After a weekend where there was no end of breaking news (much of it of interest to fans of the Blue Jackets), Sunday night was…surprisingly quiet, actually.
Unless, of course, you were in San Jose, where the Canucks rocked the Shark Tank with three 5 on 3 power play goals on the way to delivering a 4-2 chokeslam. Despite the fact that he’s made of stained glass and taffeta, Sami Salo was running the Vancouver PP like a well oiled machine, coming out with two goals and an assist, while Henrik Sedin had an assist on all four goals, including a highlight reel pass to Alexandre Burrows.
Meanwhile, former Jacket Raffi Torres hit Sharks captain Joe Thornton straight out of the game with a thundering shoulder check, and Jumbo Joe’s status for game 5 is “day to day”…which could spell the end of San Jose’s season unless someone steps up Tuesday night. Edit: Though Thornton has now told the media that he will play.
In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bruins will try to get back on top of the series tonight at home against the Lightning, but the fans down in Tampa Bay gave their team a seriously motivating sendoff. The bar has been raised for us. We’ll have to arrange some kind of fan cannon for the boys when they depart for a playoff game next season…especially if it turns out to be in the Eastern Conference.
Speaking of the potential move / no move of the NHL back to WInnipeg, Mayor Sam Katz says that when they get a team, they’ll be called the “Manitoba Something”, and not the Jets. Why does this matter, aside from the various howls of Winnipeggers who were hoping for the Jets name to return? Because Mayor Katz was the one who said several weeks ago that the Coyotes would not be the team coming to Winnipeg if they got the NHL back….and the first to suggest that the Thrashers were likely to move.
Meanwhile, the summer coaching carousel is getting ready to fire up, and there are some familiar names afoot for Jackets fans – not just Ken Hitchcock and Kevin Dineen, but could Gerard Gallant be getting ready to return to the NHL?
Interesting that Todd Richards is NOT listed as a potential candidate for a head coaching job in that list. Maybe the suggestion that Scott Arniel is trying to get him on his staff as an assistant has something to it.
Speaking of Gallant, his Saint John Sea Dogs (and CBJ prospect Mathieu Corbeil) defeated the host Missisauga St. Mike’s Majors in the opening game of the memorial cup. Corbeil was on the bench as the backup netminder. The hosts then turned around and beat the Kootenay Ice 2-1 in a tight, thrilling game. The Sea Dogs will be back in action against Owen Sound tonight – we’ll let you know should Corbeil get the chance to come off the bench.
In her weekly Score Card, Lori Schmidt has some interesting thoughts on how to change the Jackets’ front office.
Meanwhile, over at Bluejackets.com, there’s an off-season one on one interview with Jakub Voracek, and the Jackets are asking fans to vote for “The Greatest Game in CBJ History.” There’s some interesting suggestions, but I can’t see how anyone could vote against April 8, 2009.
That’s about it for today – see you back here for our next Draft Prospect Profile later this morning!