All Star Absurdity

OK, I get it. The All Star Game returns to Montreal for their 100th Anniversary. Wonderful! Terrific!! C'est Magnifique! I hope Montreal really revels in their season long celebration of a century of hockey. Why, though, must this celebration destroy the All Star Game???

Let's look at the starting lineups. Really pretty simple to do: 4 Montreal Canadiens and 2 Pittsburgh Penguins for the East, and 3 each from the Anaheim Ducks and Chicago Blackhawks in the West. To the other 26 teams, thanks for participating and we have some lovely parting gifts for you.

I mean seriously, give me a break. Nobody in the starting lineup from Boston, San Jose or Detroit, the best three teams in Hockey right now???? Let's see, who else is missing . .. . oh yeah, guy with the last name of Ovechkin or something. Shouldn't he start? Nahhh . . .

OK, Montreal is only marginally responsible here, but it just points out the foolishness of the process. (And yes, I also rail against fan selected All Star Teams in other sports). Let's examine more closely:

Let's use the forwards as the first example: Malkin and Crosby are 1st and 3rd in points, and 1st and 3rd in assists. No argument. Getzlaf is 27th in goals, but 7th in assists and points. Again, no beef there. Kane is 22nd in goals, 16th in assists, 14th in points. On the team? Sure. Starter? No. Toews is off the radar in all of the categories (47th in assists, 88th in goals, 61st in points). Exciting young player? Absolutely. Not this year -- have a seat. Kovalev? Please . . . 62nd in goals, 59th in assists, 68th in points. The 100 year anniversary thing puts him in the game, but otherwise he would be enjoying this game from the jacuzzi at home.

Here are your starters at forward, IMHO: East: Crosby, Malkin, Ovechkin (with strong consideration to Jeff Carter and Mark Savard) West: Getzlaf, Daniel Sedin, Jerome Iginla.

Let's switch to goaltender, which is even whackier:To be fair, Carey Price is at least in the running being 2nd in wins, 5th in GAA, 5th in save percent and 6th in shutouts (within the Eastern Conference) However, what about Tim Thomas? While splitting time with Manny Ferndandez, he is 2nd in the East in wins, 2nd in GAA, 1st in save percent and 1st in shutouts.

In the West, J.S. Giguere is not even in the same area code as the leaders. Heck, he doesn't even have the best save percentage or GAA on his team! Even though he is a rookie, Steve Mason is the choice here. He has played 20 games, and leads the universe in each category. Don't want a rookie? Nabokov is the choice then.

I'm all for fan involvement, but let's not make this a total mockery. C'mon Bettman, let's get some credibility here.

Domination!!!!

Ever work on an old car?? You put months, maybe years of effort into it. It starts looking better, but still doesn't run. Then, with some more tinkering, a little praying and a lot of swearing, one day it comes to life. At first it sputters, but then it settles in, and the longer it runs the smoother and faster it goes, until it just purrs right along.

Tonight, we saw that work in progress come to life. We sputtered a bit during the first period, then proceeded to play the best second period in CBJ history, and followed up with a 3rd period that was equally dominant. Yeah, the sputtering cost us and Mason a scoreless streak, but his GAA stlll went down as a result of his effort. We sweep the Avalanche in their building for the year -- something you would never have thought, much less say, just a year or two ago.

Here are the plus/minus awards for the night:

++Nash, Huselius, Malhotra line -- Combined for 8 points and +10 in one game!! Malhotra is a completely different player since joining the top line. The passing, intensity and sheer hockey instinct was a joy to behold. Nasher finally converts a penalty shot to boot!!!

+Commodore, Umberger, Voracek -- Great efforts as well. Commodore has become a scoring machine, and it was great to see Voracek get rewarded for his hard work. A nice 5 hole shot that will hopefully encourage him to shoot more.

+Peca, Russell, Boll -- In what seems like an injustice, they were all -1, but played with great guts and energy, and always seemed to be making a play.

+Mason --Duhhhhh . . .

+Special Teams -- 1 for 4 on the PP, with lots of good movement and some good shots. A perfect 6 for 6 on the PK. Doesn't get better than that.

+Team Spirit -- Did not get discouraged after some sloppy work in our own end resulted in Colorado's only goal. Came to Nash's defense after the Adam Foote cheap shot (#2) on Nash. Great to see Nash jawing at Foote. Wish I would have know what he said. Something like "Got an airplane waiting tonight, Adam?? "

--Foote -- Classless act, slew footing Nash (unbelievable no-call there), then just cheap-shotting him in the corner. But, when all is said and done, it was Foote who walked away with a bloody nose, a -3 for the evening, and the prospect of coming to Columbus in just 10 days. ;-)

A truly magnificent effort by the boys tonight. Watching Hitchcock in the post-game interview, you can tell he knows that they are on to something. Fun to watch, and consider that this is all happening on the road. We have guaranteed ourselves no worse than a .500 record on this trip, and it could be really special.

Mason back in goal tomorrow in St. Louis, who lost in Carolina tongiht 2 - 1, so they have an even longer flight than the CBJ. Puck drops at 8:30 PM EST. Go Jackets!!!

Night of Upsets!!!

This was not the day to be a favorite in the hockey world. First, at the World Junior Championships, Slovakia stunned the USA 5 - 3, riding the goaltending of Jaroslav Janus to the biggest upset of the tournament thus far. Describing it himself as "the best game of his life", Janus tuirned away 44 shots, earning the Slovakian team a place in the semi-finals against Sweden on Saturday.

In the other quarterfinal matchup, Russia is leading the Czech Republic, 1 - 0 in the 2nd period. The winner takes on Canada in the semis.

Perhaps less dramatic, but certainly no less of an upset, lightly regarded Clarkson upset Miami University (OH) 4 - 2 in the Ohio Hockey Classic. Miami, ranked #2 in the country by both USCHO and USA Today, gave up a goal just 1:39 into the contest, when Miami goalie Cody Redmond was caught cheating to the far post on a drive down the left, and was beaten by a backhand to the short side. Miami tied it early in the second, but Clarkson stunned the favorite with three consecutive goals to ice the contest. The Redhawks outshot Clarkson, 42 - 19, but Golden Knights' goalie Paul Karowich turned away 40 shots, and was helped by the crossbar and post in a few instances.

Clarkson advances to take on the winner of the Ohio State - Army contest presently underway. Miami will face the loser of that contest. Both games are on Saturday.

CBJ Rookie Hat Trick!!!

Courtesy of our friends over at NHL.com:

Jackets' Mason named NHL Rookie of the Month
Friday, 01.02.2009 / 3:13 PM / News
By NHL.com Staff
Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Steve Mason, who posted a 7-5-0 record with a 1.41 goals-against average, .950 save percentage and three shutouts in 12 games, has been named the NHL Rookie of the Month for December. It marks the second consecutive month that Mason has earned top rookie honors and the third consecutive month a Blue Jackets player has done so, following Derick Brassard in October.Mason edged St. Louis Blues center Patrik Berglund (6-7--13 in 15 games), Anaheim Ducks right wing Bobby Ryan (4-8--12 in 13 games), Boston Bruins left wing Blake Wheeler (5-6--11 in 13 games), Florida Panthers center Michael Frolik (4-7--11 in 14 games) and Chicago Blackhawks right wing Kris Versteeg (3-6--9 in 11 games) for the award.Mason allowed two goals or fewer in nine of 12 games, including a career-high 47 saves in a 2-1 overtime victory over the San Jose Sharks Dec. 17 and a franchise-record three consecutive shutouts to close the month. Mason improved his season record to 12-7-1 with 1.69 goals-against average, .938 save percentage and five shutouts in 20 games. He leads the NHL in goals-against average, save percentage and shutouts (tied with Vancouver’s Roberto Luongo).Mason was Columbus' second pick, 69th overall, in the 2006 Entry Draft. In 2007-08, the 20-year-old Oakville, Ontario native posted a 32-7-3 record with the London Knights and Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League and backstopped Canada to the gold medal at the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship by going 5-0-0 with a 1.19 goals-against average and .951 save percentage, earning tournament MVP honors. Earlier this season, Mason underwent arthroscopic knee surgery in September and was sidelined a month before making his professional debut with Syracuse Oct. 29.

That is a three-peat for the CBJ in Rookie of the Month!!! Congratulations to Steve and the CBJ!!

World Juniors Update

After Canada prevailed over the USA, 7 - 4, in their highly anticipated battle to end pool play, they enjoy a bye into the semis, as does Sweden, who had a surprisingly easy time in beating Russia 5 - 0. Today, the US takes on Slovakia for the right to go against Sweden, while Canada awaits the winner of the Russia -- Czech Republic quarterfinal. The puck drops for the US at 3:30 PM EST, and for Russa at 7:30 PM.

Both semi-final matches are on Saturday, with the Championship and 3rd place games on Monday.

The CBJ have deployed some scouts to Ottawa to catch the action (and perhaps discuss a few Senators' players?) Despite the shutout at the hands of Sweden, Filatov has played well for Russia, and will be interesting to watch in the match against the Czechs. Don't forget about Cody Goloubef for Canada and Ted Ruth for the US, both of whom could figure prominently in the Jackets' future.

Game Day Preview -- Jackets vs. Colorado Avalanche

The first game of 2009 is just 12 hours or so away! Here are some tidbits to consider for tonight's contest, which will mark the halfway point in the Jackets current road trip, the longest of the season. This also marks the front end of a tough back-to-back, with St. Louis on tap for tomorrow.

To lead off, here is an interesting excerpt from Adrian Dater's blog entry in the Denver Post:

The Avs are running into one hot goalie tomorrow night. Columbus’ Steve Mason has three straight shutouts, a streak of 181:59. This is the same guy who led Canada to the World Junior title last year. No rookie has done what Mason has done since Glenn Hall in 1955-56.- Don’t be surprised if Doug Weight becomes a Blue Jacket before long. I think that will leave him with only four more NHL teams he hasn’t played with if that happens. Or at least it seems that way. (And, yes, I say why not get Doug Weight in the Burgundy and Blue, at this stage, as another reader noted below. Seriously, I’ve given up on Arnie. You either have it or you don’t. And Arnie just doesn’t have it anymore).

So, it appears that Mason is starting to get some notice, and the Weight deal is gaining some momentum outside the confines of Central Ohio.

Despite losing two of their stalwarts, including their leading scorer, Colorado has been making things tough for visiting teams. The Avs have won their last three at home, including a 5-4 win over Phoenix, a 4 - 3 victory over the Red Wings and a 5 - 1 thumping of Nashville.

Not sure who will be in goal for Avs tonight. Budaj has taken the brunt of the load, including the 3 - 1 loss at Phonix on New Year's Eve. He is 13-16-1, with a 2.74 GAA and a .903 save percentage. Raycroft has only appeared in 8 games, but has a 6 - 1 record. His GAA is 2.95 and sports an .886 save percentage. Given the disparity between the statistics and the records, it appears that Raycroft has been in the right place at the right time.

Both the CBJ and the Avs are working through injury issues. Colorado, however, still has Jacket killers Ryan Smith and Milan Hejduk. John-Michael Liles has been providing some scoring support from the blue line, and Ian Laperriere and T.J. Hensick have also been contributors.

The Jackets have moved up to 10th in the NHL in Goals Against, thanks to their recent spate of shutouts, and remain 22nd in goals scored. We need to continue with the tough Hitchcockian checking game tonight, but also need to step up the offensive assault. We need 30+ shots on goal tonight, and lots of early rubber. Get an early lead, dole out the majority of the hits, stay out of the box and own the faceoff circle. Those are the keys for the current road trip, and have worked so far. If we can add some more offensive zip and elevate the puck above the ice, but below the crossbar, we have the ingredients for success.

Let's go Jackets!!

What A Way To End 2008!

Let the record reflect that there were fewer than 30 minutes remaining in the 2008 calendar year when the Jackets wrapped up their 3rd consecutive shutout win -- a 2 - 0 decision over the Anaheim Ducks. The Orange County Register blogger who questioned the existence of the Bluejackets in today's Ducks' blog now most certainly knows the name of at least one Bluejacket -- Steve Mason. Mase was simply spectacular once again, stopping all 27 shots that came his way. Well there was that one errant shot that went in the net but was not counted, due to the whistle having sounded for coincidental minor penalties, plus an extra 2 minutes to the Ducks. He now owns the record for most consecutive scoreless minutes by a Bluejackets goalie -- at the age of 20. Oh yeah, he also leads the league in GAA, with a 1.68 or so, and is tied with Luongo for the lead with 5 shutouts. Another game where the two goalies were the first and second stars.

For some classic deadpan humor, you really needed to catch Hitchcock's comments after the game. Barely suppressing a smile, when asked to comment about Mason, he said something to the effect of "He was O.K. -- he was fine." About 5 seconds later, when asked who starts in Colorado, the answer was simple, direct and immediate -- "Mason." We are getting grand efforts by him when we have needed them most, when our offensive ranks are thinned.

Credit goes to the boys in front of Mason for playing gritty, hard nosed hockey night after night, and doing the little things necessary to win. MacDonald was parked in front when Commodore let his blast go, and had his stick in the right place. After just missing on a long distance pass to spring Huselius, Nash pursued the puck to the boards, gained possession, and fed Peca with a beautiful chance that he buried. Two third period goals that slay the Ducks -- a beautiful thing.

With Chimera poised to come off the IR soon, the offense will hopefully begin to pick up. Since I could not watch the first two periods of the game tonight, i can't give out my usual +/- rankings, but suffice it to say that it certainly looked to be another victory chalked up to superior effort.

Now a well deserved rest to enjoy the New Year, then time to tackle a back-to-back at Colorado and St. Louis. Normally a graveyard for Jackets teams in the past, Colorado is hurt by injuries and lost to Phoenix tonight. St. Louis has also been hampered by injuries in falling to the bottom of the Western Conference standings. No matter, we need to put our feet firmly on their throats and keep up this relentless effort.

Possibilities abound folks -- stay tuned!!!! Go Jackets!!!