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Game 8 (X) Preview: Final Tune Up

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The Jackets close out their exhibition schedule without Ryan Johansen, as the Predators come calling.

Nashville Predators at Columbus Blue Jackets
Saturday, October 4, 2014 - 7:00 EDT
Nationwide Arena - Columbus, Ohio
Opponents' Blog: On The Forecheck
TV: Streamed via Team Website

Well, this is it, in terms of the pre-season. The games start counting for real on Thursday. And yet, when you look at the Jackets' lineup tonight, you might be confused. Isn't the last pre-season game a "tune up" for the "final" roster? Well, yes and no. Yes, in that these are the lines we might see on Thursday, and no because there are still some decisions to be made before the final cuts.

"Camp's not over," coach Todd Richards said. "We still have to play this game tonight, and there are lots of things we want to accomplish in this game. We want to finish the right way. We want to continue to get better. We still have to make decisions.

"It's still evaluation, still guys we're looking at, young players. We have to make decisions up at those forward positions."

All three 2013 first round picks will be in the lineup tonight. Notably absent are Jerry D'Amigo and Brian Gibbons. The team listed Corey Tropp in the line rushes this morning, but The Dispatch is reporting that Tropp will sit. Gibbons has missed practice with an undisclosed injury, and the timing on that for him is pretty unfortunate, especially with the success that Marko Dano and Alexander Wennberg displayed the other night. Both D'Amigo and Gibbons have two-way deals and can go to Springfield, but they'd have to clear waivers first.

Porty also noted that Ryan Murray is skating and doing drills, but that the team is mum on whether or not he can take contact. He won't play tonight, and his status for Thursday is still very much unclear.

At any rate, here's the lineup for tonight:

Marko DanoArtem AnisimovScott Hartnell
Matt CalvertBrandon DubinskyCam Atkinson
Nick FolignoMark LetestuAlexander Wennberg
Kerby RychelMichael ChaputCorey Tropp / Jared Boll
Tim ErixonJames Wisniewski
Jack JohnsonDavid Savard
Fedor TyutinDalton Prout
Sergei Bobrovsky
Curtis McElhinney

I'm embarrassed to admit that I cannot find a Predators' roster for tonight just about anywhere. Even their team's website only listed participants in a morning skate, and noted that they will be tinkering with line combinations throughout the game. It should be noted that their roster is down to just 25 players, so it should be pretty close to final (though they have 16 forwards, so...). We do know that Pekka Rinne will start, though he may not play the entire game. Columbus expects Bobrovsky to go the distance tonight.

Enjoy the game!


Game Day 8 (X): Predators at Blue Jackets

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The Jackets close out their exhibition schedule without Ryan Johansen, as the Predators come calling.

Nashville Predators at Columbus Blue Jackets
Saturday, October 4, 2014 - 7:00 EDT
Nationwide Arena - Columbus, Ohio
Opponents' Blog: On The Forecheck
TV: Streamed via Team Website

Well, this is it, in terms of the pre-season. The games start counting for real on Thursday. And yet, when you look at the Jackets' lineup tonight, you might be confused. Isn't the last pre-season game a "tune up" for the "final" roster? Well, yes and no. Yes, in that these are the lines we might see on Thursday, and no because there are still some decisions to be made before the final cuts.

"Camp's not over," coach Todd Richards said. "We still have to play this game tonight, and there are lots of things we want to accomplish in this game. We want to finish the right way. We want to continue to get better. We still have to make decisions.

"It's still evaluation, still guys we're looking at, young players. We have to make decisions up at those forward positions."

All three 2013 first round picks will be in the lineup tonight. Notably absent are Jerry D'Amigo and Brian Gibbons. The team listed Corey Tropp in the line rushes this morning, but The Dispatch is reporting that Tropp will sit. Gibbons has missed practice with an undisclosed injury, and the timing on that for him is pretty unfortunate, especially with the success that Marko Dano and Alexander Wennberg displayed the other night. Both D'Amigo and Gibbons have two-way deals and can go to Springfield, but they'd have to clear waivers first.

Porty also noted that Ryan Murray is skating and doing drills, but that the team is mum on whether or not he can take contact. He won't play tonight, and his status for Thursday is still very much unclear.

At any rate, here's the lineup for tonight:

Marko DanoArtem AnisimovScott Hartnell
Matt CalvertBrandon DubinskyCam Atkinson
Nick FolignoMark LetestuAlexander Wennberg
Kerby RychelMichael ChaputCorey Tropp / Jared Boll
Tim ErixonJames Wisniewski
Jack JohnsonDavid Savard
Fedor TyutinDalton Prout
Sergei Bobrovsky
Curtis McElhinney

I'm embarrassed to admit that I cannot find a Predators' roster for tonight just about anywhere. Even their team's website only listed participants in a morning skate, and noted that they will be tinkering with line combinations throughout the game. It should be noted that their roster is down to just 25 players, so it should be pretty close to final (though they have 16 forwards, so...). We do know that Pekka Rinne will start, though he may not play the entire game. Columbus expects Bobrovsky to go the distance tonight.

Enjoy the game!

Game 8(X) Recap: Jackets Edge Predators in Final Warm-up

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The Blue Jackets ended the pre-season at 7 - 1, but had to lean heavily on Nick Foligno and Sergei Bobrovsky for an ugly win.

Somehow it's fitting that the final game of the pre-season came down to the Bob & Nick Show.  They are famous for their post-win celebratory hug,  have consecutive sweater numbers, and have both had outstanding training camps. Last night in Nationwide Arena, most of their teammates decided to take much of the night off and watch the two strut their stuff. They did just that.

First Period

For the Blue Jackets, this was a ragged affair from the start.  Pucks bounced off sticks, guys whiffed on passes, and pucks drifted into empty ice for no apparent reason.  There were bursts of concentrated effort, such as the initial Columbus power play, where some sharp execution led to prolonged possession and some solid chances, which Pekka Rinne managed to deflect.  However, at even strength, Columbus was mired in their own zone for much of the time, and had only brief forays into offensive territory.  The shot total for the period, 13-9 in favor of Nashville, was as close as the squad would get all night.

Ironically, it was the next power play that put the Jackets behind the eight-ball.  David Savard -- treating the puck like a poisonous snake -- whiffed on a pass attempt, and Eric Nystrom gladly accepted the gift.  He was off to the races unabated, faked forehand, and made a nice shift to the backhand to tuck it behind Bobrovsky's outstretched stick, for an unassisted shorthanded tally. However, Bobrovsky was almost the sole reason that the club was not facing a more significant deficit.  He was masterful in his positioning and rebound control throughout the frame, which was a precursor of things to come.

On the positive side, the Jackets' PK unit made a good showing when Jared Boll and Foligno went off for consecutive boarding calls late in the period.  The kill was both well structured and efficient, which was good to see in this final tune-up contest.  However, the ragged play elsewhere was cause for concern.

Second Period

The Blue Jackets took their first shot of the period just shy of eight minutes into the second period.  That should tell you all you need to know about the quality of the effort for most of the second.  To be fair -- and as I'll point out below -- there were some decent individual efforts, but the Blue Jackets simply could not bring themselves together to present a cohesive picture on the ice.  Shots were 17 - 7 for the Predators in the period, and on the defensive side of the ice it was the Sergei Bobrovsky Show.  He consistently made solid saves, and came up with a miraculous three-shot sequence from point blank range -- snaring the final effort almost defiantly with his glove.  He was literally the last line of defense, as Predators were allowed to roam rather freely in the crease.

Enter Nick Foligno, who continued the high caliber play he has shown this pre-season. Even in this one, he was persistent on the puck, and helped create the few good offensive chances the club managed.  At the 14:43 mark, he capitalized, sending a wicked wrister past Rinne for the tying marker.  Assists went to Brandon Dubinsky and Scott Hartnell.  Hartnell played perhaps his best game on this night, and Dubinsky had a credible effort in shaking off the rust of his recent injury.  Matt Calvert also showed flashes of solid play in the frame, and Cam Atkinson was seen making plays in the defensive zone . . . a rarity in past seasons.  He has been much better at turning in 200 foot efforts this camp, and the results have shown.

So, despite everything, the Blue Jackets found themselves tied at the end of two, and there was a feeling that the third might just provide a bit more excitement.

Period Three

As this club has done so often, the best was saved for last.  The squad showed considerably more energy at the beginning of the period, and execution was crisper.  Enter Nick Foligno, stage right.  At the 6:08 mark, Foligno took a cross ice feed from Jack Johnson, which was ever so slightly redirected on its way by David Savard, and reprised his goal from the second period -- a laser of a wrist shot by the goalie's right ear.  2 - 1 Blue Jackets, and the smell of blood was in the water.  When Mike Ribiero went off for a high sticking double minor just a minute later, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Columbus would extend the lead.  Not so, however, as the Blue Jackets put forth a rather fumbling effort on the extended power play -- unable to solve Nashville's neutral zone trap and gain solid entrance to the zone.  Only once during the four minutes did they have any extended offensive zone time, and they were unable to capitalize on it.

Things appeared to turn for the worse a few minutes later, when Ribiero sought to atone for his sins by stealing the puck and skating on a breakaway against Bobrovsky.  The save was made, but Jared Boll was called for slashing on the breakaway, resulting in a penalty shot.  Ribiero tried a sequence of moves, but Bob stood his ground and easily negated the penalty shot, preserving the lead.

Following an extended period of play where the Blue Jackets maintained control, without exerting any real offensive pressure, the Blue Jackets received another power play opportunity when Calle Jarnkrok went off for boarding Tim Erixon.  It took only 18 seconds for Columbus to cash in on this chance, as they won the face-off, worked the puck to the points, and fired the puck low, where Cam Atkinson grabbed it and zinged one along the ice into the back of the net.  It was an example of simple lethal efficiency, and a good way to cap the Columbus scoring.

The final five minutes was a bit of a scramble, due to penalty trouble.  Foligno lost his skates while trying to clear the puck from the zone, and the puck flew over the glass for a delay of game call. 45 seconds later, Dubinsky went to bat an arcing puck down and out of the zone, but the puck lodged in his glove.    2 minutes for closing his hand on the puck, and the Predators had a 5-on-3 advantage.  They pulled the goaltender to make it 6-on-3, and despite some solid killing work, James Neal converted at the 18:27 mark, with assists from Ribiero and Ryan Ellis.  They could not even it up, however, and the final horn  -- and the ensuing Bobrovsky/Foligno hug sent the squad into the regular season on a positive note.

Wrapping It Up

This was an uneven effort, to put it charitably, but the boys found a way to win, as they seemingly do with regularity.  The youngsters -- Dano, Wennberg and Rychel -- acquitted themselves well, even though they did not appear on the scoresheet.  Rychel was invisible early, due in part to his pairing with Boll, but got progressively better.  Dano and Wennberg were in the thick of things all game, and seem like locks to start with the big club. Wennberg won all four face-offs he took.  Michael Chaput seemed to struggle more in this one, particularly in the defensive end.

While Jack Johnson and Fedor Tyutin were solid, not so for the remaining defenders.  David Savard had an uncharacteristic spotty game, and Tim Erixon was similarly inconsistent.  James Wisniewski had some scary moments with the puck, and Dalton Prout looked lost for extended periods.   Artem Anisimov continued his good play as well, winning two-thirds of his face-offs, and helping maintain possessions.  Mark Letestu struggled in the circle, winning only 30% of his draws.

In the end, they won a game they probably shouldn't have.  Good teams do that. Write it off to some veterans looking ahead to the real deal, and some lack of chemistry across the lines. There are a couple of roster decision yet to make, and we will likely know about those today or tomorrow.  It all starts in earnest on Thursday in Buffalo. Enough practice, let's drop the puck!

Jackets claim Skille off waivers

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The Blue Jackets have claimed former Blue Jacket Jack Skille off waivers from the Islanders, which makes complete sense. Wait, what?

Well, I hope Jack Skille didn't put down too much money on a Long Island condo - or get rid of the spare key to his old place in Columbus.

The journeyman forward just found out that you can go home again, having been claimed off waivers by the Blue Jackets this morning.

Skille played 16 games in Columbus last season, plus all six playoff appearances, but signed a 1 year, $750,000 deal with the Islanders in the offseason. Though he appeared to have a decent training camp on Long Island, they made the decision to expose him to waivers yesterday with the plan of sending him down to Bridgeport to begin the season. So much for that plan.

With Columbus claiming Skille, it brings up some fascinating roster questions. Does this mean that Brian Gibbons will be out of the lineup longer than expected? (Or will start the season in Springfield?) Is it a sign that Corey Tropp or Kerby Rychel didn't make the cut for the opening day roster? Feel free to pull out your crystal balls and speculate.

Skille played up and down the lineup last season, including a brief spell with Ryan Johansen and Boone Jenner, so it's possible he could be penciled in as a fourth line winger and moved up as the team requires.

With the Johansen situation still unresolved, it seems like there's still a few more shakeups to come as head coach Todd Richards and GM Jarmo Kekalainen finalize their roster for Thursday's home opener, and aren't afraid to throw us a few curveballs along the way.

Waivers: Columbus claims Jack Skille; Aaron Ness, others clear; Hawks waive TJ Brennan

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We thank Jack Skille and TJ Brennan for their contributions to the master plan.

More record-keeping from waiver-and-tradenado weekend on Long Island: The Columbus Blue Jackets have (re)claimed forward Jack Skille off of waivers.

The Blue Jackets have been hit by a rash of forward injuries, plus one rash contract stalemate with Ryan Johansen. Skille, who did well filling in for injuries late last season and in the playoffs for Columbus, signed with the Isles this summer on a two-way deal that would still pay him a $300,000 AHL salary ($750,000 in the NHL).

He was always going to be a waiver risk -- the 2005 7th-overall pick previously bounced around from Chicago to Florida to Columbus -- and the Islanders' second-day free agent additions of Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolay Kulemin meant the competition for forward jobs would be that much tougher.

Though it makes it tougher for teams to hoard depth, in a way this is exactly what the waiver system is designed to do: When a player's been around a while and paid his dues, you can't send him to the minors if another team is willing to give him a job in the NHL.

At least for now, Columbus will give him that job.

Meanwhile, another signing from the summer, and involved in yesterday's trades, is also hitting waivers: The Chicago Blackhawks have put TJ Brennan on waivers for assignment to the AHL. Will someone else guarantee him a job, finally?

Others Assigned to Sound Tigers

Skille's fellow passengers on the waiver train all cleared, so Aaron Ness, Harry Zolnierczyk, and goalies Kevin Poulin and David Leggio are now officially assigned to the Islanders' AHL affiliate Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Along with newcomer Kent Simpson, they join a bevy of others assigned to Bridgeport.

However, with yesterday's additions of Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy, the Islanders have more cuts to come by Tuesday evening.

Season Preview: Columbus Blue Jackets

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We catch up with the Columbus Blue Jackets

In the next installment of our season preview, we look at the Columbus Blue Jackets and our friends at Jackets Cannon.

#1: The Ryan Johansen contract situation has hung over the team all summer, and it sucks being a fan and stuck in the middle. Since it's looking like the Blue Jackets will be without him for at least a little of the regular season, what does the center depth look like and how will that affect the roles of the guys that are there now?

Not only is Ryan Johansen not in the picture, but the rest of the projected top line is out of commission as well. Boone Jenner broke his hand and will miss four-to-six weeks, while Nathan Horton is dealing with a degenerative back issue. The Jackets' depth is going to be given a tough test to start the season, but depth is something they do have.

Brandon Dubinsky, who nailed down the second line center position last season, can be considered the de facto number one pivot with Johansen out. Artem Anisimov will move up a slot as well, while super-utility man Mark Letestu has the inside track on the third center spot. Michael Chaput spent some time with the Jackets last season, but has turned a terrific 2014 training camp into an almost assured roster spot as fourth line center.

Outside of those four, 2013 first round pick Alexander Wennberg may see time up the middle, with Letestu moving to wing.

#2: After a tough and hotly contested playoff series, what did you as a fan learn about the Pittsburgh Penguins? Did anything surprise you? Who is a player you maybe have a little more respect for or was impressed by now due to his performance in the series?

The biggest takeaway for me as a fan was that the Penguins could be slowed down with overwhelming physicality. Dubinsky gave Sidney Crosby fits, while Marc-Andre Fleury did nothing to shake his penchant for so-so play in the playoffs. The Pens obviously have far more elite talent than the Jackets, but the CBJ were given a very informative course in how to beat the Pens this past spring. Bringing in Scott Hartnell, who has intimate knowledge of the Pens from his Flyer days, can only help.

As fans, we couldn't help but be impressed by Brian Gibbons. In Game 2 of the 2014 first round series, he scored a pair of goals and showed serious speed. Though that game went on to be the Jackets' first ever playoff win, Gibbons put himself on our radar. He obviously made an impression on CBJ brass as well, as the Jackets signed him this offseason.

#3: Columbus seems to have a lot of great young players, are there any that might make NHL debuts this year? By that, I mean who might be this year's Boone Jenner- the guy that the average hockey fan might not know yet but soon will.

Thanks to the aforementioned lack of a top line, the Jackets are forced into starting the season with some kids. In years past the Jackets were known for rushing prospects, but in this case, there are a trio of players who are showing that they belong in the NHL. These three players will always have their names linked to one another, as they were all first round picks by the Jackets in the 2013 draft. Wennberg, Kerby Rychel and Marko Dano are all still in camp, and at least two of the three are likely to start the season with the Jackets. Wennberg is perhaps the most well-known, while Kerby Rychel has NHL bloodlines and is known for helping take Guelph of the OHL to the Memorial Cup.  Dano is perhaps the more unknown youngster, even with his first rounder status. He has been great in the preseason, and may be the most surprising rookie for the Jackets this season. Interesting, as he was the third of the trio to hear his name called in 2013.

#4: Where would you say the Pens rank on your fan and team's rivalry scale right now, after a playoff series and now in the same division for going on 2 years?

The current playoff format is designed to breed new rivalries or boost existing ones. The Jackets were left without a true rival when they moved to the Eastern Conference. There will always be the Red Wings hatred from Columbus fans thanks to the whole Ohio-Michigan thing, but last year the Jackets were essentially auditioning new Eastern teams to be the squad they loved to hate.

The 2014 playoff series, combined with the geographical status of Columbus and Pittsburgh, make the Jackets and Pens a truly budding rivalry. It will take another playoff series or two against each other for the rivalry to fully arrive, but the foundation is in place.

If they hadn't already, Dubinsky's handling of Crosby last year made the fans of the Jackets fall absolutely in love with the guy. Performances like that, combined with highlights like Matt Calvert's double-OT goal against the Pens for the team's first ever playoff win that stick with fans. That goal will always bring fans back to the series against Pittsburgh, and there's a good chance that many more memorable moments can be created between these two teams.

#5: What is the range of positions (1-8) that you could see Columbus finishing at in the division? What's the best case and worst case situations?

If you read some of the major media outlets, the Jackets have a good shot at second in the division. It's the Penguins' to lose, but the Jackets are ready to take the next step in the standings, from wild card team to one of the division slots.

Second in the division is possible, but it's going to take Johansen getting signed and performing at or beyond last year's pace post-deal signing; a healthy Boone Jenner and Nathan Horton; and for the New York Rangers to regress as much as well think they will.

If injuries mount, or Johansen takes a step back, the team will have a difficult time moving out of the wild card range. They earned a wild card last year essentially without Marian Gaborik and Horton, so it's doable again this year.

The Capitals and Islanders are tough to peg, so they make it hard to prognosticate where the Jackets will finish. That said, a playoff spot is a good bet with health, Johansen and Sergei Bobrovsky in a contract year.

Johansen Signs New 3 Year, $12 Million Deal

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The Summer of Johan has come to an end. After both sides seemed to be at an impossible impasse, they've finally come together on a three year, $12 million deal to get the 2010 1st round pick back on the ice.

Just when most fans in Columbus expected that Ryan Johansen would miss the start of the regular season, the Blue Jackets put out the best news anyone could ask for:

The next piece of relevant news would be broken by TSN's Bob MacKenzie, who reported the deal to come with an AAV of $4 million per year. While higher than the front office appeared to want to go, it's still below the Johansen camp's original $6 million AAV offer. (And, as many are already pointing out on twitter, it seems like the "natural" compromise that many fans and pundits alike had suggested all summer.)

But as is so often the case, the devil is in the details.

The key to the deal (and very possibly one of the sticking points over the negotiations) is how it's structured. According to Aaron Portzline of the Dispatch, Johansen is going to receive three million in each of the first two years of his deal, but that jumps up to six million for the 2016-2017 season, meaning that when the two sides meet to start talking about his next contract, he'll be qualified as a $6M/year player.

Both sides "win" - the front office get Johansen on the ice with a fairly low cap hit for the first two years of his deal, while Johansen gets a significant raise both compared to similar players in their second contract and over the life of this deal. Yet the FO likely walks away unhappy about what this is likely to mean for his next deal, and Johansen still has to wait (and produce!) for another two seasons, minimum, before his "big" payday.

A wise man once said that the perfect compromise leaves both sides unhappy, and certainly seems to be the case today.

Expect this news, along with the claim of Jack Skille, to send some shockwaves through the opening night roster. What does this mean for Michael Chaput, Alexander Wennberg, and Marko Dano, among others?

We told you it was about to get interesting, didn't we?

Cooler heads prevail in contract mess between Blue Jackets, Ryan Johansen

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Cooler heads finally prevailed in Columbus as the Blue Jackets and Ryan Johansen agreed to a new three-year contract for the restricted free agent center.

After a very public and at times very uncomfortable contract negotiation, the Columbus Blue Jackets and center Ryan Johansen have finally come to their senses and hammered out a new just days before the start of the 2014-15 season.

Johansen, a restricted free agent coming off of a breakout 30-goal season, agreed to a three-year contract on Monday morning that will pay him $12 million over the duration of the contract, which comes out to a $4 million cap hit. As Sportsnet's Chris Johnston points out, the final year of his contract is worth $6 million in actual salary, which is an important point for when a qualifying offer has to be made when the deal expires.

For now, though, it's a pretty fair deal for the Blue Jackets and the type of "prove it" bridge contract that they were hoping for him to sign from the start. They wanted him to show that last season wasn't a fluke, but it could still end up costing them a lot more money in the long run if Johansen continues to develop into the No. 1 center he showed he can be last season.

And there is a very good chance that happens. Typically, players that have the type of success Johansen did last season at that age (and there are not many) go on to have very productive careers. Since the start of the 2000-01 season, only 14 players have topped at least 30 goals and 60 points in their age 21 season, and excepting Mike Comrie (and even he went on to have another 30-goal season), all of them continued on to be top-line players in the NHL.

But cooler heads had to eventually prevail in this situation for the start of the season. With Nathan Horton and Boone Jenner both sidelined entering the season, and a couple of Columbus' competitors within the division (specifically New Jersey, New York Islanders) getting better over the offseason, it was imperative that the Blue Jackets find a way to get their best player into the lineup for the start of the season. Johansen was the guy that was usually driving the team's productivity last year.

The No. 4 overall pick in the 2010 draft, Johansen had a relatively slow start to his career offensively, recording just 33 points in 167 games over his first two years in the league. But last season, his numbers absolutely soared with 33 goals and 63 points, leading the team (by far) in both categories.

Johansen had a direct hand in 28 percent of the team's goals (either scoring it or setting up) -- only two other players on the team (Brandon Dubinsky and James Wisniewski) topped even 20 percent -- and he did so while usually playing against top-line competition.

When you start picking out the top reasons the team was able to make only its second trip to the playoffs in franchise history and might finally be starting to turn itself around after years of failure and disappointment, it all starts with Johansen and his development into a top-line center.

That's an element the Blue Jackets absolutely could not afford to start the season without, especially not after all the progress they made on and off the ice last season.


So, 7-1-0: What Does It *Really* Mean?

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Let's reflect back on the exhibition season, and think about what it really means in the grand scheme of things.

I got a text from a friend last week who used to live in Columbus and who has since moved to Atlanta. It read, simply: "Are the Jackets actually this good, or is it pre-season smoke and mirrors?" Truth be told, I wasn't sure how to answer at first. In a worth, it can be "yes" to both, and that's what I tried to convey.

On one hand, no one will ever be able to deny that the Jackets weren't a "good" team last season, or that they didn't deserve to be a playoff team. It's largely the same team coming back, so, why shouldn't we expect them to be good again?

That said, pre-season is a strange animal, at times. First and foremost, I wouldn't call it smoke and mirrors per se, but in my opinion not too many NHL teams should lose a lot of home pre-season games in a vacuum. Most teams send barely enough "NHL" players on road games, and so the talent disparity almost always favors the home team. So, that the Jackets went 4-0-0 at home should be no surprise, especially when you look at the talent level that teams like Pittsburgh and St. Louis sent over compared to their full roster as a whole.

So, where the Jackets showed their stripes this pre-season was their road games: 3-1-0, and only losing by one goal in Pittsburgh (with the asterisk that Crosby and Malkin, again, didn't play).

But, what did we actually learn from all of this?

  • Here was my official response to my friend in the text message above: "I think it means their prospects are good. So, the 2017 Jackets should be *this* good." My running joke about baseball spring training is that a great record in the spring merely means that your AA/AAA teams are better than everybody else's AA/AAA teams. And, some of that is true here, too. The Jackets showed in Traverse City that they have one of the deepest high-level prospect pools in the NHL, and that carried over into the pre-season as well. The Jackets had a LOT of young guys sprinkled throughout their lineup in the pre-season, and those guys didn't look out of place. Alexander Wennberg, Marko Dano, Kerby Rychel, Josh Anderson, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Anton Forsberg, Michael Chaput. That's just the first few names off the top of my head. There's a good chance that almost none of these guys will be with the Jackets in a month or so when Boone Jenner is back. All but Bjorkstrand will be in the AHL. Hot damn, that's a lot of high-level talent that is very, very young still.
  • To follow up on that, young guys that are on the bubble are, by nature, going to play harder than veterans who are, for the most part, trying to ramp up their bodies and their compete levels. I think that's why we saw such a very good record in terms of wins and losses in the pre-season. Our young guys are better than their young guys.
  • So, what I mean there, I guess, is that my baseball analogy holds here: our AHL team should be very, very good. And, given the pedigree of many of those guys, that should mean that our NHL team will be reloading with young talent over the next few years. So, in three years' time, I expect a lot of these guys to be good NHL players, which will mean that the Jackets have brought in a lot of good young talent, arguably more than other teams. So, yes, I expect that by 2017 this team will be very, very good.
  • But, that doesn't mean they won't be good now, either. Far from it. This team didn't tinker much with what worked for them last season, in that they didn't go out and reinvent themselves after getting bounced in the first round. They were content to let their young guys grow, and outside of bringing in Scott Hartnell they left it alone. It stands to reason that, assuming no major regressions, they will be better than last year's team. So, yeah, they can still be a playoff team now, and in the future they can be a Cup contending team.
  • Positive: they played well, and we haven't even seen Ryan Johansen and Ryan Murray yet, and Boone Jenner will come back too. The Jackets were missing their three best young skaters, and still were tough to beat in the pre-season.
  • Negative: we haven't seen Ryan Johansen and Ryan Murray yet, and Boone Jenner is out for a month. Quite simply, while it's great that Johansen is signed, Murray is progressing, and Jenner will be back soon, we don't know what to expect from the Ryans when they play, and Jenner will need to some to get back into the flow of things.
  • The Jackets scored 28 goals in 8 games. They scored 3.48 goals per 60 minutes. That is, how you say, very good. They scored 28 goals on 191 shots, good for a 14.7% shooting percentage. For the season last season, they had a 9.3% shooting percentage. This is, obviously, a nice improvement, albeit in a small (and flawed) sample size.
  • That said, is it sustainable? The Jackets were also out-shot in all but one of their games, and by a wide wide margin. In eight games, they were outshot 288 to 191, and in the seven games in which they were out-shot, six times it was by double-digits. They were out-shot by 23 shots in the final game. They were outshot during the season last year as well, but consider: in 82 games, they were outshot by only 93 shots. In eight exhibition games this season, they were outshot by 97 shots. This is NOT good, though again, we don't know how much of it was systemic tweaks versus actual expectations. It's certainly something I'm going to watch as the season starts.
  • So, suppose the Jackets' shooting percentage regresses back closer to their average from last season. That would have cost them 10 goals in the pre-season. Suffice it to say, they're not going 7-1-0 if they do that. The question is, then: how much of that shooting percentage was the result of luck versus getting great scoring chances? It's impossible to tell, and we'll need to wait and see.
  • On the flip side, the Jackets' goalies only allowed 17 goals on 288 shots. That. Is. INSANE. That's a .941 save percentage. More insane? The two guys who will be on the NHL squad combined for a .954 save percentage. Sergei Bobrovsky faced 134 shots, and stopped 127 of them (.948 sv%). Curtis McElhinney faced 85 shots, and stopped 82 of them (.965 sv%). If there's a silver lining to getting outshot so badly, it's that the goalies got plenty of work and showed that they're in mid-season form, at least. That said, that number might be unsustainable, too, as the other teams go with more proven lineups and ramp up the intensity.

So, what do we know? Well, there are certainly a lot of things to be excited about. The team scored consistently, even without its best goal-scorer and with a lot of young guys getting their feet wet in an NHL training camp. The future looks bright. The goaltending was phenominal. And, the team found ways to win even being outshot by a large, large margin.

Jackets Make Final Cuts

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The Blue Jackets have made their final roster moves to prepare for the opening of the 2014-2015 NHL season. The only question now is how those players will be lined up.

After the news that Ryan Johansen had signed a new deal, it was simply a matter of time before the Blue Jackets announced their final roster moves. With all NHL clubs required to submit final rosters by tomorrow at noon, the club had to make decisions on waivers and assignments as they prepared to take on the Buffalo Sabres this Thursday.

Kerby Rychel was assigned to Springfield, along with defenseman Frederic St. Denis, while Jerry D'Amigo was placed on waivers earlier today, and is expected to be assigned to the Falcons if he clears.

The other "bubble" forward, Brian Gibbons, was placed on IR, but it seems likely that he, too, will head to Springfield once he's ready to play.

For Rychel, it has to be a bit of a disappointment, but it's also a great opportunity for him to get some top six minutes and continue to build up his game.

Meanwhile, it's clear that his fellow 2013 first round picks, Alexander Wennberg and Marko Dano, have both made the opening day roster, though we still don't know exactly how head coach Todd Richards intends to fit them into his lineup. It's a big step, but they'll be expected to prove that they should stay up once guys like Boone Jenner and Nathan Horton get healthy.

Here's the roster as it stands going into the season:

Forwards:

Scott Hartnell - Ryan Johansen - Nick Foligno

Matt Calvert - Brandon Dubinsky - Marko Dano

Alexander Wennberg - Artem Anisimov - Cam Atkinson

Jack Skille - Mark Letestu - Corey Tropp

Extras: Jared Boll, Michael Chaput

Defense

James Wisniewski - Tim Erixon

Jack Johnson - David Savard

Fedor Tyutin - Dalton Prout

Extra: Cody Goloubef

Goaltending

Sergei Bobrovsky

Curtis McElhinney

Injured Reserve: Ryan Murray, Brian Gibbons, Nathan Horton, Boone Jenner

These pairings and lines are mostly speculation at this point, but it seems like a reasonable possibility for how things could shake out based on what we've seen in the pre-season. If Johansen is ready to go on Thursday, as expected, I'd expect to see him on the ice. If he's not, however, I wouldn't be totally shocked to see Wennberg moved into the top six and Michael Chaput asked to take a spot in the bottom six to fill in.

Meet Your 2014 / 2015 Columbus Blue Jackets

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The final roster is set, now meet the players who will suit up for the Jackets on opening night.

The final roster is set.

Though there was some serious drama getting to this point, the final roster decisions have been made, and your 2014 / 2015 Columbus Blue Jackets are ready to hit the ice on Thursday in Buffalo. The team will look familiar to the one that lost to the Penguins in six games last season, save for the addition of Scott Hartnell and a trio of rookies.

Let’s meet this season’s Blue Jackets:

FORWARDS

Ryan Johansen– His contract dispute dominated the offseason and training camp headlines, but yesterday he finally signed a new three year contract. He missed all of training camp, so don’t be surprised if he starts the season slowly. At the time of writing it was still unknown if he’d be ready to play in the season opener, but eventually he will regain his spot as the team’s number one center. He’s a superstar in the making.

Brandon Dubinsky– "Dubi" endeared himself to the fanbase last year after a herculean effort in the playoffs against the Penguins, where not only did he completely shut down Sidney Crosby, but he also scored to tie the game with 24 seconds left in Game 4 of that series, a game in which Nick Foligno scored in overtime to give the Jackets their first home playoff win. Dubi is slotted as the team’s second line center, where he brings an agitating, chirpy style to go along with solid offensive numbers.

Scott Hartnell– The only major offseason acquisition, Hartnell was brought over from Philadelphia in a trade for disgruntled winger R.J. Umberger. Hartnell should play a top-six role, doing his best work around the crease. He’s known for scoring the ugly goal and providing physical play.

Cam Atkinson– What he lacks in stature, he makes up for with the ability to put pucks in the net. He’s primed for a breakout, and has looked good with Dubi as his centerman. He’s elusive, and is lethal with the puck on his stick in the offensive zone.

Artem Anisimov– Like Dubi, "Arty" is effective in all zones, able to put up points in addition to taking on defensive assignments. Arty is good in the faceoff circle, and his patented backhand has drawn fans out of their seats on more than a few occasions. He’s got the third line center spot locked down.

Nick Foligno– There’s a theme with the Jackets’ forwards- hard working, with a dash of skill and ability to make things happen anywhere on the ice. Foligno typifies this, and his versatility allows him to play on any forward line.

Matt Calvert– A blood and guts, heart and soul type, he has a motor that never quits. He’s not the most skilled player, but he’s an incredibly hard worker and often gets rewarded for that hard work. He’s got terrific chemistry with Atkinson, with the duo likely flanking Dubi to start the season.

Mark Letestu– He’s the NHL equivalent of a super utility player in baseball. No matter the line or assignment, Letestu is willing and able. In a healthy lineup, he’s the team’s number four center. When needed, he can moonlight on a scoring line, or move to wing if necessary. He’s a very important player for the Jackets.

Jared Boll The NHL is moving away from pure enforcers, a role that Boll has filled since he joined the NHL full time. He’s been working on enhancing his game though, looking to become more of a physical forechecker who can work the boards and create energy. He wears a letter for the team and when he does drop the gloves, he can still lay down a good beatin’.

Corey Tropp– Tropp is an interesting player. He brings the classic elements of a fourth liner – energy, a bit of toughness, once-in-a-blue-moon scoring and some speed. The coaching staff has faith in him, and will be a fourth line player for the team when in the lineup.

Jack Skille– Acquired two days ago off waivers from the Islanders, Skille is a player who really should never have left, as he brings NHL-level depth to the organization. He’s familiar with the systems in place, and brings speed and an elite shot to the lineup. He’s another player who can moonlight higher in the lineup when required.

Michael Chaput– Chaput was acquired in a trade a few seasons ago, and after getting a look with the Jackets last year he’ll make the team after having a very good training camp. He’s the classic tale of a guy who’s not necessarily on the radar forcing his way on to the opening night roster. He’s not overly physical, but he works hard and puts in an honest effort every shift. The fact he can do things with the puck is a bonus. He’ll rotate between the fourth line and the press box, at least early on.

Alexander Wennberg– The team’s prized prospect from the 2013 draft has made the team, but at this point it seems as though he may still be around as Ryan Johansen insurance, in case the latter isn’t ready to play in the season opener. The additions of Johansen and Skille should mean that Wennberg isn’t needed at the NHL level yet. A stint in the AHL is ideal for his development, rather than miniscule minutes in the NHL. There is still a chance that the coaching staff sees a role for him in the top nine, in which case he would see legitimate minutes and has a chance to show off his sublime skill.

Marko Dano– Dano was one of three first round picks in 2013, along with Wennberg and Kerby Rychel. Dano performed the best of the trio in camp, not looking out of place at all. He’s got electrifying skill, but is also responsible defensively and isn’t afraid of mixing it up a bit. He’s got fan favorite written all over him. His contract status and the typical "rookie wall" may mean that he isn’t with the team all season, but for now he’s earned his spot in camp.

There are three key forwards who are currently on injured reserve- Nathan Horton, Boone Jenner and Brian Gibbons. Horton and Jenner were penciled in as two-thirds of the top line with Johansen, while Gibbons is fourth line material. Jenner had a terrific rookie season last year, and should make his return in about five weeks. Horton’s situation is a bit murkier, as it’s only been reported that he has a degenerative back issue. After signing a huge deal last summer, we’re all waiting to see him in action.

DEFENSE

James Wisniewski– The team’s top offensive threat from the blueline, "Wiz" had a great season last year before playing injured in the playoffs. He’s fully healthy now, and will continue to be the shooter on the powerplay, in addition to applying a physical brand of hockey.

Ryan Murray– Most of the time we all forgot last season that Murray was a rookie, he was that solid and dependable. He formed an excellent duo with Wisniewski, allowing the latter to have one of his best seasons to date. Technically Murray is on the IR at present, but he’ll be good to go sooner, rather than later. He’s a stud, hands down.

Fedor Tyutin– Tyutin is perhaps the team’s most well-rounded defender. He can chip in with points, while playing steady in his own zone. He plays big minutes and is a special teamer.

Jack Johnson– Johnson is one of those players who you have to see in action to fully appreciate what he does. Stats alone don’t tell the story- he plays a lot of minutes against difficult opposition, and after getting snubbed for the Olympics last year he went on a tear where his offensive abilities were on full display and he was hitting everything that moved.

David Savard– After breaking out last season and cementing himself as a full time NHLer, Savard will be looking to improve even further this season. He’s an offensive defenseman who relies more on positioning than skating, as he isn’t the most fleet of foot. He has a big shot from the point and is adept at getting pucks to the net through traffic.

Dalton Prout– Prout is the opposite of Savard, sticking to a defense-first game, relying on positioning and physicality to shut down opposition forwards. He’ll drop the mitts when required, and keeps the crease clear.

Tim Erixon– It’s put up or shut up time for Erixon, as he’s played the role of perennial prospect for too many years now. He was signed to a last chance deal this past summer, and will look to nail down a starting spot. He’s got offensive talent that he’s showcased in Europe, internationally and in the AHL, but hasn’t been able to translate that in the NHL. This is a big season for him.

Cody Goloubef– With Murray still on IR, Goloubef remains on the roster. He’s the team’s clear-cut number eight defender, but must pass through waivers if he’s sent down to the AHL. There’s a good chance he clears, and there’s a slim chance the he stays with the team if they decide to go with 13 forwards and eight defensemen instead of the current 14-7 format.

GOALTENDERS

Sergei Bobrovsky– Two years ago, "Bob" was the league’s top goaltender, winning the Vezina Trophy. This season is his last of a two-year bridge deal, and will look to put in another Vezina-caliber season en route to a big payday. He’s an elite goaltender, and gives the Jackets a chance to win every night.

Curtis McElhinney– McElhinney is a classic backup, as he’s able to provide Bob with occasional days off, and when needed he can take over the starting job in the event of an injury to the number one. He was solid this preseason.

Dissecting The Deal: The Dollars and Sense

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The long, tortuous Ryan Johansen saga finally reached its climax on Monday. Here's a look at what the deal does for each side.

The thunderstorm that blew through Columbus on Monday evening had some stiff winds, lightning, hail and some torrential rain. However, even that turmoil paled in comparison to the uproar created earlier in the day when the Blue Jackets announced that the long impasse with their young center, Ryan Johansen, had come to an end.  The wind you felt earlier in the day was the collective exhales of relief from the central Ohio hockey community.

In announcing the 3-year, $12 million deal, both John Davidson and Jarmo Kekalainen sounded fatigued, and perhaps a little irritated.  Kurt Overhardt denied any contentiousness or ill-willl in the course of the negotiations.  OK, sure.  But, as Jarmo reminded the assembled media, "It's time to look forward."   So, with that in mind, what precisely does this deal mean for each side going forward?

The new contract is structured with $3 million payable for each of the first two years, and $6 million in the final year of the deal.  When the contract expires, Johansen will still be a Restricted Free Agent, having one more year to serve before UFA status kicks in.   The three year term came as a surprise to many, as virtually all of the focus had been on a two year bridge contract, and the remaining speculation went to the other extreme --  a long term deal.  That the ultimate deal came somewhere in between is predictable, given both the progress of the talks and the timing involved.

The Blue Jackets brass  -- Davidson, Kekalainen and RIchards -- were unanimous in their view that a deal had to be done on Monday, as simple logistics would otherwise mitigate against Johansen being able to join the club by opening night.  Richards has been particularly direct and matter of fact in insisting that he was concerned only with the players on his squad, and yesterday noted that he would have to do some re-tooling to fit Johansen in.  Maybe a bit of hyperbole on his part, but the message is clear.   The brass came up with the offer that resulted in the deal, and perhaps much of the apparent frustration that emerged yesterday was due to a feeling that a contract along these lines could have been done long ago.

Let's start with the player's perspective, and see what the deal does for Ryan Johansen.  Keep in mind that we had no eavesdropping devices available to us during the negotiations, so we are left to surmise such things as intentions, gleaning information from what was done, what was said and how it was said.  We also have to be careful to differentiate what might have been the player's goals from those that the agent had.  While they might (and should) have the same ultimate goal in mind, their motivations also might differ significantly.

I don't think Johansen's motivations are particulary complex or esoteric.  He had a great year, and wanted to be treated financially as an elite player.  I'm not sure he fully grasped the concept that a single superb season does not entitle a player to the pot of gold.  We forget that he's a youngster, and he's shown some tendencies toward immaturity in the past, so adopting a somehat unrealistic view toward these contract expectations would not be a shocker.  Kurt Overhardt obviously shared his clients desire to maximize revenue, but also apparently wanted to challenge the inherent structure afforded by the CBA, attempting to disrupt the leverage that the clubs hold in the early years of player contracts.  (See my earlier discussion of this phenomenon.)  So, how did they do?

Given that Johansen's camp started at $6.8 million per year on a bridge deal, the larger gambit clearly failed.  Overhardt was unable to elicit a large offer sheet from another club, which would have supplied the leverage he lacked, and the Blue Jackets front office did not bite on the "fear factor" -- i.e. the prospect of starting the season without their star center.  So, Overhardt's attempt to alter the leverage structure of the CBA did not work.

So, turning to pure dollars, you need to really look at the contract in two parts. The first two years represent a "bridge" deal at precisely what the club offered from Day 1, so nothing at all accomplished there.  It is the year 3 jump to $6 million per year that makes the deal unique, and somewhat more problematic to evaluate.  From Johansen's perspective, however, the jump means that a qualifying offer for his final year of free agency has to be $6 million, and if he pushes for a one year arbitration award, the number could go significantly higher.  On the down side, they surrendered a full year of RFA status with arbitration rights, and another year of almost certain salary cap increase for $3 million bucks.  What addition of the third year did do was get the entire deal to an AAV value of $4.0 million, which appeared to be the battle line all along.  In the end, Johansen got a bridge deal that is right in the middle of bridge deals given to comparable players, and better than most, with a third year that provides a decent platform for negotiating a long term deal.

From the club's perspective, they got precisely the bridge deal they wanted, plus an extra year to be sure that Johansen is the "real deal".   While the odds seem strongly in favor of that result, anything can happen -- and frequently does.  Columbus need look no farther than the Nathan Horton situation for validation of that fact.  Through  no fault of his own, Horton has been unable to come close to living up to the long term deal that lured him from Boston.  That's the world of professional sports, but the Blue Jackets would be remiss if they didn't do everything within their power to obtain protection against that eventuality -- which this deal provides.

Some argue that the $6 million in Year 3 represents a major capitulation by the club.  That's not how I see it.  First, with an AAV of only $4.0 million for the three years, the club is clearly getting value from Johansen's services. That cap hit ranks seventh on the club.  Ask yourself the question " Johansen at $4.0 or Umberger at $4.6?"  and the point crystallizes quickly.   Additionally -- and as absurd as it may sound -- $6 million is just not that much money in the scheme of things -- and certainly won't be in three years.  On a salary basis (not AAV), there are 77 NHL players making $6 million or more today. Given the fact that the CBA artificially created a "re-set"  reduction in the salary cap, and if past history is any guide, the cap will grow significantly over the following three years, and with it, the salary expectations of players.  So, while a $6 million salary might put you in the top 12% of NHL players today, that's likely to be only a top 25% number in three years.  As many others have noted, if Johansen lives up to expecations, the $6 million number is irrelevant -- he'll be making far more than that, which the club will gladly pay.  If he fails to live up to expectations, the club has still paid only $4 million for him over the three years, and has the time to trade him, take him to arbitration, whatever.

Besides time, and preservation of the integrity of the CBA structure, the Blue Jackets gain necessary predictability of their salary structure over what promises to be a tumultuous few years for salary cap management.  Bobrovsky, Foligno, Atkinson, Calvert, Anisimov, Jenner, Murray, Prout, Erixon, Savard, Goloubef, Tropp and Gibbons all have contracts coming due over the next two years, so some big decisions need to be made . . . and some significant raises handed out.  So, while Columbus appears to have a big cap surplus now, that will disappear quickly.  Such is the downside of having a young team.  On the positive side, the club has set some clear precedent for the players coming off of their entry level deals.

In the finaly analysis, the Blue Jackets seem to have clearly accomplished more of what they wanted to acheive in this deal than the Johansen camp did.  While there was certainly some acrimony generated during the process, there is really little reason to think that it will have a long term impact on the squad.  Johansen will be measured by his performance on the ice over the next three years, and will be rewarded in keeping with his contributions.  Time to play hockey.

Adam Cracknell Claimed by Blue Jackets

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Tragic news today, as forward Adam Cracknell was claimed on waivers by the Columbus Blue Jackets. This is a pretty good opportunity for Cracknell to actually see playing time. Columbus badly needs forward depth with Nathan Horton, Boone Jenner, and Brandon Dubinsky all currently injured. Cracknell will get a spot in the bottom six, possibly at center.

First Jack Johnson, then Matt Frattin, and now this?? Columbus might want to consider using a different scout to cover the LA area. Just a suggestion.

Share your favorite memory of Cracknell's time with the Kings in the comments. Mine is an Lakingsinsider commenter praising the acquisition by calling Cracknell (he of the 1 point in 10 career playoff games) a "proven playoff performer." Because yeah, the Kings really need to raid the Blues system for those.

Why Can't We Have Nice Things?!? Dubinsky Sidelined Indefinitely

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In yet another stinging blow, the Blue Jackets have placed center Brandon Dubinsky on IR with a lower body injury.

As if going the entire pre-season without Ryan Johansen, Ryan Murray, and Nathan Horton while also losing Boone Jenner to a broken hand weren't all enough, the Blue Jackets announced today that center Brandon Dubinsky has been placed on injured reserve with a lower body injury, and is out indefinitely.

The team claimed forward Adam Cracknell off of waivers from the Kings as well, though he cannot possibly be a replacement. Looks like Alexander Wennberg might have a chance to get some run at center after all.

Devils in the Details - 10/8/2014: 23 Edition

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New Jersey Devils & Related Hockey Links for 10/8/14

Your links for today:

Devils Links

The Devils have a 23-man roster. [Fire and Ice] [Star-Ledger]

No more Ryan Carter. :( He was tired of waiting for a contract, so we signed with the Wild. Best of luck, Ryan! [Fire and Ice] [Star-Ledger]

The Devils signed Jordin Tootoo to a one-year deal Tuesday. [Fire and Ice] [Star-Ledger]

Ah, yes, the requisite "[insert GM name here] is happy with his roster" story: [Fire and Ice]

Sounds like Scott Gomez will wait around for a contract and a roster spot to open up. [Fire and Ice] [Star-Ledger]

D'aww:

Hockey Links

Things just got worse for the Hurricanes: Jeff Skinner has been diagnosed with a concussion.

[via Eye on Hockey]

The Rangers have named Ryan McDonagh as their captain. [PHT]

Ryan Johansen and the Columbus Blue Jackets have finally come to terms! He's been signed to a three-year deal. [PHT]

The CHL has folded, and the ECHL has absorbed seven former CHL teams. [Puck Daddy]

Feel free to discuss these and any other hockey-related stories in the comments below.


Quick Strikes for Wednesday, October 8

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The return of the Syracuse Crunch, the lack of star power in hockey broadcasts, and a tutorial on how to use one of the Extra Skater replacements are just some of the things in our Quick Strikes for Wednesday, October 8.

  • The Edmonton Oilers grew a little bit in size during the off-season, with the help of some former Bolts. [Copper & Blue]
  • You may have seen the interview of USA Hockey's Hilary Knight by Puck Daddy on Monday. There are a few more things they could have asked. [Puckology]
  • The Syracuse Crunch return to the War Memorial today after their journey in France. Here's how you can see them this week. [Syracuse.com]
  • Football broadcasts have Tony Dungy, Terry Bradshaw, and Jimmy Johnson. Baseball broadcasts have Cal Ripken Jr., Pedro Martinez, and Randy Johnson. But hockey broadcasts seem to lack true star power. [Toronto Sun]
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets look to leave a powerful impression on the NHL this year, but could defense be the thing that hinders them this year? [BS Hockey]
  • Ryan McDonagh was named the 27th captain in New York Rangers history on Monday. Here, he gives his thoughts on taking over the captaincy from new Lighting forward Ryan Callahan. [Ranger Rants]
  • Adrian Dater, a beat writer for the Colorado Avalanche, was suspended by the Denver Post for some rather colorful comments on Twitter. [Denver Post]
  • There was a noticeable void left when Extra Skater went offline. War on Ice boasts some of the same features, and here they show you how to utilize those features. [War on Ice]

Quick Hits: Red Wings' Hockey Season Has Officially Arrived!

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Due to scholastic endeavors, today's Quick Hits is going to be a bit shorter than usual.

Red Wings News

Pavel Datsyuk officially out for Red Wings opener; Andrej Nestrasil likely to make NHL debut | MLive.com
It will be interesting to see what happens when Datsyuk does return and the Wings have to open up a roster spot. Is Jurco sent back to Grand Rapids because he is waiver exempt (highly doubtful), or is Nestrasil waived? The latter will probably, and should, be the case. But, you never know.

Mike Babcock: Ken Holland and I disagree every year | Detroit Free Press

As I said yesterday, I would not read into Babcock's comments too much. He has a boss who he has to listen to, and the same goes for Holland. They will have disagreements, but, that does not mean that Babcock's tenure in Detroit is coming to an end.

Griffins Trim Roster To 24 | Grand Rapids Griffins

The Griffins are finalizing their roster as they prepare for their season.

Red Wings Fly Into New Season | PuckBuddys
I like the end: "Maybe Detroit will find their wings and fly".

Helene St. James: Red Wings no longer Cup favorites, but there’s cause for optimism | Detroit Free Press

If we can remain relatively healthy this season, and some of our young players can develop, I think we can make a push for the Eastern Conference Finals. This may seem really bold, but the East is fairly weak this season when compared to the Western Conference. Anything is possible.

NHL News

3 things we learned from Boston's 2-1 win over Philadelphia - SBNation.com
The only thing that you need to know about the Bruins is that they are losing tonight.

Brandon Dubinsky to miss six weeks as Blue Jackets' injury woes continue | Puck Daddy
Another one bites the dust...

Mike Milbury says it’s time to ‘grow up’ and ban fighting (Video) | Puck Daddy
I used to be fervently against the banning of fighting. Right now, I do not have a major opinion on the matter. This is partially because I just re-read the Code of Hammurabi, which puts these things into perspective. Honestly, if the NHL chose to ban fighting, I would not complain (nor would I support the league in its action).

Pronger declines comment on report he’s top candidate for NHL disciplinary job | ProHockeyTalk
Oh, the irony. Chris Pronger may be getting a job with the NHL's disciplinary department.

Video: Kings celebrate 2013-14 Stanley Cup championship | ProHockeyTalk
I cannot wait until the Wings are doing this next season!

Let's Go Red Wings!

Thursday Habs Links: A brand new start for the Canadiens

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Here are your daily links, including all of the pregame interviews and stories before opening night in Toronto, what Bob McKenzie thinks of the Habs, the opportunities available for non-roster Habs, and more.

Montreal Canadiens Links

  • Opening night was on Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Over the last few years we have grown accustomed to seeing the Maple Leafs and the Habs start things off for their respective seasons, but it wasn't always the Leafs. Canadiens.com breaks down the Habs history of season-opening rivalries for us. [Canadiens]
  • If you missed last night's game, and are looking for the highlights, don't forget to check out the Top Six Minutes. [EOTP]
  • A new season has begun and that means new players will emerge. Last year, the Habs opening night roster featured players such as George Parros, Douglas Murray, and Raphael Diaz, to name a few. Things change over the course of the season, however, and by the end of the season Diaz had been traded, Parros was not playing at all, and Murray was only playing sporadically, in favor of up and comer Nathan Beaulieu and newcomer Mike Weaver. Point being, there will be lots of opportunities for every player to stake their claim for a roster spot. Internal competition is a very good thing and Habs fans everywhere should be thrilled that we have it. [Canadiens]
  • Hear what TSN Insider Bob McKenzie had to say about the Montreal Canadiens prior to the season opener on Wednesday when he joined Connor McKenna on TSN 690 Montreal. (Hint: this is good news for the Habs.) [TSN]
  • Carey Price and his wife Angela were awarded the Jean Beliveau Trophy this past Saturday to acknowledge their unwavering dedication to the community of Montreal through community service and other charitable endeavors. The Award is given annually to the player judged to be the most giving to the community off the ice. See what Dave Stubbs had to say about the Price family. [Montreal Gazette]
  • Prior to the game, head coach Michel Therrien talked to the media about the game against the Leafs and about the team in general moving forward in 2014-2015. It looks like everybody is excited to kick things off, I know I am! [RDS] (French)
  • Bleacher Report gives us some bold predictions for the Habs this year. It looks like they really believe in them. See what they predict will happen. [Bleacher Report]
  • Mitch Melnick chimed in with his first game recap of the season, he really loved what Plekanec brought. [Melnick]

Outside of Montreal

  • The opening night rosters for every team are set as the season kicks off on Wednesday night. Know your enemy, check out all 30 team's rosters right here. [NHL]
  • Really bad news for the Columbus Blue Jackets came Wednesday as star forward Brandon Dubinsky will be out at least six weeks after undergoing abdominal surgery. Dubinsky was projected to be the Blue Jackets second-line center behind Ryan Johansen. The 28-year old put up 16 goals and 34 assists for 50 points and also chipped in 98 PIM in 76 games last year. [Union and Blue]
  • See what the Maple Leafs' SB Nation site had to say about the Leafs prior to the annual season opener against the Habs. [Pension Plan Puppets]
  • Have you ever wondered how 4th lines can really help teams? I am sure most of us think that the 4th lines are just there to be "tough" and give the top guys a rest for a couple of minutes right? Well, our very own Arik Parnass tells us how the 4th line can really maximize a team's output overall. [AP Hockey]
  • Gary Bettman said on Wednesday that there are no immediate plans to expand or relocate any teams. Something almost happened last year though, it was only one vote shy of happening. [SB Nation]

Buffalo Sabres vs. Columbus Blue Jackets preview: The season begins

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The 2014-15 Sabres hockey season gets underway tonight at home against the Blue Jackets. Hockey is back, people!

Game #1!

Buffalo Sabres (0-0-0) vs. 
Columbus Blue Jackets(0-0-0)

Puck Drop -7:00pm EST | First Niagara Center | Buffalo, NY
TV - MSG, Bell-TV|Radio - WGR 550 - AM
SB Nation Blue Jackets Blog - The Cannon

Three Questions

1. Hockey!
That's not a question.

Hockey?
Yes, it's back! But let's go with a real question here.

How will #2 pick Sam Reinhart look in his NHL debut?
Reinhart had a fairly quiet preseason, but now things will ramp up another notch, both for the young center and his opponents. Reinhart's getting the free nine-game tryout, but can he do enough to convince the coaching staff he deserves to stay for the other 73? To do so, he'll have to make an impact early and often, and it all starts tonight. He's on a line with talented players in Cody Hodgson and Brian Gionta, and should get to play against choice competition on the third line. Let's see what the kid can do.

2. Whose youngsters will perform better?
The Sabres and Jackets are the two youngest teams in the league, with Columbus being slightly younger. Both teams have very young players in key roles, and whichever team's youth movement can rise to the occasion will likely have a big outcome on this game.

For the Sabres, that means Sam Reinhart, Zemgus Girgensons, and Rasmus Ristolainen. For the Blue Jackets, it's Marco Dano, and Alexander Wennberg. Let the battle of the babies begin.

3. Can the Sabres do anything tonight to convince us they'll be a different team in 2014 than they were in 2013?
Last year was awful for the Sabres team and their fans, but starting tonight, that's all in the past. This year will be different, but how different? Tonight might not be a preview of how the rest of the season will shake out, but it's a chance for the Sabres to raise a few eyebrows and get things started on the right foot. Of course, if they lay an egg, it's also an opportunity to prove all the naysayers right.

Win or lose, the 2014-15 Buffalo Sabres season starts tonight. Welcome back, hockey.

Projected BUF lines*

Moulson - Ennis - Stafford
Foligno - Girgensons - Stewart
Hodgson - Reinhart - Gionta
Deslauriers - McCormick - Flynn

Gorges - Myers
Benoit - Meszaros
Weber - Ristolainen

Goal:Jhonas Enroth

Scratches/Injuries: Mitchell, Kaleta, Pysyk, McCabe, Zadorov, Strachan
* These were just the lines in practice yesterday. We'll have to wait until tonight for confirmation on the playing roster.

Projected CBJ lines

Hartnell - Anisimov - Dano
Foligno - Johansen - Atkinson
Calvert - Letetsu - Wennberg
Skille - Chaput - Boll/Tropp

Johnson - Savard
Erixon - Wisniewski
Tyutin - Prout

Goal:Bobrovsky

Opening Day Musings

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Hockey is back for real, including all of the little things that we tend to overlook in the hunt for wins and losses.

Hockey is back.  After 117 days with only trades, free agent signings and injuries to sate my hockey thirst, the NHL is back on the ice.  Last night, watching Boston edge Philadelphia, while checking in on Toronto/Montreal felt good, as if the order of things had been restored.  Seeing that some of my fantasy team players started off the season well was fun. Listening to Bob MacKenzie discuss some of the inside story lines from the NHL was gratifying.  Unlike other professional sports, I didn't have to listen to the roster of recent arrests for domestic violence, drunk driving . . . or worse. I didn't hear about the latest suspensions for violations of the substance abuse policy.  The Ryan Johansen saga was the major off-ice distraction in the NHL this off-season, and the "juiciest" piece of gossip seemed to be speculation as to which coach would be fired first.  (Consensus appeared to be Carlyle, Capuano, McClellan and Hitchcock, in that order).

For a wide variety of reasons -- some good, some not so good -- the Blue Jackets are a topic of conversation around the league.  After their playoff run last year,  many are picking them to go deep in the playoffs.  The negatives of the Ryan Johansen soap opera are fading as he returned to camp.   Replacing that tale are the litany of  injuries that have made the club more a  M*A*S*H  unit than hockey club.  With Brandon Dubinksy having gone from a "tweak" and "maintenance" day to abdominal surgery in 36 hours was unsettling to many, coming on the heels of the Boone Jenner broken hand and the Nathan Horton back injury that has never been fully explained, but does not appear destined for anything approaching a rapid resolution.

Such is the life of pro sports.  Last year, Bobrovsky, Jenner, Foligno, Calvert, Horton, Dubinsky, Tyutin and Murray all missed significant time, and the club found a way to prevail.  With Wennberg and Dano, there is some real skill at the club's disposal this year, which should make the injury toll more bearable.  There's also this guy named Bobrovsky, who can equalize any game.  We are going to need to adjust our "injury translators" to decipher what club officials mean when they talk about injuries.  If "tweak" = surgery, then heaven help us if  Richards ever says that an injury looks "serious".  "He's stable" could mean "he's dead."  But I digress.

As I was watching my San Francisco Giants put away the heavily-favored Washington Nationals the other night in Game 4 of the NLDS, some comparisons between that club and the Blue Jackets came to mind.  The Giants have few true headliner names on the roster -- Buster Posey being the prime example.  While the Blue Jackets have lots of names that folks will recognize, the true "star power" really extends only to Bobrovsky, and perhaps Johansen, at this point.   Both clubs have been victimized by injuries.  Yet somehow they find a way to get the job done.  The Nationals'  pitching largely silenced the Giants' bats, so they manufactured runs.  The series-winning "rally" consisted of a single, a sacrifice, a fly ball out and a wild pitch.  Good stuff, and reminiscent of some goals by guys named Dubinsky and Foligno in the playoffs last year.

Part of the joy of this time of year is the fact that all teams have a clean slate, and what seems to be the inevitable result on paper somehow never materializes.  San Jose shuts out the Kings 4 - 0 on L.A.'s "banner raising" night -- who knew?  As we get ready to watch the puck drop in Buffalo tonight, the only thing that is guaranteed is that over the next 82 games, there will be guys and teams who will surprise, and guys and teams who will disappoint.  Once the playoffs start, all bets are off.  The Kings keep proving that, and eventually people will get it.  If your team has a hot goalie in April, May & June, it doesn't matter that you snuck in as the #8 seed in the Conference.  Chances are good that you'll be sipping champagne from the Stanley Cup in 248 days.

Hockey is a great game, and I know I'm going to see a lot of outstanding hockey this season.  Sure, I'm hoping that most of that is played by the Blue Jackets, and I have a hunch that they won't disappoint, despite the injury bug.  They have never had an healthy Nathan Horton, so that is no change.  They have some terrific young forwards to help pick up the slack, and significant cap space and other assets if they need to go shopping.  Regardless, Nationwide is going to be a great place to watch hockey this year, and the rest of the NHL is going to provide some fireworks as well.

I say this every year, and I'm going to keep saying it.  Sure, root like hell for the club, and keep the Cup as the goal. But along the way, don't lose sight of the beauty and excitement of the game itself.  You're going to see some incredible games where the Blue Jackets lose, and some crappy games where they win.  Watch the other teams in the league, just to enjoy the game and learn more.  My goal is to catch at least part of 1,000 NHL games this season -- without NHL Center Ice.  Will I do it?  Probably not, but it'll be a helluva lot of fun trying.  Sure, there's nothing like the NHL Playoffs, but getting there is more than half the fun.  Don't let the vagaries of individual games, injuries and the inevitable turmoil distract you from the game itself.  It's a beautiful thing.

At the end of the day, it still boils down to this:  Enjoy the ride.  Go Jackets!

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