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Game 41 Recap: Jackets Smoked By Ducks

The scoreboard says everything you really need to know – the Jackets were shut out, 6-0, at the Honda Center. Steve Mason allowed 4 goals, including two power play goals, on 24 shots, and Mathieu Garon gave up two goals on five shots, including a shorthanded goal late in the third period after replacing him. I actually thought Mason was making some good saves in the portions of the game I watched, but he wasn’t getting any support at all, particularly in special teams situations.

Our penalty kill was terrible, and our power play gave the Ducks’ PK unit more scoring chances than the Jackets mustered.

To his credit, Jonas Hiller made some very good stops, but the Jackets just weren’t really in this game after midway through the second period – and to be honest, after they went down 3-0 on a one timer by Matt Beleskey from the blue line? It was time for bed. I’d gone out drinking with some friends to start my evening, and settling down for a nice warm bed to let three Tom & Jerry’s (yes, that’s actually a drink – it’s kind of a cross between egg nog and a milk punch – look it up!), a few beers, and a couple shots metabolize out of my system.

Also, I may have eaten a tasty burger. A VERY tasty burger.

Does it sound like I’m avoiding a lot of detail on this game? Yeah, I suppose I am. But there’s only so many times you can write the same story this year, and this is the fourth? Fifth? time that the Jackets have basically made an appearance on the ice only because the NHL says an opponent has to show up for the start of the game.

This is one of the few cases where I don’t entirely blame them – all the issues around the locker room have to be a major concern, and I am sure they’re seriously distracting – but at the same time, you’d think that if you know the GM is watching the game and looking at making a move that would send people out of town, you might try to impress him?

Unfortunately, this CBJ team seems to have two modes: Ass-kickers and Flatlines, and they can’t seem to find a happy medium.

The Jackets will play LA tonight to wrap up this road trip, and the current scuttlebutt is that whatever moves GM Scott Howson has cooking, he could pull the trigger sometime between today and Monday. I dearly hope so – clearly something needs to happen to this team.