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Blue Jackets notebook: Mason is like a brick wall

Rookie goaltender's stellar play means he'll keep starting

Monday, November 10, 2008 - 3:04 AM

By Aaron Portzline

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

 

Until further notice, the Blue Jackets' go-to goaltender is rookie Steve Mason.  Coach Ken Hitchcock said yesterday that Mason, off to a 3-0 start in his NHL career, will start Wednesday when the Blue Jackets play host to the Phoenix Coyotes in Nationwide Arena.

 

Mason made 22 saves Saturday in the Blue Jackets' 3-1 victory over Calgary, the Jackets' third straight win and the sixth straight game in which they earned at least a point.  The emergence of Mason means the Blue Jackets have two of the NHL's top four rookie scorers -- Derick Brassard has 13 points and Jake Voracek nine -- and the league's top-ranked rookie goaltender.

 

Read more at:

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/sports/stories/2008/11/10/jackets10.ART_ART_11-10-08_C9_19BRGED.html?sid=101

 

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The end of two streaks at Nationwide Arena last night: The Blue Jackets six game point streak and Mason's three game winning streak.  Phoenix Coyotes howl over the Jackets 5-2.  Banking another home win would have been nice.  The Jackets play back-to-back road games Friday and Saturday at Buffalo and Minnesota.

Great looking 6-1 win for the Blue Jackets at Buffalo tonight.  Leclaire returns to the net from his injury and looks good.  First period scoring spree put the Jackets up 4-0 before the Sabres scored.  The Sabres backup goalie gave up 4 goals on 8 shots and was pulled!  Important for the Jackets to win this first of back-to-back road games.  CBJ flies directly to Minnesota for tomorrow night's game.

Nash makes a great individual steal of the puck to tie Minnesota 2-2 and send the game into overtime.  Mason looked very good between the pipes.  Minnesota wins the shootout, but getting a point on the road, in the second of back-to-back games, is still a good result for the Jackets.

  • 2 weeks later...

Rough week for the Blue Jackets.  Despite playing well, Columbus drops two consecutive games.  The Jackets led during both games but lost 3-2 to Phoenix at home and 5-3 (w/empty net goal) to the Detroit Red Wings on the road. 

 

The Blue Jackets rebounded with a strong 3-0 win over the Washington Capitals and Alexander the Great.  Torres got his first goal as a Blue Jacket.  Nash gets two goals including a short-handed breakaway.  Rookie goalie Mason gets his second shutout in his last three starts. 

 

The Jackets face Vancouver at Nationwide Arena on Monday.

Great game tonight.  The Blue Jackets down Vancouver, one of the best teams in the western conference.  Columbus rallies from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to take a 3-2 lead in the third period.  Huselius scored the game-winning goal on a powerplay from a sweet Nash pass.  CBJ and Mason withstand a final Vancouver powerplay with an extra attacker in the final minute to preserve the victory.

 

An important home win for the Jackets.  Columbus will be on a three-game west coast road trip for the rest of the week.

Columbus's third goal by Huselius was a thing of beauty.

So should i be dropping Leclaire and adding mason to my fantasy roster now?!

^Mason looks to be the go-to-goalie for right now, with Leclaire still starting in spots.  Coach Hitchcock probably doesn't want to name a rookie goalie as his "official" number one starter.  But the better Mason plays, the more he will start.  And Mason's been playing very well.

Rough three-game West Coast trip for the Blue Jackets.  Three games - three losses.  First game was a good effort at San Jose (one of the best teams currently) in a 3-2 loss.  Followed up by a 3-0 loss at the LA Kings in one of their worst performances so far.  The third loss was 5-3 at Anaheim.  Better effort but still no points in the standings.

 

The Jackets face divisional rival Nashville tomorrow and the NY Islanders on Saturday at home.  They travel to Chicago on Sunday.  The Jackets can't afford to fall to far behind in the playoff race.

I will be thrilled if they just make it to the playoffs. 

 

Can you imagine what it would be like if they won the Stanly Cup the same year the Crew won the MLS Championship?  Maybe I should say season.

Good at home, not so much on the road last week for the Blue Jackets.  Columbus started out by downing division rivals Nashville 2-1 in a shootout.  They followed up with a 3-1 win over the NY Islanders.  The Jackets win streak was stopped at Chicago with a 3-1 loss to the Blackhawks.

 

The Jackets face a red-hot San Jose team this Wednesday at Nationwide Arena and not-hot Dallas team the following day at Dallas.  They finish the road swing at Phoenix on Saturday.

Huge win against San Jose tonight with the Jackets winning 2-1 in overtime with Umberger getting the winning goal off a great saucer pass from Huselius on a 2-1 break.  They played them pretty tough in California and got a hard fought win tonight at home.  Their energy was great and Mason played a spectacular game with 47 saves!

 

This is a huge win for the Jackets and could be the turning point of their season.

Great come-from-behind win.  Outstanding game from Mason!  For some reason the Jackets have played great against San Jose.  Let's hope they follow up with win at a weaker Dallas team tonight.

The Blue Jackets playoff hopes take a major hit because of the "Disaster in Dallas".  The Jackets lose the game 6-5 in a shootout and lose outstanding rookie center Derick Brassard in a fight (see story above). 

 

Brassard's loss added with many other injuries contributed to an 0-2 defeat at Phoenix.  LA comes to town tomorrow.

The Blue Jackets follow up the Dallas and Phoenix defeats with a putrid 3-0 loss at home against LA.  The offense looked downright lethargic as they failed to score in their second straight game. 

The Blue Jackets looked great on Saturday in a 3-0 win at home against the Philadelphia Flyers.  The Jackets start a six game cross-country road trip tonight!  They'll need to play well to keep from being blown out of the playoff race.

"Jackets adapting without Brassard": http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/sports/stories/2009/01/02/jackets02.ART_ART_01-02-09_D1_9DCDC9K.html?sid=101

 

The Blue Jackets are riding a three game winning streak into Colorado tonight.  Three straight shutouts (3-0) against Phily at home and (2-0) at LA and (2-0) at Anaheim. 

 

Rookie phenom Steve Mason was in goal for all three shutouts.  Mason hasn't allowed a goal for the last 182 minutes, the longest shutout streak in club history.  Also, no rookie goalie has had three straight shutouts in the NHL since 1955.  On the strength of this performance, Mason was named the NHL's December Rookie of the Month (the second straight ROTM for Mase)!

 

A win tonight could vault Columbus over the Colorado Avs in Western Conference playoff standings.  The Jackets follow up with a Saturday game at St. Louis.

 

 

The Bad News: The Jackets goal shutout streak ends in the first period and Colorado takes a 1-0 lead.

 

The Good News: The Jackets score the next six goals to roll over the Avs 6-1.  Columbus jumps ahead of Colorado to #8 in the playoff race.

Call the Blue Jackets a team of survivors.  They are surviving a rash of injuries to key players - Nash, Huselius, Torres, Brassard, Klesa, LeClaire.  And they just survived their six game road trip. 

 

CBJ wins 4 of the 6 road games, finishing with a 3-0 win at Washington tonight.  Stellar goaltending from Steve Mason with 45 saves and his sixth shutout of the season (ties for the league lead). 

Blue Jackets knock off Minnesota tonight with a 4-2 win at Nationwide Arena.  The 18 year old rookie Filatov scores a hat trick.  Not bad for an injury call up! 

 

The win vaults Columbus ahead of Minnesota in the Western Conference playoff race.  Let's hope the Jackets can keep this up next week and that Nash can return to the lineup.

A little love for Steve Mason and the Blue Jackets from the New York Times.

 

Columbus Blue Jackets in the Hunt for Their First Playoff Berth

By JEFF Z. KLEIN and STU HACKEL, THE NEW YORK TIMES

Published: January 17, 2009

 

The Columbus Blue Jackets have been in existence for eight seasons, and they have never made the playoffs.  Only the Washington Capitals, who made their maiden playoff trip in their ninth season, had to wait longer for a spring awakening.  But now the Blue Jackets' fortunes could be changing.  And if they do, much of the credit must go to Steve Mason, a young goaltender who is having a phenomenal rookie campaign.

 

Mason, a rangy, butterfly-style goalie chosen by Columbus in the third round of the 2006 draft, had a terrific .936 save percentage, second only to Boston's Tim Thomas, through Friday's games.  He was named the N.H.L.'s rookie of the month for both November and December, and he ended 2008 with three straight shutouts, something no first-year goalie had done since Glenn Hall in 1955.

 

Read more at http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/18/sports/hockey/18slapshot.html

 

 

As stated in the above articles, the Blue Jackets are in the playoff hunt for the second straight season.  Last year's team fell apart after the All-Star break.  This year's team looks stronger - and the schedule is on their side going forward.  20 of the final 35 games are at home - only 7 back-to-back games remain. 

 

The Jackets just finished a difficult west Canada road trip with one win, one tie and one loss.  Here are some links to some recent articles on those games:

 

Jackets upbeat despite latest loss

 

Jackets optimistic at break: They remain in the thick of playoff chase despite a recent rash of injuries

 

Enjoy tonight's NHL All-Star Game.  It's 6PM on the Versus channel.

 

 

What a great game at Nationwide tonight!  The Blue Jackets downed the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 in overtime.  Hats off to captain Rick Nash - he scores all three Blue Jacket goals.

Columbus sweats out a close win again the Ottawa Senators last night at Nationwide Arena.  The Blue Jackets have won their second of four straight home games after the All-Star break. 

 

Blue Jackets 1 | Senators 0

Winning combination: Jackets defuse Senators' top line, Mason protects slim lead in tight third period

 

The hateable Dallas Stars are facing the Jackets tonight in another important game for our playoff hopes.  The first two games played at Dallas led to significant setbacks for the Jackets.  Game One led to a five-game suspension for Michael Peca and to Jared Boll sitting out many games due to the aftereffects of a long fight during that game.  Game Two at Dallas caused the season ending shoulder injury to rookie Derick Brassard.  Both teams are fighting for the Western Conference playoffs.  Given that and the rough history this year between us and Dallas, this should be a blast of a game tonight.  Go Jackets!

Well the Saturday game against Dallas was a blast...for Dallas.  They won easily 7-3.  The Blue Jackets followed up with a 4-2 home loss against St. Louis.  Two tough home losses that hurt Columbus in the playoff race.  Every team goes though ups and downs during a season, but at the end of the season the Jackets will probably wish they had those two games to play over.

 

CBJ will try to get back on track at Pittsburgh on Friday and back home Saturday against San Jose.  Back-up goalie Wade Dubielewicz is scheduled to start against the Penguins to give Mason a break. 

The Blue Jackets are on a mini-roll behind back-up goaltender Dan LaCosta.  LaCosta is filling in for Steve Mason, who has mono.  With LaCosta at goal the Jackets got an OT win against San Jose and a 3-0 win against Colorado last night.

 

The Blue Jackets face Detroit at home Friday, go to Carolina on Saturday and face Dallas at home Monday in a key playoff deciding match up.

Blue Jackets 3, Red Wings 2

Big confidence boost: Mason, Williams lock up pressure-packed finish

 

The Blue Jackets knock off the Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings for the second time this year.  The win pushes the Jackets above the playoff bar for now.  It looks like every week will be an above to below the playoff bar situation with each win, loss or tie.  The Western Conference is so close that only a few points separate 5th place from 12th place.  But the Jackets are in the race! 

Blue Jackets 4, Blues 3: A relapse and a recovery

A nailbiter of a win against St. Louis.  The win pushes the Jackets into sixth place in the Western Conference and puts them six games better than .500 (29-23-6) for the first time in franchise history.  The Jackets travel to Toronto tonight.  A win would be Coach Ken Hitchcock's 500th career win as a coach.

 

 

 

Blue Jackets 4, Maple Leafs 3 (SO)

 

A gutsy win by the Jackets in Toronto.  Columbus was playing their 5th game in 7 nights and they looked very tired.  But some timely goals from Nash, Huselius & Umburger and timely saves from Mason earned CBJ two key points in the playoff race. 

 

In this 5 game/7 night swing, the Jackets have earned 9 of a possible 10 points.  The win keeps the Jackets in sixth place.  The victory earns Coach Hitchcock his 500th career win.  Congrats Hitch!

^I'm steadily getting more and more excited about the Jackets playoff chances.  They are playing with a lot of heart right now and pulling out crucial victories.

Ducks 5 | Blue Jackets 2

 

The Blue Jackets ran out of gas after playing their sixth game in nine nights.  Despite the loss the Jackets remain at sixth place in the Western Conference.  After a brief rest, the Jackets embark on a three game Western Canadian road trip at Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver.

 

Blue Jackets 1, Oilers 0: Torres' goal helps him forget the pain

 

The Blue Jackets played a great game at Edmonton last night.  Strong hard checking defense shuts down the high flying Oilers - Mason only needs to stop 19 shots to register his 8th shutout of the season.  Former Oiler Rafi Torres gets the game's only goal.

 

This was a huge win.  An Oilers win would have vaulted them ahead of the Jackets in the playoff race.  The Jackets remain in 6th place with this victory.  CBJ will travel to 5th place Vancouver on Sunday.

Blue Jackets 5 | LA Kings 4

 

A must win for the Jackets playoff hopes.  CBJ almost blows it when the Kings score three quick goals in the second period to take a 4-3 lead.  The Jackets recovered to score the final two goals for the win.  Tomorrow is the trading deadline and the Jackets might be a buyer.  Stay tuned.

:clap: :clap: :clap:

 

I'm starting to get the playoff itch...

Was a great to see columbus take the lead back after giving up the 3 quick goals. Cant wait to buy my playoff tickets and make my first blue jackets game in 6 years

What is the arena atmosphere like at Jackets games?  Obviously the playoff run is exciting, but they still rank near the bottom in terms of attendance.

wow, I completely forgot that Columbus has an NHL team. Have they ever made the playoffs? How long have they been in the league?

What is the arena atmosphere like at Jackets games?  Obviously the playoff run is exciting, but they still rank near the bottom in terms of attendance.

Nationwide Arena has always had great atmosphere.  Last year's playoff collapse took a toll on the first half attendance figures.  But the second half attendance is much better - the recent home games have been standing room only sellouts.

 

wow, I completely forgot that Columbus has an NHL team. Have they ever made the playoffs? How long have they been in the league?

This is Columbus' ninth year.  And the Jackets have never made the playoffs.  The Jackets are currently the only NHL team to have never made the playoffs. (UNTIL THIS YEAR - HOPEFULLY!)

 

Luckily we got Zherdev from you guys, Tyutin is playing well, but Zherdev is leading the Rangers in points and has such great upside next to Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan.

 

The two things that I actually like about the Blue Jackets:

 

a) They finally have a decent sweater, their original was horrid.

 

b) I like that they use Youngstown as a minor league affiliate.. it's good they're trying to move to either the IHL or ECHL.

Good luck with Big Z!  Actually the Zherdev for Tyutin trade is really one of those trades that was "good for both teams".  The Jackets needed defensive help and Tyutin has been rock-solid. 

 

For all of Zherdev's talent, he was way too erratic to thrive under Coach Hitchcock's system.  Plus, the Jackets have a bevy of young talented forwards to replace Zherdev.  19-year-old Voracek is playing very well.  20-year-old Brassard was playing great until a season ending shoulder injury.  18-year-old Filatov even got a hat trick during a brief call up earlier.  As long as Nash gets resigned to a long-term deal this summer, the future looks bright for the Jackets.

The future is the young goalie they have, that kid Mason is sick.

 

I went to the Devils/Flyers game on Sunday, Brodeur is unbelievable.  Lundqvist needs to step it up, although, he's a stretch run kind of goalie.

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