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Columbus Blue Jackets News

Scratches are starting to add up for Johansen
February 10
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The Blue Jackets' lone invitee to All-Star weekend wasn't able to crack the lineup of the last-place team in the NHL for the fourth consecutive game last night. Ryan Johansen was a healthy scratch for a 4-2 loss to the Dallas Stars. It was the fourth consecutive scratch of Johansen, who has nine goals, eight assists and a plus-2 rating. Johansen was one of ten NHL rookies invited to the All-Star skills competition in Ottawa. When he'll return to the lineup is up to Johansen, interim coach Todd Richards said. "I haven't talked with him every day. We'll have conversations with him here and there," Richards said. "That's one thing that he's got to learn as a young player, how to deal with"
Game No. 54
February 10
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The Blue Jackets lost 4-2 to the Dallas Stars in front of an announced crowd of 15,943 in Nationwide Arena tonight. In the process, and more importantly, the Blue Jackets lost two more players to injury. Defenseman Marc Methot suffered a broken jaw when he was hit with a shot in the opening minutes of the first period. Right wing Jared Boll suffered a broken foot when he blocked a shot with his boot later in the first period. Methot could miss the rest of the season, Blue Jackets interim coach Todd Richards said."
Stars 4, Blue Jackets 2: More injuries, another loss
February 10
Columbus Dispatch
 
"he toughest question Blue Jackets interim coach Todd Richards faced in his postgame news conference last night came when he was asked for a rundown on the club's injured players. Seriously, who could keep it straight? The Blue Jackets lost another game — 4-2 to the Dallas Stars before 15,943 in Nationwide Arena — and they lost two more players to long-term injuries. Defenseman Marc Methot was struck in the left side of the face by a puck just before the Stars took a 2-0 lead only 4:21 into the game. After writhing on the ice for nearly a minute, Methot skated to the dressing room with a towel pressed to his face. He left behind a pool of blood on the ice. He suffered a broken jaw, Richards"
Prospal agrees to one-year extension with Blue Jackets
February 9
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Of all the Blue Jackets players set to become unrestricted free agents this summer, winger Vinny Prospal — a sage veteran, with boundless enthusiasm and a surprisingly nimble touch — appeared to have the most value at the NHL trade deadline later this month. It wouldn't have been surprising if the Blue Jackets, ready to forge a new path after an immensely disappointing season, were to trade Prospal to a club with Stanley Cup aspirations, turning an expiring asset into a future prospect. So it goes in pro sports. Except that neither the Blue Jackets nor Prospal wanted his time in Columbus to end like this."
Prospal's job is safe; few others can say the same
February 9
Columbus Dispatch
 
"As word of a contract extension for left winger Vinny Prospal made the rounds yesterday morning at the Blue Jackets' optional team practice, Prospal's teammates processed the news. Most smiled, nodded and wanted to know more. How long is the deal? Good for him. For how much? I wonder what will happen next. The unexpected one-year, $2.5?million extension for Prospal, who turns 37 on Feb. 17 and would have been an unrestricted free agent after the season, was a reminder that the retooling of the NHL's worst team has begun and that the fate of almost every player in the dressing room is uncertain."
Prospal Signs Extension
February 8
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Less than three weeks from the NHL trade deadline, the Blue Jackets pulled one of their unrestricted free agents off the market, signing veteran winger Vinny Prospal to a one-year contract extension today. The deal is worth $2.5 million and includes a no-trade clause. It also includes a gentleman's agreement that when Prospal's playing days are over, he'll stay with the organization in some capacity. "This is just a great feeling, that I have a job for next year," Prospal said today after practice. "The trade deadline is coming up and there are always rumors. But I am very happy for myself and for my family. We don't have to move anywhere. "I didn't make that decision in five minutes or"
Game No. 53
February 8
Columbus Dispatch
 
"For the next two months -- especially after the NHL trade deadline comes and goes later this month -- the Blue Jackets will search high and low for motivation, for any morsel that can give them the extra juice to compete. There's personal pride, of course, which should always be worth something. There's the spoiler's role, which some embrace and some reject. But on a nightly basis, the Blue Jackets coaches will look for a way to up the ante heading into each game. Last night was easy. A 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild, before 11,239 in Nationwide Arena, was as thorough a victory the Jackets have had all season."
Blue Jackets 3, Wild 1: Jilted get revenge
February 8
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Colton Gillies did not try to hide his feelings: Ever since the Blue Jackets claimed him on waivers from the Minnesota Wild last month, he'd looked forward to last night's game against his former club. Blue Jackets interim coach Todd Richards, fired by the Wild last summer, wasn't quite so obvious. He said all the right things, but the players knew better. "We're not stupid," Gillies said. "We could tell how much this meant to Coach. We all wanted to get this one for him." Too bad the Blue Jackets couldn't have conjured up motivation like this earlier in the season."
Ex-Wild coach Todd Richards not looking back as he prepares to face old team
February 7
St. Paul Pioneer Press
 
"There are times, when Todd Richards is back in Minnesota for a holiday or a family get-together, when his mind drifts to thoughts of what might have been. Everybody in sports - certainly hockey fans in Minnesota - loves a homecoming story. Richards lived it the past two seasons, coaching the Wild 20 miles from where he grew up in Crystal and seven miles from where he starred as a Gophers defenseman. But as sweet as the local-boy-made-good narrative might be, there's a unique pain when it doesn't work out - because the next job means leaving home. Richards, fired last April after two seasons as the Wild's coach, is learning to move on from those feelings. His parents still live in the Twin"
Richards urges Jackets to be motivated by pride
February 7
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Todd Richards has an enormous challenge ahead of him as interim coach of the Blue Jackets. The team has 30 games to play, but the season has been over — with respect to the Stanley Cup playoffs — for a long time. Motivation can be a scarce resource in times like these. His good friend Claude Noel was in this same spot two years ago in Columbus when he took over a lost season in place of Ken Hitchcock. Noel spent the final two months of the season trying to impart "joy" among Blue Jackets players and fans. Richards has his own one-word objective for the rest of the season."
Nash rumours becoming reality?
February 7
Sportsnet.ca
 
"Sportsnet has been running the HOCKEY CENTRAL Trade Tracker for a few weeks now in anticipation of the Feb. 27 deadline. It comes as no surprise that some of the players discussed will not be moved. And I think we've been pretty honest in saying that. But one player who just might be in the mix is Columbus Blue Jackets winger Rick Nash, who continually plays down the fact he will never ask for a trade. I have received a couple of calls from friends of Nash, who claim that Rick is very unhappy with the way the franchise is going and realizes it will take five more years to rebuild, again. Nash is now telling people close to him that he would entertain being moved, but still will not be the"
Letestu on the Verge; Huselius on Hiatus
February 6
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Blue Jackets center Mark Letestu is slated to have a pin removed from his fractured right hand on Friday and could return to the lineup as soon as next week. As many as three banged-up Blue Jackets could be back on the active roster next week. James Wisniewski (fractured ankle) and Nikita Nikitin (knee) are also close to being activated from injured reserve. "They should all come back around the same time," Blue Jackets interim coach Todd Richards said. "They're all about a week away. Hopefully Valentine's Day will be a good day for us.""
Blue Jackets notebook: Lebda out for a few weeks after thumb injury
February 6
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Blue Jackets defenseman Brett Lebda could miss multiple weeks because of a thumb injury suffered on Friday in a 3-2 overtime victory at Anaheim. Lebda, who left the game in the first period and did not return, said he "broke the tip off" of his right thumb when he was hit by a puck. He will undergo a procedure to repair the thumb today and said he will miss "maybe a few weeks." "We'll see how it goes," Lebda said. "Hopefully it's not too long. There is no joint damage or nerve damage. It's just the tip, so it should be a quick heal. After that, it's just dealing with the pain and swelling.""
Blue Jackets' Moore shines amid gloom
February 6
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Blue Jackets rookie John Moore got his cup of NHL coffee in two games last season. The Blue Jackets, perhaps wisely, made sure he didn't drink too deeply. Moore, 21, has proved to be one of the top rookie defensemen in the NHL this season. This smooth-skating first-round draft pick in 2009 has quietly shown he belongs in a league that has mostly used and abused the last-place Blue Jackets. "We're very cognizant of the fact that having some of the younger players around this environment would be very harmful," general manager Scott Howson said. "He's seemed to have handled it well. He is so committed that I think whatever you throw at him he is going to be able to deal with eventually.""
Dekanich out rest of season
February 4
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Goaltender Mark Dekanich, signed last summer to back up Steve Mason, might never play a game for the Blue Jackets. Dekanich had surgery earlier this week to repair a torn ligament or tendon in his right ankle, general manager Scott Howson said, and will miss the rest of the season. "We really liked his game. We thought he was ready to emerge this season," Howson said. "But we never got a chance to see him healthy and playing this season. It's been a very difficult year for him. Just really, really tough all the way around." Dekanich was injured in the first period of the Blue Jackets' exhibition opener when he got caught in a pileup outside the net. On Nov.?13, while beginning a"
Carter's exit only a matter of time
February 4
Columbus Dispatch
 columnist Michael Arace
"If the Blue Jackets were not the last-place team in the NHL, Jeff Carter would be a happy, productive member of the team. That is an interesting premise. Does it hold? Failed relationships in sports can be ugly things. I covered Brendan Shanahan when he begged off the Hartford Whalers in 1996. It was a punch in the gut for the fans who felt big-timed, but at least Shanahan made his decision public and accepted the wrath he knew was coming. I covered Adam Foote when he bailed on Columbus in the midst of a playoff hunt in 2008. In his last days as Jackets captain, before any trade had been consummated, he waffled publicly while, behind the scenes, his new Colorado Avalanche equipment was"
Brassard's goal in OT halts skid at six games
February 4
Columbus Dispatch
 
"NHL overtime, with one less skater per team and, thus, bountiful room on the ice, was made for Blue Jackets center Derick Brassard. Brassard carried the puck the length of the ice last night after forcing a turnover in his own zone, then scored on a slap shot from high in the left faceoff circle to give the Blue Jackets a 3-2 overtime win over the Anaheim Ducks before 13,358 at the Honda Center. It was Brassard's second goal of the game and snapped the Blue Jackets' six-game losing streak. Jeff Carter, returning to the lineup after a 10-game absence because of a shoulder injury, scored the Blue Jackets' other goal. Goaltender Curtis Sanford finished with 33 saves. The Blue Jackets hadn't"
Columbus activates Jeff Carter from IR
February 3
Pro Hockey Talk
 
"Jeff Carter can finally take at least a brief rest from responding to trade rumors by actually playing hockey again. The Columbus Blue Jackets activated him from the injured reserve while placing defenseman Nikita Nikitin on the IR. Carter missed the last 10 games with a shoulder injury and also sat out 10 other ones earlier this season with a broken foot. In the 30 contests he actually played, Carter scored 10 goals and 17 points. Those figures are disappointing, although his 10 goals place him second on the Blue Jackets behind leader Rick Nash (who has 17)."
NHL looks into clock error
February 3
Columbus Dispatch
 
"It's too late for the Blue Jackets to get the point they deserved out of a loss on Wednesday at the Los Angeles Kings, and it will never be known which team would have won if the game had gone to overtime or a shootout. In a season in which points have been difficult to come by, the Blue Jackets will have to settle for a heartfelt apology from the NHL. The league yesterday acknowledged a mistake in allowing Drew Doughty's goal to stand with 0.4 of a second remaining in regulation, a goal that gave the Kings a 3-2 win. "This is a tough pill to swallow for Columbus fans, and we know that," NHL vice president of hockey operations Colin Campbell said."
Jeff Carter and the Maple Leafs trade rumour of the day
February 3
Toronto Star
 
"An unhappy Jeff Carter could fit nicely as the No. 1 centre that Brian Burke needs to make snipers Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul even more effective as the team pushes for a playoff spot for the first time in four seasons. The Internet has been abuzz with rumours about Carter, 27, being targeted by the Leafs. In fact, his name seems to be linked to the Leafs every season. Then again, Carter also seems to be linked to just about every team looking for a top-line centre. According to The Columbus Dispatch, Carter's on the trade block just seven months after being acquired from the Flyers to fill their No. 1 centre hole. The Blue Jackets gave up plenty to get Carter, including young forward"
Kings' win over Blue Jackets Wednesday, may be result of clock mismanagement
February 3
Los Angeles Times
 
"The NHL is investigating whether human error or a glitch in the clock system at Staples Center was responsible for prolonging the Kings' game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday long enough for Kings defenseman Drew Doughty to score the decisive goal in a 3-2 victory. Colin Campbell, the league's senior vice president of hockey operations, said Thursday he believes the Blue Jackets were wronged because the clock was paused with 1.8 seconds left in the third period and Doughty's goal with 0.4 of a second left should not have been allowed. "In our opinion it was one full second," Campbell said of the stoppage."
Game No. 51
February 2
Columbus Dispatch
 
"A twitchy finger in Los Angeles may have cost the Blue Jackets at least a point tonight in Staples Center. If the Jackets were battling for a playoff spot, this would be a heartbreaker. Instead, it's a black mark on the NHL and just another lump in a season full of them. Kings defenseman Drew Doughty scored at the end of an intense scramble with only 0.3 seconds remaining, giving Los Angeles a 3-2 victory over the Blue Jackets before a soldout crowd of 18,118. Except the goal shouldn't have counted. Replays shown by both Fox Sports Ohio and Fox Sports West, which covers the Kings, show the game clock mysteriously stopping for at least a full second with 1.8 seconds remaining. Had the clock"
Brassard's fight impresses coach
February 2
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Blue Jackets center Derick Brassard wasn't thinking clearly. Late in a 6-0 loss Tuesday night at San Jose, Brassard was driven into the end boards by Sharks defenseman Dan Boyle, who then barked at him to "get up," a suggestion that Brassard was embellishing the hit. What followed wasn't pretty. Brassard and Boyle dropped their gloves, and Boyle proceeded to whale away on Brassard as he buckled to his knees. "If anybody thinks I was fighting because I expected to win the fight, no," Brassard said. "I answer the bell. … I was frustrated. It was 6-0 and that's how I responded.""
Kings 3, Blue Jackets 2: Final-second loss
February 2
Columbus Dispatch
 
"It's too late in the season, and the Blue Jackets are too far out of the playoff race, to call this one a heartbreak. But, my, oh my, do the Blue Jackets have a flair for the dramatic, and rarely in a good way. Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty scored in the final second — literally — to give the Kings a 3-2 win over the Blue Jackets before 18,118 in Staples Center. Doughty's shot from just inside the left circle went into the Blue Jackets' net with only 0.3 seconds remaining on the clock. TV replays, aired by Fox Sports Ohio, showed the game clock paused for nearly a full second while the puck was still in play. Had the clock kept running, the goal would have scored after the"
Columbus' Jared Boll fined for head shot on Joe Thornton
February 2
San Jose Mercury News
 
"The NHL fined Columbus Blue Jackets forward Jared Boll $2,500 Wednesday for delivering a hit to Joe Thornton's head, all part of the league's anti-concussion crackdown. But it was an undetected blow to the head later in San Jose's 6-0 trouncing of the Blue Jackets on Tuesday night that defenseman Colin White still was steaming about the next day. "It's clearly a head shot," White said of the check delivered by Columbus center Derek MacKenzie at 8:29 of the third period. "I don't know what the refs were watching.""
Kings get it done in final seconds to beat Blue Jackets, 3-2
February 2
Los Angeles Times
 
"It occurred to Drew Doughty soon after he slammed himself against the glass to exult over the decisive goal in a 3-2 victory for the Kings over Columbus on Wednesday that maybe he hadn't beaten the clock, and that he'd have a red face when the puck was dropped for overtime at Staples Center. "I didn't know how much time was left. I was sneaking in there and I knew there wasn't a lot of time," Doughty said of the frantic scramble during a power play in the Blue Jackets' zone."
Game No. 50
February 1
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The best part of a Blue Jackets game in San Jose may be that half the viewing audience back home is asleep. This one, like many of the others, could have starred any number of horror characters -- Jason, Freddy, Chuckie, Nancy Grace ... The Blue Jackets lost 6-0 before a crowd of 17,562 in HP Pavilion, falling to 2-17-2 all-time in this building and losing their fifth straight game (0-4-1). It was brutally physical affair, right from the start. Blue Jackets' right winger/pugilist Jared Boll launched his right elbow into the side of Joe Thornton's head only 20 seconds into the game, and the fuse was lit. "It's not great that Joe got an elbow to the head," Sharks coach Todd McLellan said."
Sharks 6, Blue Jackets 0: Pounded after layoff
February 1
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Only 20 seconds into last night's game, Blue Jackets winger Jared Boll caught San Jose's Joe Thornton with his head down in the corner after handling the puck. Boll — as is his tendency — launched his body into Thornton's, but Boll's right shoulder crept too high and popped Thornton aside the head. The good news for the Sharks is that Thornton was OK. The bad news for the Blue Jackets is that Thornton, whose pulse is sometimes undetectable, was awakened, angered and engaged. The Sharks, with Jumbo Joe at the controls and a cast of many in support, cruised to a 6-0 victory over the Blue Jackets to the delight of 17,562 in HP Pavilion. Thornton had two goals and an assist, his second"
Jeff Carter shrugs at reports he's on the trade block
February 1
Columbus Dispatch
 
"With still four weeks to go before the NHL trade deadline, Blue Jackets center Jeff Carter already is caught up in the swirl. Multiple sources confirmed to The Dispatch that Carter has been put on the trade block by the Blue Jackets, barely seven months after he was acquired from Philadelphia and deemed the No.?1 center the club has always needed. "There's not much I can do about that," Carter said. "That's something I can't worry about or control. My main focus right now is just getting healthy and getting back into the lineup. "There's talk about a lot of guys (in here) right now. Our team, with the way the season has gone — the injuries, the standings, and stuff — I don't think it"
San Jose Sharks clobber Columbus Blue Jackets 6-0
February 1
San Jose Mercury News
 
"Sixteen seconds into their first game in six nights, the Sharks got a wake-up call Tuesday when Columbus Blue Jackets agitator Jared Boll delivered an elbow to captain Joe Thornton's head. And did they ever spring into action. Sixty minutes later, San Jose skated off the ice at HP Pavilion with its most one-sided victory of the season, a fight-filled 6-0 thumping of the NHL's worst team that saw goalie Antti Niemi make 30 saves to earn a second consecutive shutout. "It sure was a game you could get emotionally involved in," said Thornton, who responded with a fiery two-goal, one-assist performance to lead a San Jose offense that had been struggling in the weeks leading up to the"
Reality check: Rick Nash in Maple Leafs' trade rumour of the day
February 1
Toronto Star
 
"Rick Nash is heading to Toronto as part of a six-player deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Okay. Now we have your undivided attention. As of Tuesday, that proposal is just a rumour, one of many swirling around the Internet involving the Maple Leafs. That rumour took on a life of its own after AM 640 hockey analyst Bill Watters tweeted it on Monday as something to watch as the Feb. 27 trade deadline approached, with the proviso that it was "one to smoke on" and "not inhale." In the rumoured deal, forwards Mikhail Grabovski and Nazem Kadri, along with defencemen Luke Schenn and Mike Komisarek would be heading to the Blue Jackets. Also coming to Toronto with Nash, 27, would be forward"
Joudrey, Savard recalled
January 31
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The Blue Jackets recalled center Andrew Joudrey and defenseman David Savard from minor-league Springfield this morning. Joudrey, 27, could make his NHL debut later this week during the Blue Jackets' three-game road swing through California. The Blue Jackets will play Tuesday at San Jose, Saturday at Los Angeles and Sunday at Anaheim. Joudrey (5-11, 183 pounds) was an eighth-round pick of the Washington Capitals in 2003 and played four seasons of college hockey at Wisconsin. He began his pro career in 2007 and played four seasons for AHL Hershey before signing a two-year deal with the Blue Jackets in July. Joudrey has seven goals, eight assists and a plus-2 rating in 42 games for"
Changes could await Jackets
January 31
Columbus Dispatch
 
"With 33 games left in the season and a nine-point gap between the 30th-place Blue Jackets and the rest of the NHL, the remainder of the season would appear to hold little on-ice intrigue. Off the ice, it's a different story. The Blue Jackets are one club that bears watching over the next four weeks, leading up to the NHL's trade deadline on Feb. 27, when a flurry of trades could dramatically change the roster. Even after the deadline, the Blue Jackets are a compelling bunch, if only to see how they plan to move forward. Here are five storylines to follow between now and the season finale on April 7."
Back to the real NHL games
January 30
Ottawa Sun
 columnist Chris Stevenson
"The days at the beach, as tweeted by Capitals defenceman Mike Green from the Cayman Islands, are over. The neon tans from Las Vegas will now start to fade. The NHL's feel-good weekend here — a resounding success which revolved around the emotional outpouring between Ottawa captain Daniel Alfredsson and Senators fans — now becomes a fond memory. Ahead is a 30-game sausage grinder that is the rest of the NHL season. "You need the break whether you're here or somewhere else doing something different. This is a part of the season the guys really look forward to, just to recharge the battery," said Maple Leafs winger Joffrey Lupul. "When you get back from this break, you're re-energized and you"
Chara's stars beat hometown hero Alfredsson
January 30
Ottawa Sun
 
"On his big day, Daniel Alfredsson surrounded himself with Swedes. But it was a bunch of Slovak buddies, led by New York Rangers winger Marian Gaborik, who drove Team Chara to a 12-9 victory over Team Alfredsson in front of 20,510 in the 57th NHL all-star game Sunday at Scotiabank Place. While former Senators defenceman Zdeno Chara scored the third-period winner, it was Gaborik, voted the game MVP, who led his club to victory with a hat trick and four-point effort as Team Chara walked away with the bragging rights. "You could see the guys wanted to win," said Chara when asked if he gave his team any instructions with the score tied 6-6 going into the third period. "I didn't have to say a"
Jackets to host 2013 All-Star Game
January 29
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The most disappointing season in Blue Jackets history was interrupted yesterday by a stunning jolt of good news. The 2013 NHL All-Star Game was awarded to the Jackets and will take place on Jan.?27 at Nationwide Arena. It's a marquee event that will rival golf's U.S. Open (1927) and Ryder Cup (1931, '87), the U.S.-Mexico World Cup soccer qualifiers and the NCAA men's basketball tournament as the biggest sports events in central Ohio. "We're going to go have a big party in a place that can host it well," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said. "The (2007) draft gave me a taste of what you can do in Columbus." For the Blue Jackets — last in the NHL and without an All-Star for today's game in"
Protesters show Jackets some tough love
January 29
Columbus Dispatch
 columnsit Bob Hunter
"The master of ceremonies, if a speaker at a fan protest can be described that way, was a California-based puckaholic known on hockey message boards as CapnCornelius. "He doesn't tell anybody his real name," fellow organizer Carl Bennett said. "Even I don't know it." It didn't matter. Just as church-goers in need of spiritual healing are satisfied to receive it from "Father" or "Reverend," this victory-starved hockey congregation seemed content with the good "Capn" playing a role akin to that of a preacher at a religion revival. He set the tone for an event that was as much a love-in for the Blue Jackets as it was a demand for team president Mike Priest and general manager Scott Howson to"
Johansen savors role with All-Stars
January 28
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Blue Jackets captain and five-time All-Star Rick Nash had two pieces of advice for rookie teammate Ryan Johansen before he departed for Ottawa to take part in the All-Star Skills Challenge today: No. 1: Get your rest, because All-Star weekend is more exhausting than you think. No. 2: You're good, but maybe stay away from the fastest skater competition. "He's kind of like me," Nash said. "It takes us awhile to get going." Nash, an All-Star in every non-Olympics season since 2003, will not participate this season. Johansen, 19, was one of 12 rookies named to join the regular All-Stars in tonight's skills event. Johansen needn't worry about his sprinting speed. He will participate in the"
Jackets to be host to NHL's All-Stars
January 28
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The Blue Jackets could learn as soon as today that they will host the 2013 NHL All-Star Game in Nationwide Arena, two sources told The Dispatch last night. An official announcement is expected today after a meeting of the NHL's Board of Governors in Ottawa, the site of this season's game on Sunday. Blue Jackets spokesman Todd Sharrock said the club would not comment. Neither club President Mike Priest nor General Manager Scott Howson responded to messages left last night by The Dispatch seeking confirmation. The game could generate $15?million to $25 million in revenue for Columbus, based on economic-impact studies by cities that have hosted the game. Officials from the Greater Columbus"
McConnell vexed by Blue Jackets' losing season
January 27
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Blue Jackets majority owner John P. McConnell is stunned by how this season has unfolded, as are many of the club's fans. As the NHL season pauses for this weekend's All-Star Game, McConnell expected to be figuring out Stanley Cup playoff scenarios and watching two or three of his players in the midseason gala. Instead, the Blue Jackets (13-30-6) are suffering through the worst season in franchise history — dead last in the standings, nine points out of 29th place overall and a whopping 32 points out of fourth place in the Central Division. "Everybody was looking forward to this season, myself included," McConnell said yesterday. "I think that makes the fall even worse. "It has been"
Who will win? Breaking down All-Star teams
January 27
NHL.com
 
"The draft is over, the rosters set for the 2012 Tim Hortons NHL All-Star Game. We now know who will be wearing the white jerseys for Team Alfredsson and the blue jerseys to represent Team Chara. Now it's time to take a look at the rosters and break them down by position. Look for our prediction at the end. FORWARDS Datsyuk and Malkin on the same team is a scary proposition for the opposition. They may be the two most skilled players in the NHL right now. As Chara said, you can put them on the same line and they can be unstoppable, or you can put them on separate lines and they'll still be dominant and "make the line." Team Alfredsson has a lot of talent, but it doesn't have two"
It's Never Been Worse
January 26
Columbus Dispatch
 columnist Aaron Portzline
"The annual break for the NHL All-Star Game is supposed to be a happy, restful time for the league and its fans. Not so in Columbus, where the one-week gap between games seems only to extend the misery of a sad, lost campaign. Losing is not new to the Blue Jackets, but across the timeline of nine coaches, 10 non-playoff seasons and one brief playoff berth, this can be said without reservation: The Blue Jackets – with 13 wins in 49 games, resting nine points out of 29th place and 32 points out of fourth in the Central Division – have never been worse than they are today."
Blue Jackets could use a break
January 26
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Blue Jackets 4-2 on Tuesday night in the teams' final game before the All-Star break. Lightning right wing Martin St. Louis had a goal and assist in the victory, the fourth straight for Tampa Bay. He would prefer to keep playing. "I don't think we'd like to have the break right now in terms of how we're rolling in games," St. Louis said. The Blue Jackets, by contrast, lost their fourth straight game and are on pace to finish with 54 points, the fewest by any team since the 2001-02 Atlanta Thrashers had 54 during a brutal 19-47-11-5 season. For the Blue Jackets, the respite is a godsend."
Game No. 49
January 25
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The Blue Jackets have hit hit the 30-loss mark. The Lightning beat the Blue Jackets 4-2 tonight in the Tampa Bay Times Forum. It was a defeat eerily similar to that of the previous night, when the Blue Jackets lost to the Nashville Predators 4-1 in the Music City. The Blue Jackets (13-30-6) started slow. They turned the puck over and took questionable penalties. They did not have what it took to win for the fourth consecutive game and they'll enter the All-Star break in a sour, sorry state. The Lightning, riddled with injuries like the Blue Jackets, got goals from two of their brightest stars (Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis), a grinder (Nate Thompson) and the rawest of rookies"
Lightning 4, Blue Jackets 2: Stumbling into the break
January 25
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Union Blue doesn't play so well down South. The Blue Jackets lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 last night and ended a two-game swing through Dixie with losses on consecutive nights. The Blue Jackets, 4-1 losers at Nashville on Monday, go into the All-Star break on a four-game losing streak. Interim coach Todd Richards said the final game before the break would test the character of his tired and injury-riddled team. They did not fold after falling behind 3-1, and rookie Ryan Johansen made it a one-goal game when he scored at 5:40 of the third period."
Game No. 48
January 24
Columbus Dispatch
 
"The Blue Jackets lost to the Nashville Predators 4-1 tonight in Bridgestone Arena in the final game of the season series. Nashville won five of the six games. The Blue Jackets fell to 13-29-6 (32 points). The Predators are 29-16-4 (62 points) and moved to within five points of West leader Detroit. The Predators have won 11 of 13. Their coach, Barry Trotz, was probably just being nice this morning when he said the Blue Jackets were moving in the right direction. Trotz also channeled his inner Claude Noel and said the Jackets were playing with "joy." If turnovers and penalties are joyful, so they are."
Predators 4, Blue Jackets 1: Not ready to go, again
January 24
Columbus Dispatch
 
"If there was little margin for error before, there is none now. The Blue Jackets, downtrodden by their perpetual last-place standing, damaged by injuries and done in by penalties, were no match for a red-hot division rival last night. Nashville's Mike Fisher scored twice, the Predators scored on two of five power plays, and the Blue Jackets lost 4-1 in Bridgestone Arena. It was the final game of the season series. Nashville won five of six. "We are a last-place team," defenseman Marc Methot said. "We can't take five minor penalties and expect to win a game. It's not going to happen.""
Umberger back in lineup
January 24
Columbus Dispatch
 
"Blue Jackets left winger R.J. Umberger said he felt like his old self yesterday morning. If he hadn't, he would not have returned to the lineup against the Nashville Predators last night after a five-game layoff because of a concussion suffered on Jan.?8 at Anaheim. "The scary thing about a concussion is that no one truly knows what is going on in somebody's head after that," Umberger said. "But when you come back, you have to be confident that you're OK and not be afraid to get hit. If you aren't, that's when you start playing differently and make yourself susceptible to another injury.""
Preds' victory is 11th in 13 games as All-Star break nears
January 24
Tennessean
 
"The Predators are one game away from heading into the NHL All-Star break with loads of momentum. Monday's 4-1 win over Columbus in front of an announced crowed of 14,310 at Bridgestone Arena was Nashville's 11th in their last 13 games. The Predators visit the Chicago Blackhawks today and will then take six days off before returning to action on Jan. 31. Nashville ended the season series against Columbus with a 5-0-1 record."