"Blue Jackets goaltender Steve Mason doesn't deny he needed a two-week break.

If only Wayne Gretzky had lit the Olympic cauldron in December.

"I could have used it two months ago to break up all that poor play," Mason said with a grin. "It was obviously nice to have the time off, but

for me, I would have rather kept on playing."

Mason played his best four consecutive games of the season before the Olympic break, which began Feb.15. The run included his only three-game winning streak of what otherwise has been a sobering second season.

He posted a 3-1 record in that stretch with a 1.26 goals-against average, a .960 save percentage and two shutouts.

"The only difference I see in Mase is he looks like the Mase of last year," interim coach Claude Noel said. "That's not putting pressure on him, that's just who he reminded me of."

Perhaps the most intriguing story line for the Jackets' stretch run, which begins Tuesday against the Vancouver Canucks, is whether Mason can maintain the form it took months to recapture.

He looked quick, decisive and confident in challenging shooters. His lone mistake in the past four starts was a puck-handling gaffe that led to a Canucks goal in a 4-3 loss.

"I was just keeping it simple," said Mason, who spent the break in his hometown of Oakville, Ontario. "Everything was nice, hard and crisp. I was in good position and was not giving shooters much to look at."

Opponents likely will see a lot of Mason the final 19 games."