Jackets probably will be sellers
While many Blue Jackets headed to the tropics, the desert or the Olympics over the past 24 hours, general manager Scott Howson packed his bags for a scouting trip this week through several small Canadian towns.
That's not the only short stick Howson drew during the NHL's two-week Olympic break.
While many GMs are looking to add talent for a stretch drive toward the Stanley Cup playoffs, Howson expects to be unloading players.
Hitch***** won't be going anywhere By Phil Coffey
Now that the NHL has seen its first coaching dismissal of the 2009-10 season, there will be an inevitable search on to see who might follow John Stevens out from behind the bench.
Don't look at Columbus' Ken Hitch***** as the next candidate.
Filatov might leave team this week, sources sayTom Reed and Aaron Portzline
Blue Jackets rookie forward Nikita Filatov, who has struggled to remain in coach Ken Hitch*****'s lineup, might be headed back to Russia, perhaps as soon as this week, according to sources within and beyond the NHL.
Jackets Full Of PromiseThe Columbus Blue Jackets finally broke the threshold that was a playoff berth and finally had a taste of the 2nd season. It was a long time coming for the Jackets, the last of the latest expansion teams to make it.
Now, they are looking to build on that success and there is a real positive feeling this team will be a force to be reckoned with for years. They have become a relatively stable franchise and by re-signing star Rick Nash to a long term deal, the proof is there that the Jackets have finally arrived.
Chimera On The Block?Aaron Portzline
The Blue Jackets have a glut of left wingers on their roster and a glaring need for a skilled defenseman. Really, it's the last hurdle for GM Scott Howson to clear this off-season.
Jackets Extend NashThe Columbus Blue Jackets have made a great statement towards stablizing their franchise by re-signing star forward Rick Nash to an 8 year 62.5 million dollar contract.
Columbus looking to add players? The Columbus Dispatch is speculating on the number of possible players who could end up as Blue Jackets before the trade deadline. Some of the players on this list include Lombardi, Marchant, Antropov and more.
Just crazy enough to workThere doesn’t seem to be a lot of serious trade talks so far this year and this may be because most teams don’t have compatible trade partners. But there are two teams out there that both have glaring needs and both have what the others would want, I’m talking about Pittsburgh and Columbus. Here are two teams that should be talking because they have what each other wants. In Columbus their needs are obvious, a number one center and a PP quarterback. Pittsburgh on the other hand is in desperate need of a scoring winger to help out Crosby on the top line. They also happen to be over stocked with number one centers and PP quarterbacks. With Crosby, Malkin and Stall all playing for this team it is painfully obvious that somebody has to be moved and the only logical choice is Stall. Sure he plays a solid checking role but he is destined for so much more and from what we’ve seen so far he isn’t a very good winger. Because of this, he will never find a role on the top two lines not to mention he is in line for a nice raise this summer. Pittsburgh also has four offensive defensemen roaming their back end when Gonchar comes back. Both Letang and Goligoski have shown that they have the tools to be contributors not only in the future but in the present as well. Now don’t get me wrong Whitney is an excellent D-man but the Pens have shown that in his absence they can still be a good team.
Change for the Sake of Change?The Columbus Blue Jackets showed some marked improvements last season but still were a fair ways away from the playoffs. So in the off season, calls for change were made and significant moves were done to reshape the roster in hopes for even more improvements.
Stefan Legein RetiresThat's right. No typo. The 20 year old Columbus prospect has RETIRED according to the Columbus dispatch and then confirmed by Columbus head office. Although nothing is in stone, Legein's agent has informed the Jackets that he will be hanging up the skates. Big time shocker. Hope he reconsiders...
Link: http://blog.dispatch.com/cbj/2008/08/shocker_1.shtml
