The NHL is now on its Olympic Break.  The men's teams start playing in Sochi today.  The Blue Jackets are sending six of its players and personnel as part of the national teams.  It would have been seven if Marian Gaborik was healthy enough to play for Slovakia.

 

As it is, the four CBJ players are all playing for the Russian home team.  Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, center Artem Anisimov and defensemen Nikita Nikitin are all in their first Olympics.  Veteran defensemen Fedor Tyutin will be in his third Olympics.  Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen will be an Asst. GM for his native Finland.  Columbus head coach will be an Asst. Coach with Team USA.

 

Below is an article from the CBJ website about the Sochi games for the Blue Jackets who will be there.  Plus, a copy of the graphic on the home page to the CBJ website honoring everyone from the team:

 

CBJ: A closer look at Sochi 2014 and the Blue Jackets

 

Olympic recap for the Blue Jackets.  Turned out better for the management than the players.  Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen's Finland team got a Bronze medal.  Columbus head coach Todd Richards's USA team finished fourth - losing to Finland.  The Russian team got eliminated in the quarterfinals - losing to the U.S. in the prelims and getting eliminated by Finland.  Despite the disappointing showing of the Russian team, the Jackets on the roster played well.  More about it at http://bluejackets.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=96355

 

Bobrovsky had the biggest impact.  The two goals he gave up against the U.S. was the least given up against them in the prelim round.  He just couldn't stop T.J. Oshie in the shootout.  He followed that with a full game shutout against Norway and a partial game shutout in a relief appearance against Finland.

 

Tyutin might have had a bigger impact if his potential game-winning goal against the U.S. hadn't gotten disallowed.  Unfortunately, Tyutin's involvement came at price for the Jackets.  It was disclosed this weekend that Tyutin suffered an ankle injury during the Olympics and will miss 2-3 weeks.  More about it at http://bluejackets.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=705991

 

 

Rather than start a new thread, I thought I'd post this news here:

 

A Columbus-based pee-wee hockey team - The Ohio AAA Blue Jackets - won the Quebec International Pee-Wee Tournament last weekend.  This is a tournament for players age 13 and under.  It is the largest tournament of its kind in the world and is the hockey equivalent to the Little League World Series in baseball.  On Saturday, the AAA Blue Jackets defeated a team from Switzerland for the championship.

 

More about the young team and the tournament from the Columbus Blue Jackets website (which included game recaps of the tournament games) and a Dispatch editorial praising the team:

 

http://bluejackets.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=706223

 

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/editorials/2014/02/25/kudos-to-young-hockey-champs.html

The NHL is restarting its season after the Olympic Break.  And its a sprint to the finish.  The Jackets will play 24 games in 45 days.  On Thursday they travel to New Jersey for their first post-Olympics game, then back in Columbus on Saturday against Florida.  The next two weeks features four games per week.  The 24 remaining regular season games are equally split between 12 home and 12 away.  One of great things about the Jackets moving from the Western Conference into the East is that the team has finished with their allottment of far west road trips.  All 12 remaining road games will be in the eastern or central time zones and Dallas is the western-most road game.

 

The Jackets were overtaken in the Metro Division standings by Philadelphia (who won four straight before the break) and are 3 points behind the third divisional playoff spot.  However, the Jackets are 9th in the overall conference standings and are only 1 point behind the second wild-card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference - currently being held by Detroit.  Full conference standings at http://espn.go.com/nhl/standings/_/group/2

 

The Olympic Break allowed the Jackets to heal up some.  Although Tyutin's injury during the Olympics negated that some:

• D-man James Wisniewski suffered a broken pinkie toe before the break.  The break allowed this injury to heal up enough for him to stay in the lineup.

• High-scoring forward Marian Gaborik has essentially been out since mid-November - suffering a broken collarbone on his one game back on December 21st.  The broken collarbone has now healed enough to allow him to fully practice with the team this weekend.  He expects to be back in the lineup for Thursday's game.

• As stated earlier, d-man Fedor Tyutin suffered an ankle injury during his play on the Russian Olympic team and will likely be out of the lineup for the next two weeks.  Fortunately, the Jackets are pretty deep at defense.  Dalton Prout has been called up from Springfield to take Tyutin's place.  And Cody Goloubef and Tim Erixon are also available if needed.

If the post-Olympic stretch of games can be called a sprint, then the Jackets stumbled badly from the starting block.  The Jackets were down 3 goals to the Devils only 9 minutes into last night's game!  After that, the Jackets fought back to get within one goal with an Anisimov goal in the first and a Gaborik goal in the second (Gaby's first game back after a long absence).

 

Then, with less than a minute remaining in the second, New Jersey committed a penalty to give the Jackets a power play and a chance to tie it up.  Instead, Jack Johnson commits a terrible turnover only a few seconds into the power play.  The turnover leads to a breakaway for a NJ skater and a short-handed goal to put the Devils up 4-2.  That seemed to deflate the Jackets comeback.  They never really threatened in the third and a late empty-netter clinched it for New Jersey.

 

This loss makes Saturday's home game against Florida a "virtual must-win".  It's a home game plus Florida is the second-worst team in the East.  In the playoff standings, Detroit has won two straight post-Olympic games and is now 5 points ahead of the Jackets.  A Philadelphia loss last night keeps the Jackets only 3 points behind them for third in the Metro, with 1 game-in-hand for the Jackets.

The Jackets badly needed a win against Florida this afternoon.  And they got it (and finally win #30).  If you only look at the final 6-3 score, you'd think the Jackets won easily.  They didn't.  The win came in a game that featured highs, lows and inconsistent play.

 

The highs: Columbus took a 2-0 lead and scored on their first three power plays of the game.

 

The lows:  Columbus gave up that two-goal lead and allowed Florida to score three goals on their first 9 shots-on-goal.

 

The eventual game-winning goal came with 10 seconds remaining in the second period.  Florida was on a power play.  Artem Anisimov knocked the puck into the corner of the Florida zone.  Then fought off two Florida players to drive on the Panthers net and beat their goaltender for a great individual short-handed goal.  The Jackets maintained the one goal advantage until they scored two empty-netters in the final minute.

 

http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/boxscore?gameId=400485148

I would so love to see the Jackets make a run through the playoffs. The fans deserve it!!

These next two weeks might make or break the Jackets playoff hopes.  Two straight 4-game weeks with 5 of the 8 games on the road.

 

- This week:  At Toronto tonight; back home against Dallas tomorrow - then at Chicago on Thursday and at Nashville on Saturday.

 

- Next week:  At Dallas on Monday; back home against Detroit on Tuesday - then at home against San Jose on Thursday and at Minnesota on Saturday.

 

Six of those seven teams are above the playoff line in their respective conferences.  And the one that isn't - Nashville - has always given the Jackets a hard time.

It may be winter outside, but it felt like fall because the Jackets swept the Leafs (winning 3 of 3 in the season series).  Obviously, it was a big 2-1 win last night for the Jackets, as they stay only a few points below the eastern playoff line.

 

The first period didn't look go so good last night in Toronto.  The Jackets gave up two minor power plays to the Leafs and suffered a major injury in the period.  Talented rookie d-man Ryan Murray got his leg pinned awkwardly against the boards with 2 minutes left in the first.  Murray limped to the bench, went directly to the locker room and did not return - leaving the Jackets with just five d-men for the rest of the game.

 

Despite this, the Jackets had a dominating second period, outshooting the Leafs 12 to 5.  The first goal of the night came on an outside slap shot from Jackets d-man Dalton Prout (his first goal of the season too).  Later a Russian connection scored what would be the game-winning goal.  D-man Nikitin saw a wide-open Anisimov to the side of the Toronto goal.  Nikitin's hard pass found Anisimov's stick, who popped the puck into the net to put the Jackets up 2-0. -- The Leafs fought back in the third, getting a goal with 4:15 remaining.  But that was as close as it got. -- Bobrovsky has a solid game with 28 saves, but the biggest save of the night came from Ryan Johansen.  Halfway in the first, the puck dribbled thru Bob and stopped on the goal line.  RyJo swooped in and knocked the puck away, preventing an early Toronto lead.  See it at the 0:25 mark in the video at http://www.jacketscannon.com/videos/2014/3/4/5469254/blue-jackets-2-maple-leafs-1-game-highlights

 

EDIT: Better video of the RyJo save at http://prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/03/blue-jackets-give-leafs-third-straight-loss/#

 

The Jackets face Dallas at Nationwide Arena tonight.  The Stars are also playing on short rest having beaten Buffalo last night in Dallas.  So it's a big game in the playoff picture for both teams.  The Jackets will likely be without Ryan Murray tonight.  Let's hope he's not out for too long.  Losing both Tyutin and Murray leaves the d-lines thin.

Another big win last night for the Jackets (although every win will be big during this push for the playoffs).  This game was the inverse of Monday's game at Toronto.  This time the Jackets were ready from the go, scoring three times in the first to lead 3-0 after one period.  They got an early goal from Boone Jenner only 1:14 into the first on a beautiful sniping shot.  Then two gritty goals in front of the net from Umberger at even strength and then Anisimov on a power play.

 

After that, the Jackets survived a scoreless second period where they were outshot 12 to 1 and two Dallas goals early in the third.  The Jackets held on to the one goal lead for the rest of the third until Anisimov got his second goal of the night with 4:07 left to clinch the 4-2 victory.  Last night's win - plus a Detroit loss - vaulted Columbus above the playoff line for the second Eastern Conference wild-card spot: http://espn.go.com/nhl/standings/_/group/2.  And also tied in points with the Rangers for third in the Metro division.

 

Today is the NHL's trade deadline day.  So there might be some roster moves.  The most likely player to be moved by the Jackets is Marian Gaborik.  He's not under contract after this season and might be valuable to a western playoff team as a rental.  The Jackets have played well without Gaby in the lineup and given the recent injuries on defense, he might get traded for a veteran defenseman on a similar expiring contract.

CBJ trade RW Marian Gaborik to L.A. Kings for RW Matt Frattin and two draft picks

 

- Matt Frattin is a 26-year-old forward who has played parts of 3 seasons (82 games in total) with Toronto.  Toronto traded him to L.A. last summer and Frattin has played 40 games (2 goals, 4 assists) with L.A. this season.  He's a restricted free agent at the end of this season.

 

- Draft pick #1 is a 2nd round pick that was originally Toronto's

 

- Draft pick #2 is a conditional 3rd round pick that was originally Edmonton's (so it would be high in the round).  The Jackets would get this pick only if the Kings win a playoff series or if the Kings resign Gaborik.

 

Surprising that the Jackets didn't get a defenseman in return.  But the picks aren't bad.  Frattin looks like a lower line depth player that may not factor in the CBJ's future.  The Dispatch's CBJ beat reporter had the following comments about the Gaborik trade on his twitter feed:

 

Aaron Portzline‏@Aportzline·18 mins ago

"If this trade return doesn't make it obvious enough ... this was not a "hockey" trade, per se. This was one team, #CBJ, unloading a player."

 

Aaron Portzline‏@Aportzline·17 mins ago

"Gaborik was an East-West player on a North-South #CBJ team. #CBJ thought it would work, but it was never a good fit on the ice."

 

Aaron Portzline‏@Aportzline·17 mins ago

"Only fair to add this, though, and it's genuine. #CBJ players really liked Gaborik, and the feeling was mutual. He loved Columbus, too."

Sounds like a lot of people saw this coming, or at least something like this, even if not specifically what we would get in return.  Shame to have to do that to a guy who sounds like he really actually wasn't looking for an out.

 

I do sometimes wonder what a lot of the CBJ players think of the city of Columbus overall.  A lot of them are from halfway around the world.  I don't know if we have anyone from the Midwest, let alone Ohio, though I know Umberger played at OSU.

One trade left for the CBJ:  Fifth-round pick traded to Edmonton Oilers for defenseman Nick Schultz

 

- Nick Schultz is a 31-year-old veteran defenseman who has played 12 seasons in Minnesota and Edmonton.  He's a proto-typical "stay-at-home defensman".  He will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season.

 

Smart move by the Jackets.  With Tyutin out and Murray day-to-day with his injury, this is just the type of defenseman the team needed.  Now I see why no d-man came back in the L.A. trade.

Sounds like a lot of people saw this coming, or at least something like this, even if not specifically what we would get in return.  Shame to have to do that to a guy who sounds like he really actually wasn't looking for an out.

These trades happen all the time around the NHL trading deadline.  Especially as contracts are expiring and the player either won't re-sign with the team or isn't in the team's future plans.  There are feelings involved, but ultimately, it's a business.

 

 

I do sometimes wonder what a lot of the CBJ players think of the city of Columbus overall.  A lot of them are from halfway around the world.  I don't know if we have anyone from the Midwest, let alone Ohio, though I know Umberger played at OSU.

Almost every player who has come through Columbus has had positive things to say about the city.  Married players with children seem to like the suburbs and their schools.  Younger single players seem to like the Arena District and Short North.  Nationwide Arena is one of the few NHL arenas with the team practice rink next to the main arena - so many of the single players have apts/condos near the arena, which must be nice.

 

The team has four Russians (most of any NHL team) and alot of Canadian-born players.  But two of the team's highest paid defenseman are from neighboring states.  James Wisniewski was born and still lives in Michigan.  Jack Johnson was born in Indianapolis and played college hockey for Michigan.

Sounds like a lot of people saw this coming, or at least something like this, even if not specifically what we would get in return.  Shame to have to do that to a guy who sounds like he really actually wasn't looking for an out.

These trades happen all the time around the NHL trading deadline.  Especially as contracts are expiring and the player either won't re-sign with the team or isn't in the team's future plans.  There are feelings involved, but ultimately, it's a business.

 

Of course, but it has to be a lot easier to shed salary and/or style ("East-West" vs. "North-South," as described above) when you're also shedding someone who was just iffy on the club and/or the city.

The Jackets Cannon website has some analysis and commentary on the team's two trade day deals (links below):

• Marian Gaborik Traded to Kings

• Jackets Acquire Nick Schultz from Oilers

There's not much question about the rental of defenseman Nick Schultz for the low price of 5th round pick.  This fills an immediate need.  And having an extra veteran d-man for a playoff run is never a bad idea.  But Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen is taking some heat for the Gaborik trade.

 

Last season's trade deadline deal with the Rangers to acquire Gaborik was seen - at the time - as a big piece to the Jackets playoff push last season and big addition to the Jackets lineup this season.  It never turned out that way.  Gaborik gave the team a boost last year, at first.  But his production seemed to ebb toward the end of last season.  It was suspected that he was playing through an injury.  This was confirmed when Gaborik had off-season surgery to fix a groin pull. -- This season started out okay, but then he suffered a knee sprain in mid-November and then a broken collarbone on his first game back on December 21st.  He ended up only playing 22 out of 62 games for the Jackets this season.

 

Gaborik's acquisition was an experiment to add a skilled goal scorer to team of gritty grinders to boost scoring.  His injuries short-circuited that experiment.  And, as it turned, the gritty grinders of last season started scoring this season.  Even without Gaborik for most of this season, the Jackets rank 7th in goals.  So the Jackets really don't seem to need Gaby's production to score goals now.  Which is why he was dealt for, essentially, draft picks.

 

The heat that Kekalainen is getting is that the Jackets gave up Brassard, Dorsett and Moore to acquire Gaborik.  Three productive players who are still playing for the Rangers.  On paper this makes trading away Gaborik for a 2nd round and a 3rd round pick look bad. -- But there is another way to view this.  Moving Brassard, Dorsett and Moore freed up playing time for Johansen, Jenner and Savard - who have played great this season and are positional upgrades over the players dealt away.  So if the Gaborik trade ultimately never helped the team, it probably didn't hurt the team either.  It was basically a gamble that never paid off.

Another one of the good things about the Jackets moving into the eastern conference from the west is that they only have to face the Chicago Blackhawks twice a year instead of 5 or 6 times.  Last night's game at Chicago reminded us why that's a good thing.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/6/5480210/game-63-recap-blackhawk-downed

 

The first period wasn't that bad, even with Chicago opening the scoring.  The Jackets quickly tied it up on a nifty fast break set up by quick passes from Prout to Atkinson to Johansen - who scored his 25th goal of the season.  But it was all downhill after that.  The Blackhawks regained the lead with a goal late in the first, and put it out of reach with three more goals in second en route to a 6-1 blowout. -- Adding injury to insult, d-man Nikitin left the game in the first period after getting a foreman to his face.  He tried returning in the second but had to leave for the remainder of the game.  Just what the Jackets don't need, another injury to the defense corps.

 

The only positive thing about last night was that Washington lost in regulation and Detroit lost in overtime.  So Columbus didn't get hurt much in the eastern playoff race.  Nothing left for the team to do but put this loss behind them and play better on Saturday at Nashville.

Argh!!!  This is terrible news about Murray.  In the last ten days, the team has lost the entire left side of its three defensive pairings.  First, Tyutin with his Olympics injury.  Then, Murray in last Monday's Toronto game.  Then, Nikitin in Thursday's Chicago game.  Of the three, only Nikitin looks close to returning.  He's out for tonight's game at Nashville.  But he is skating with the team and might return to the lineup for Monday's game at Dallas.

 

CBJ: Blue Jackets defenseman Ryan Murray to miss four to six weeks after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery

The Jackets needed to rebound from Thursday's ugly loss.  For Saturday's game at Nashville the lineup got a change.  New forward line combinations.  Atkinson and newcomer Frattin sat down as a healthy scratches.  Comeau and Tropp put in the gameday lineup.  It didn't led to more scoring, but did led to a needed victory.

 

Nashville outshot Columbus in the first period 14 to 5 and the Jackets survived a close call to keep the game scoreless.  After that the Jackets outshot the Preds 31 to 14 in the rest of the game.  The Jackets kept the pressure on, but the Preds goalie Pekka Rinne was at the top of his game and kept the game scoreless until 6:25 left in the third.  It was then that Artem Anisimov scored his 19th goal of the year - and his 6th in the last 6 games - on a beautiful give-and-go with Wisniewski.  It was the only goal of the game and enough for a 1-0 win.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/8/5486300/game-64-recap-triumph-jackets-predators-nhl

 

The win keeps the Jackets within one point of the Rangers for 3rd in the Metro and tied with Detroit for the 2nd wild card spot.

EDIT: The Rangers beat Detroit today.  So the Jackets are now two points behind Philadelphia for 3rd in the Metro.  But they now ahead of Detroit (by a tiebreak) for the 2nd wild card spot.

Monday night's game - with playoff implications for both the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Dallas Stars - got interrupted by real life.  The Jackets held a 1-0 lead with 13:37 left in the first period when the Dallas bench frantically tried to get the refs attention at the other end of the ice.  Once they did, play was stopped because a player had collapsed on the Dallas bench.

 

It turns out the player who collapsed was the Stars top-line forward Rich Peverley.  31-year-old Peverley had surgery in September to correct an irregular heartbeat that was discovered during his normal training camp physicals.  He missed all of the pre-season games but had played in 62 of the 64 regular season games.  Medical staff rushed Peverly to the locker room where they performed cardiac shock treatment to regulate his heartbeat.  He regained consciousness, became responsive and was transported to the hospital.

 

The players on both teams were understandably shaken by the incident.  Also, both clubs had Tuesday games -- Columbus at home vs. Detroit, and Dallas in St. Louis -- meaning that both teams faced significant flights.  So after an hour delay, the NHL decided to postpone the remainder of the game.  It's possible that the game will be rescheduled.  Although it's unclear when that might be.  The most likely scenario is that it could be a "play it if necessary" game after the end of the regular season.

 

The Jackets Cannon website had a thoughtful piece about last night's game simply entitled "Perspective" at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/10/5494210/perspective.  ProHockeyTalk also has more about this at the links below:

 

PHT: Peverley hospitalized, conscious after collapsing on Stars bench (Update)

 

PHT: NHL postpones Blue Jackets-Stars game following Peverley’s collapse

ESPN has much more about this at http://espn.go.com/dallas/nhl/story/_/id/10585935/rich-peverley-dallas-stars-collapses-ice-game-postponed

Columbus and Detroit played a game critical to each team's playoff hopes last night at Nationwide Arena.  With the events in Dallas of less then 24 hours prior to the puck drop, you could understand if the Jackets had a shaky start.  Detroit dominated much of the first period, with the Jackets taking three minor penalties in the first 12 minutes.  Detroit outshot the Jackets 18 to 8 in the period and scored first at the 10 minute mark.  Fortunately, Bobrovsky was keeping the Jackets in the game with some outstanding stops until the Jackets could get an equalizer with 4:49 left in the first on a tremendously gritty goal that he scored as he was falling to the ice. (see the below photo of the shot)

 

 

After that amazing goal, the Jackets started to gain the upper hand.  Detroit's roster has been devestated by injuries - even goalie Jimmy Howard was a late scratch tonight due to the flu.  And it started to show in the 2nd and 3rd periods when the Jackets outshot Detroit 29 to 22.  Still, the Red Wings held the Jackets off until 10 minutes into the third - when Boone Jenner scored a beautiful sniping shot to put the Jackets up 2-1.  Then 40 seconds later, Dubinsky extended the lead to 3-1.  Fittingly, the hard-working fourth line combined for MacKenzie's goal five minutes later to finish the scoring for the 4-1 final score.  Just a great all-around team win, led by Bob, Foligno, Boone and Dube.

 

Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/12/5499828/game-66-recap-breaking-through

The Columbus win and losses by Philadelphia, Washington and the New York Rangers last night dramatically helped the Jackets playoff chances.  Columbus vaulted over the wild-card spot they previously held and now hold 3rd place in the Metro division.  And only one point behind the Rangers for 2nd in the Metro.  Gotta keep winning - but its better to be chased than chasing in the NHL playoff race. 

 

Full standings at http://espn.go.com/nhl/standings

"Great, kid!  Don't get cocky."

 

Still 16 games to go.  And only 4 points separate the five teams in slots 2 through 6 in our division.

The Jackets entered last night's game against San Jose short two previous starters.  Comeau was out serving the first of two games for a hit he delivered in the Detroit game and Anisimov was out watching his wife give birth to their first child - a daughter (congrats Arty & family).  Atkinson and Frattin got pulled into the roster as a result.  It didn't stop the Jackets from having a good start.  Foligno and Jenner combined to give Ryan Johansen his 26th goal of the season five minutes into the game.

 

The Sharks countered with a tying goal 11 minutes in.  Early in the second period, it looked like they would get more.  About a minute into the second, Umberger got dinged with tripping penalty.  Then, Savard got called for a high-sticking penalty 1:25 into that power play.  This gave the Sharks 35 seconds of 5-on-3 play.  Not only did the Jackets kill off that 5-on-3 power play, as R.J. Umberger was leaving the penalty box a perfectly timed pass from Dubinsky found R.J. on an open breakaway to the Sharks net.  R.J. five-holed it to give the Jackets a 2-1 lead.

 

But the San Jose Sharks didn't get to be one of the best in the west by just folding up.  They got another tying goal 15 seconds into the third period and a 3-2 go-ahead goal at 6 minutes in.  But the Jackets didn't fold up either - tying it back 3-3 on a Wisniewski goal with 4:58 remaing.  The Sharks defense got overloaded to one side and another fine assist pass from Dubinsky set up Wiz for one of the closest slap shots he's probably ever taken.

 

The Jackets had a great chance to win it in regulation when the Sharks committed a tripping penalty with 1:29 remaining.  But the Jackets couldn't get the go-ahead goal in regulation, or in the 31 seconds of 4-on-3 play in overtime.  Neither team scored in the OT, so the extra standings point was determined in a shootout - which went to San Jose.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/14/5506994/nipped-by-the-sharks and highlights at http://www.jacketscannon.com/videos/2014/3/14/5508026/sharks-4-blue-jackets-3-so-game-highlights/in/5269271

"Great, kid!  Don't get cocky."

 

Still 16 games to go.  And only 4 points separate the five teams in slots 2 through 6 in our division.

 

Definately true.  But if you remember last year's amazing 19-5-5 run that fell a tiebreak short of the playoffs, the Jackets are in a much better position this year.  That's why I said "Gotta keep winning - but its better to be chased than chasing in the NHL playoff race."

 

Take last night's game for instance.  The Jackets lost in the shootout, but still got one standings point for the regulation tie.  They moved into 2nd place in the Metro Division by virtue of the Rangers losing to Minnesota last night.  Technically they're tied in points but the Jackets hold one game-in-hand so it gives them the tiebreak edge - see http://espn.go.com/nhl/standings. 

 

This year, the other teams need to overtake the Jackets (unlike last year).  If the Jackets keep winning most of their remaining games, it will be tough to overtake them.

Injured d-man Fedor Tyutin has been activated off the IR.  Looks like he might play in tonight's game at Minnesota.

The Jackets game at Minnesota was a "playoff quality" battle for both teams.  Columbus scored first on a Dalton Prout slapshot with only 21 seconds left in the second period.  Minnesota tied it up 3 minutes into the third.  The defensive game ended in regulation 1-1.  Neither team scored in overtime, forcing a shootout.

 

Second straight shootout game for the Jackets.  Minnesota converted their first two shots, the Jackets missed their first.  New daddy Anisimov needed to convert his chance or the game was over.  Arty got the goal.  Then Bobrosky need to stop the next Minnesota shot or the game was over.  Bob stopped it.  Then Letestu needed to convert his chance or the game was over.  He got the goal, sending the shootout to extra rounds. -- Bob stopped the next Minnesota shot, which set up a game-winning chance for Ryan Johansen.  Johansen deked the Minnesota goalie and his shot went in the net.  But the shot was ruled a no-goal on the ice.  The refs thought the Minnesota goalie hit the puck with his stick before Johansen scored.  However, upon video review, it was shown that the goalie never hit the puck and it was correctly ruled a good-goal.  Jackets win the shootout!!!

 

You can see the entire shootout on the CBJ website at http://video.bluejackets.nhl.com/videocenter/console?id=577910

 

Full game recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/16/5513520/game-68-recap-backs-to-the-wall

Columbus starts this week's games by hosting Carolina tonight.  Then they go on the road Thursday at Montreal, then back home against the New York Rangers on Friday.  That's as about much of a break schedule-wise that the Jackets will get for the rest of the season.  They've got four games next week, three games the following week, and then an amazing five games in the season's final week.  The five-game final week is the result of the Jackets-Stars postponed game being given a make-up date of April 9.

 

15 games in 26 days.  Despite that daunting number, the Jackets playoff chances are looking better and better - obviously with the caveat that the Jackets need to keep winning a majority of these remaining games.  But let's consider where the Jackets are in the eastern standings:

 

- Columbus is currently 3rd in the Metro Division

- Philadelphia vaulted over Columbus by 1 point into 2nd by virture of back-to-back weekend wins over Pittsburgh.  But the remaining schedule is brutal for the Flyers.

- New York Rangers are tied with Columbus in points, but both Columbus and Philadelphia hold 2 games-in-hand over the Rangers.

- Washington has won their last two games, but they are 2 points behind the Jackets, who also hold 2 games-in-hand over the Capitals, and are way behind in ROW (Regulation & Overtime Wins) the playoff tiebreaker that tripped up the Jackets last year.

- Detroit's hopes took a big hit with their loss at Chicago on Sunday.  The Wings are 3 points behind the Jackets and are also way behind in the ROW tiebreak.  But they are even in games played with the Jackets.

 

Right now, the Jackets look real good to make the playoffs.  Whether it is by finishing 2nd or 3rd in the Metro or getting the 2nd Wild-Card spot looks to be a fight between Columbus, Philadelphia and the New York Rangers.  Washington and Detroit look to be the only two teams that might knock the Jackets below the playoff line.  With Detroit being the most likely of the two.  More about this at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/18/5521588/metro-update-3-18-14

 

Now, with all that being said - tonight's game against Carolina is a must-win.  It's a home game and Carolina has played themselves out of the playoff race by losing 9 of their last 12 games.

Bad night for the Jackets.  First, the game.  You have a feeling the game won't go your way when the other team's first shot scores a goal.  And it wasn't like the Jackets lacked effort - CBJ outshot Carolina 47 to 20.  But Carolina's goaltender was hot tonight, stopping everything except for the Jackets final shot to win 3-1.  Including an amazing third period where Columbus outshot Carolina 19 to 0.  Can't fault the Jackets for their play, but it's still a tough loss.

 

Especially considering Part II of the Jackets bad night.  Every other eastern rival in the playoff race won last night.  The Rangers, Detroit, Philadelphia (in OT) and even Washington (at Anaheim) all got 2 points in standings while the Jackets got none.  The Jackets still remain above the playoff line - although they've dropped to the 2nd Wild-Card spot - but the points cushion they had going into last night is gone.

 

Current Divison Standings at http://espn.go.com/nhl/standings and Wild-Card Standings at http://espn.go.com/nhl/standings/_/type/wildcard

This could have been the second straight bad night for the Jackets.  Almost all of the Jackets playoff competitors won.  Detroit (in OT) and Philadelphia won; Washington lost in L.A. via the SO but still got 1 point.  Only the Rangers, who were idle and waiting to play in Columbus, didn't get points.

 

But the difference between Tuesday and Thursday was the result of the game the Jackets played.  Last night's tilt at Montreal started with the Habs taking the early lead, scoring on a power play caused by the first of two Ryan Johansen minor penalties late in the first period.  After Montreal's first goal, Johansen commited another minor penalty to give them another power play. -- During this one, Montreal iced the puck to set up a face-off in the Montreal zone.  Former Pittsburgh Penguin Mark Letestu tried to "Mario Lemieux" a goal by winning the face-off and shooting at the net.  Canadien goalie Carey Price stopped Letestu's shot but the rebound left the puck free in front of the net.  Derek MacKenzie darted to it and scored the shortie to tie it 1-1.

 

Dubinsky gave the Jackets the lead midway in the second with a gritty rebound putback.  The 2-1 lead held until the Habs retied midway in the third.  Back and forth it went in the third until the Habs got "Johansen-ed" with 3:01 left.  Young Ryan Johansen atoned for his earlier penalties with a spectacular game-winning play.  Joey used his enormous wingspan to intercept a d-to-d pass at the Habs blueline.  He then sped to the Habs net and beat Price for the game-winning goal.  Big play - big win!

 

Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/20/5531436/liberte-fraternite-intensite and game highlights at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/21/5532634/blue-jackets-3-canadiens-2-game-highlights

 

No time to rest for the Jackets.  The New York Rangers, who are tied with the Jackets in points, are rested and waiting at Nationwide Arena for tonight's game.  This game will also be the first game in Columbus for Rick Nash as a Ranger.  This would normally be a very big deal - but in the middle of a playoff race, its a footnote.

While Detroit is my favorite team (huge win last night against #1 Metro team Pittsburgh), I still root for the Blue Jackets if they don't directly compete with the Wings. These last two seasons have been especially difficult to root for both teams since they have been fighting for wild card spots both years (though the Blue Jackets are currently in the #3 spot for the Metropolitan, I believe).

 

The playoff race is incredible every year in the NHL. Detroit just entered a really tough stretch of games (Pittsburgh, Minnesota twice, Columbus, Montreal, Toronto). They needed that win against Pittsburgh badly.

 

Hopefully both teams make it in the end, though.

While Detroit is my favorite team (huge win last night against #1 Metro team Pittsburgh), I still root for the Blue Jackets if they don't directly compete with the Wings. These last two seasons have been especially difficult to root for both teams since they have been fighting for wild card spots both years (though the Blue Jackets are currently in the #3 spot for the Metropolitan, I believe).

 

The playoff race is incredible every year in the NHL. Detroit just entered a really tough stretch of games (Pittsburgh, Minnesota twice, Columbus, Montreal, Toronto). They needed that win against Pittsburgh badly.

 

Hopefully both teams make it in the end, though.

 

I hear ya.  I've always respected the Red Wings for the way they play and run their organization.  Total class.  That said, I've got a feeling the final wild-card spot might come down to Detroit vs. Columbus.  Normally I'd give the edge to Detroit.  But, geez, have they been decimated by injuries this season.  If anything can break their 22 season playoff streak, this might be it.

Rick Nash's homecoming to Columbus last night was eventful in all kinds of ways.  And with both the Jackets and Rangers needing the points for the eastern playoff race, the game had a playoff feel to it.  Low scoring but high energy through two full periods with the game tied 0-0.  Nash was cheered after a video tribute during the first intermission, but then otherwise booed during the game by the standing-room-only crowd. 

 

The tense energy of the game boiled over with three minutes remaining in the second period.  Nash had a breakaway and went crashing into Jackets goalie Bobrovsky.  The puck went into the net but was immediately waived off for goalie interference.  In the aftermath, Nash stick was caught up in Bob's equipment.  Bob threw Nash's stick aside and Nash pushed Bob with both hands.  Then everyone started pushing and shoving for a few minutes until order was restored. 

 

Despite the melee, the pushing and shoving didn't lead to an actual mano-a-mano hockey fight.  That would come 12 seconds into the third period when feisty Matt Calvert squared up with Nash.  While those two were serving their five for fighting, the first goals of the game were scored.  The Jackets scored first at 1:12 into the third when a stick broke on a Ranger pass in their defensive zone to send the puck directly to an open Nick Foligno.  His didn't miss for his 18th goal of the season.  But the Jackets lead was short-lived when the Rangers tied it 1-1 only 44 seconds later.

 

Although the focus was on Nash's return to Columbus, it was a different former Jacket who hurt the team more when Derick Brassard scored the game-winning goal for the Rangers with 9:29 left.  The Rangers added an empty-netter in the final minute for the 3-1 final score.  Exciting game - disappointing result.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/21/5534818/game-recap-71-rangers-3-blue-jackets-1

 

NEXT WEEK:  The Jackets travel to the Islanders for a Sunday afternoon game before return to Nationwide for a Tuesday game against Detroit and a Friday game against Pittsburgh.  Then a Saturday game at Carolina.

Here's the video of the Nash-Bobrovsky incident:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxXy2n5Simo

After two highly charged emotional games against Montreal and the Rangers, the Jackets pulled a dud on a Sunday matinee on Long Island.  Despite the Jackets playing their third game in four days and the Isles not playing since Tuesday (5 days off!), the Jackets did manage to outshoot them 41 to 32.  But none of those 41 shots got past the Islanders goaltender.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/23/5540298/game-72-recap-flatlined

 

With only 11 games remaining in the Jackets regular season, Columbus is still in the playoff race.  The Jackets are now 2 points behind both Toronto and Detroit - who hold the two eastern wild-card spots.  They hold 2 games-in-hand over Toronto (who has lost their last five games).  They are even in games played with Detroit.  Washington is 1 point ahead of the Jackets but has played 1 more game than the Jackets.

 

Tuesday's game against Detroit, which was already a must-win game, is now a more must-win.  But, if the Jackets fall short of the playoffs this season, they will look back at last week's loss to Carolina and the Islanders as a major reason why.

Wild night at Nationwide Arena and in the eastern playoff race yesterday.  First, last night's the game between the Blue Jackets and the Red Wings:

 

The Jackets were riding on 0 for 36 power play streak going into last night's game.  So, of course, the first two Columbus goals would come from the power play. -- The first came only 1:35 into the first period on a shot from Johansen that Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard first saved, but then Johansen followed the rebound and shot it past Howard. -- The second came later in the first after a series of penalties to both the Wings and the Jackets lead to a Columbus 4-on-3 power play.  Dubinsky's shot went off a Detroit defender past Howard at the 12:46 mark to give the Jackets a 2-0 lead. -- Detroit halved that lead on a nifty falling down pass from Riley Sheahan to Gustav Nyquist at the 14:55 mark in the first.

 

Then some drama.  Jackets' starting goaltender Bobrovsky didn't return to the ice for the second period.  Instead, his backup Curtis McElhinney was in the net.  We later learned that Bob had been battling the dreaded "flu-like symptoms" earlier in the day, but decided to play through it.  After the first period, he couldn't play through it anymore and turned the net over to C-Mac. -- Halfway thru the second, Nyquist scored his 2nd goal to tie it up 2-2. (Nyquist's 25th goal of the year, 20th in the past 24 games & 9th in past 6 games for the injury ravaged Wings)  Which set the stage for the third period.

 

With 13:02 left in the third, the night's biggest drama would ensue.  Calvert and Atkinson forced a turnover and headed up the ice on a 2-on-1 rush.  Calvert took a shot which Howard saved but left in front of the net.  Atkinson rushed to the net as a Detroit defender tried to stop him.  The defender and Atkinson knocked the net off one of the posts as Atkinson knocked the puck into net.  The goal was ruled a "good goal" on the ice but then went to video replay.  Which filled Jackets fans with dread given our history with video reviews "going to Toronto".

 

But any good hockey fan knows Rule 63.6 by heart, right?  Well, for those who don't - Rule 63.6 states "when the goal post has been displaced by the actions of a defending player, and the puck has been shot (or is in the act of being shot) before the goal post is dislodged, the referee is to award the goal if the puck would have entered the net had it not been dislodged".  Which is exactly what happens.  So the Jackets were awarded the goal and took a 3-2 lead. -- It's funny watching the ref explaining this in the game highlights below.  The crowd starts booing (thinking the goal would get disallowed), then starts cheering realizing its being ruled a good goal. -- The Jackets had to kill one minor penalty and Detroit pulling their goalie in the final minute before Johansen got his 2nd goal of the night on an empty-netter with 5.4 seconds left.

 

Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/25/5548254/game-73-recap-survivors-advance --- Game highlights at http://www.jacketscannon.com/videos/2014/3/26/5549000/blue-jackets-4-red-wings-2-game-highlights

The Blue Jackets dramatic 4-2 win over Detroit was only one part of a wild night in the eastern playoff picture.  L.A. beat Washington via a shootout.  And St. Louis beat Toronto in regulation.  So 2 points for Columbus, 1 point for the Caps, 0 points for the Leafs (who have now lost 6 straight games!) and 0 points for the Red Wings.  That places all four teams at 80 points.

 

With games remaining and the ROW (Regulation and Overtime Wins) tiebreak, the eastern wild-card race looks like this today:

 

Columbus    37-29-6  - 10 games remaining  - 32 ROW

Detroit        33-25-14  - 10 games remaining  - 28 ROW

------------------  PLAYOFF LINE  -------------------------

Washington  34-27-12  -  9 games remaining  -  25 ROW

Toronto        36-30-8    -  8 games remaining -  27 ROW

 

Full wild-card standings at http://espn.go.com/nhl/standings/_/type/wildcard

That was a tough game to watch as a Wings fan. Great, competitive game, but it really hurt. Having more games left than Washington and Toronto is a huge advantage for both teams.

After attending my first Blue Jackets game earlier this year, I'd really love to see them make the playoffs! I don't pay much attention to hockey during the regular season, but I occasionally will check out a game in the playoffs.  A successful playoff push for the Jackets would be great for the franchise, and would probably help establish them as my de facto NHL team to root for.

That was a tough game to watch as a Wings fan. Great, competitive game, but it really hurt. Having more games left than Washington and Toronto is a huge advantage for both teams.

 

You might get your wish for both Detroit and Columbus to make the playoffs.  Toronto is in the middle of an epic meltdown.  And Washington has had their meltdowns in recent years (although usually it happens after the Caps make the playoffs).

 

But you're right that the Wings and the Jackets hold the advantage.  If the Wings can overcome all their injuries and hang on.  And if the Jackets don't get ground down by their remaining schedule.  Of their remaining 10 games, two are back-to-back games this Friday and Saturday.  Then from April 1 to April 12, they have 8 games in 12 nights!

Columbus, Detroit, Washington and Toronto are still all at 80 points.  Detroit dropped a tough 5-4 home loss to Montreal on Thursday.  The Jackets lost a tough 2-1 home game against Pittsburgh last night.  Toronto lost at Philadelphia last night too.

 

So its now Columbus, Detroit and Washington all tied at 80 points and 73 games played - with Toronto behind them at 75 games played.  Columbus and Detroit hold the tiebreak over Washington.

 

Columbus needs to win at Carolina tonight.  Detroit has a huge game at Toronto tonight.

 

EDIT: I missed that Washington was hosting Boston for a early matinee today.  The Caps just lost to the Bruins.  So both Columbus and Detroit can separate from Washington and Toronto in the wild-card standings with wins tonight.

The Jackets got a big win last night at Carolina.  After a scoreless first, Columbus and Carolina traded goals in the second and third periods.  Carolina scored first in the second, followed by the Jackets tying it up less than two minutes later on a goal from Calvert.  Carolina retook the lead in the third, followed by the Jackets re-tying it less than one minute later on a goal from Anisimov.  Regulation ended with the game tied 2-2.

 

The Jackets didn't had a power play thru 60 minutes of regulation play.  But they got one 2 minutes into overtime when a Carolina player put his gloved hand on the loose puck during a scramble near the Carolina goal.  Anisimov found Johansen open in the slot who hammered in home for his 30th goal of the season.  Jackets win 3-2 in OT.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/3/29/5562632/game-75-recap-jackets-weather-the-storm-i-know and game highlights at http://www.jacketscannon.com/videos/2014/3/30/5563042/blue-jackets-3-hurricanes-2-ot-game-highlights

Columbus and Detroit both won last night (Toronto has now lost 8 games in a row).  Here are the latest eastern wild-card standings:

 

Columbus    38-30-6  -  82 points  -  9 games remaining  - 33 ROW

Detroit        34-26-14  -  82 points  -  9 games remaining  - 29 ROW

------------------  PLAYOFF LINE  -------------------------

Washington  34-28-12  -  81 points  -  8 games remaining  -  25 ROW

Toronto        36-32-8  -  80 points  -  7 games remaining -  27 ROW

Hockey is a game of grit and skill.  But it can also be a game of weird bounces and puck luck.  The latter was on display last night for Colorado and it worked against the Jackets.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/4/2/5572658/danse-macabre-jackets-fall-3-2-in-ot and game highlights at http://www.jacketscannon.com/videos/2014/4/2/5574264/avalanche-3-blue-jackets-2-ot-game-highlights/in/5334803

 

The Jackets displayed the grit and skill on their two goals to build a 2-0 lead.  The first goal came halfway thru the second period when Dukinsky was behind the Colorado net and fed a quick pass to Atkinson in front.  Cam hit the narrow window open to him for his 20th goal of the season.  The second goal came with 4 minutes left in the second.  Comeau pressured a Colorado defender into a turnover at the Avs blueline.  The puck deflected to Folingo, who drew the Avs goalie attention, and then passed the puck over to Comeau who hit a wide-open net.

 

But then the weird bounces and Colorado puck luck began in the third.  An Avs fourth-line grinder directed the puck from behind the goal line in the corner that hit a Jackets player's skate and when into the net 10 minutes into the period.  Then MacKinnon got the same puck luck with five minutes left when he shot into a mass of players in front of the Jackets net.  The puck hit Landeskog's stick and the skates of two Columbus defenders before entering the net.  The final puck luck bounce for Colorado came when the Avs had a 4-on-3 power play in the OT.  With the Jackets only 12 seconds from killing it off, Landeskog shot a cross-crease pass that Johnson tried to stop.  Instead the puck deflected off Johnson's skate and into the net for the game-winner.

 

One or two deflections like this might be expected.  But Colorado scored all three of its goals off the skates of Jackets players!  Not even one directly from their own sticks!  At least the Jackets salvaged one point for a regulation tie, but oh what could have been.

Last night's game was the first of the 8-in-the-final-12-days stretch for the Jackets.  They're off until back-to-backs at Philadelphia on Thursday and back home against Chicago on Friday.  The final starting on Sunday has 5 games in 7 days!  Toronto broke their eight game losing streak last night but Washington extended their losing streak to four.  Here are the latest eastern wild-card standings:

 

Detroit        35-26-14  -  84 points  -  7 games remaining  - 30 ROW

Columbus    38-30-7  -  83 points  -  7 games remaining  - 33 ROW

------------------  PLAYOFF LINE  -------------------------

Toronto        37-32-8  -  82 points  -  5 games remaining -  28 ROW

Washington  34-29-13  -  81 points  -  6 games remaining  -  25 ROW

Heh.  Having more games remaining I suppose is still an advantage, but that just means that there are inevitably going to be a lot bunched together with the end of the season so close.

Having more games remaining can be a big advantage.  Mostly because it gives you some room for error. 

 

If you look at the example of Detroit and Toronto, Toronto only has 5 games left.  At 82 points currently Toronto can only max out at 92 points if they go 5-0-0.  Detroit won last night, so they moved up to 86 points with 6 games remaining.  If Detroit only goes 3-3-0 in those final 6 games, they'll have 92 points as well.  If Toronto doesn't win all 5 remaining games, they wouldn't catch Detroit.

 

The Jackets position is a little less good as Detroit's.  But Columbus could still reach 92 points if they go 4-2-1 over their final 7 games.  Of course, the games remaining advantage is only an advantage if you earn wins/points with them.  But it's better to have them available.

Big win for the Jackets last night at Philadelphia.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/4/3/5580238/game-77-recap-number-one-cop and game highlights at http://www.jacketscannon.com/videos/2014/4/4/5581300/blue-jackets-2-flyers-0-game-highlights/in/5342625 --- This was the Flyers-Jackets match-up everyone wanted to see.  Finally, both teams former starting goaltender were in the net for this game - Mason for Philly and Bobrovsky for the CBJ.  Both teams being in the playoff race and needing the points only added to the drama.

 

The Jackets survived a difficult first period where they needed to kill off three Philly power plays.  They also survived a tough second period where they were outshot 17 to 9.  But it was the Jackets who scored first on a power play late in the second.  Wisniewski scored on an atypical jam play at the net, instead of his booming shot from the point.  But it was effective enough to give the Jackets a 1-0 lead. --- That lead got extended to 2-0 early in the third on an Atkinson shot from the outside that deflected off Dubinsky into the net.  After that the Jackets played disciplined hockey with good defense, no penalties and letting Bob be "Vezina Bob" in a 37 save shutout.

 

The win keeps the Jackets above the playoff line in the second wild-card spot - just one point above Toronto (though we have still hold 2 games-in-hand over the Leafs).  Last night's win over Philadelphia moves the Jackets to within 2 points behind the Flyers for 3rd in the division.  Now, on to the "next big game" tonight against Chicago!

Dang Dang Dang!!!  For the second time this week the Jackets lost points in a most unusual way.  The Jackets went toe-to-toe with the Blackhawks - defending Stanley Cup Champs - for 59 minutes and 56.1 seconds.  And then Chicago scored the game-winning goal on a scramble at the net with 3.9 seconds left.  Full recap at http://www.jacketscannon.com/2014/4/4/5583620/game-78-recap-punch-to-the-gut

 

This last second regulation loss cost the Jackets one point (with the chance at another point in OT).  Combined with that weird triple deflection OT loss to Colorado on Tuesday, the Jackets have left two points on the table this week.  Columbus is still above the playoff line.  But they're now only 1 point ahead of Toronto, though the Jackets still hold one game-in-hand over the Leafs.  This is really cutting it close.  If not for that great win at Philly on Thursday, the Jackets would be below the playoff line.

 

Gotta get 2 points against the Islanders on Sunday.