weekend at the Ohio State University Ice Rink with games at 6:07 p.m. on Friday and 3:07 p.m. on Saturday.
How are YOU spending the bye week? Any activities, restaurants, TV shows, movies, or music to recommend? Let us know in the comments below.
The week that was
Just one game this week, as the Jackets completed a six game win streak to finish the first half of the season.
How does this streak stack up to past streaks in franchise history? Will recapped the other great runs. My pick is still The Streak from 2016-17.
Seth Jones represented Columbus at the NHL All-Star Game. He finished in last place in the Hardest Shot competition, but contributed points on 4 of the 5 Metro Division goals in their losing effort against the Atlantic Division.
We know the Jackets have worked their way up the standings, so how have their division foes been doing so far in January? As elpalito shows, playing .500 hockey for the month won’t get it done with this group of teams.
Rachel profiled fun-sized forward Nathan Gerbe and his quick leap from AHL journeyman to key figure of the Jackets’ resurgence.
On Deck
Saturday: at Buffalo
Sunday: at Montreal
The Jackets return from vacation and hit the road immediately for a quick two-game trip. These are both afternoon games, which have not been kind to Columbus. This kicks off a very busy February, with 15 games in the first 28 games.
Monsters Mash
After a terrible six game road trip, the Cleveland Monsters returned home…and lost another one to Rochester.
There’s good news, however, as they swept the Toronto Marlies over the weekend to enter their All-Star break on a happy note. That included a 5-2 win on Friday then a 5-4 overtime victory on Saturday which featured the Monsters coming back from a 3-1 deficit early in the first period.
Be sure to check out last week’s Cannon Cast, where Elaine broke down the issues from the road trip, and I asked her about how a handful of Jackets prospects were performing.
Have questions of your own? Add any Monsters-related questions you have in the comments, and Elaine will include them in a mailbag post later in the week.
Sports Update
The sports world was shocked yesterday with the news that basketball legend Kobe Bryant and one of his daughters, 13-year-old Gianna, along with others in a helicopter crash. I can honestly say that I was never much of a fan of him as a player or as a person. But I learned yesterday that in his retirement he was a devoted husband and father, and would beam with pride when discussing Gianna’s basketball abilities and competitive attitude. My heart breaks for his family to have suffered such a great loss. My sympathy as well goes out to all the basketball fans who admired his unquestionably high level of skill and were mourning online all day yesterday. SBN’s Lakers blog posted this well-written tribute to a complicated figure.
Play me out
Earlier this month, the music world lost a legend of their own with the passing of Rush drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. Despite being a massive nerd, I’ve never gotten into Rush like you would expect. Is it too prog rock? Too much synthesizer on the 80s material? Is it Geddy Lee’s voice? Nonetheless, there are certain tracks I enjoy and I have to acknowledge the high level of skill from all three musicians. Peart certainly stands out for his complicated yet never-overpowering drum work.