Staggering really.

..and if you listen to Hitch they aren’t even close to playing at their best yet.

That’s incredible news if you’re a Jackets fan!

Could the Jackets be flirting with being one of the NHL’s elite teams this season? It’s still early and there is a ton of hockey left to be played, but it’s lookin good so far!!

STOPLIGHT GAME REVIEW
vs. LA
10.17.09
Score: Jackets 4 Kings 1

GREEN
* Chimera with another barn burner of a rip bellowing down that left wing. That was a big goal late in the period that turned the tide in this game. Nice all around game from him. Pretty cool he go one on a big night for the Ryan Salmon’s family. Funny how these things work out eh?

* Want to know what it looks like when a player is reaching his prime? Just watch Rick Nash. Guy is playing phenomenal hockey and once again carrying this team offensively. That goal was a beauty but he’s just been unbelievable, especially short handed.

* Jackets give up the first goal… doesn’t matter…. as this team no longer get’s rattled by such happenings.

* A clean shaven Rick Nash looked like he’s 17.

* Tyutin did a nice job absorbing some of those Hejda minutes logging 24+ in all situations… Roy, Stralman and Methot did as well. Really just a solid outing by everyone on the blueline.

* I grow more impressed with Stralman by the game… he really does a nice job skating pucks out of trouble.

* PK picture perfect again.

* If this is the kind of production we can expect healthy Raffi Torres then we are all in for a helluva season by 14. The guy just changes games.. be it by hits (how bout that one on Moller), timely goals or drawing penalties. Gonna be hard not to give this guy a hard look at re-signing if he keeps this pace up.

* Salmon’s jersey behind the bench – nice touch!

* To all the little kids out there who are either fighting or have beaten cancer — this win is for you!

* Another timely PP goal to give the Jackets the lead for good.. enough can’t be said about getting those.

* Jackets managed the game really well in the 3rd… they took advantage of a tired LA squad who was playing their 3rd game in 4 nights.

* Jackets 60% in the dot let by Vermette (79%) and Pahlsson (62%).

* Wings lose again in a shootout…

YELLOW
* Bad first goal by Mase… but he rebounded to have a good game.. especially in that 3rd period.

* Just over 15k in attendance on the Sat night. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to be one of those. By all accounts the upper bowl was full but it’s those lower bowl seats at $70 a pop that are the problem.

* Jackets got another PP goal but they really had problems penetrating the o-zone with puck possession. We are talkin about the 29th worst PK in the league.

* Russ with a helper, 18+ minutes, 2 hits, 2 shots…. Howson needs to announce these signings more often before games.

* Nice to see Voracek get an empty net goal and I hope that get’s him going but I tend to agree with Hitch… the Jackets need a lot more offensive production out of everyone not named Nash in that top 6. Defensively they’ve been solid but that’s not enough. Brass, Vermette, Voracek, Juice and Umberger all had quiet nights.

* Brass has yet to find that gear that made him so successful last season.

RED
* Matt the Mask was so under the weather that a trip to the ER was made so he couldn’t make it. LTL had previous family commitments. When the only red lights that I can think of are this it was a great night for the good guys!

3 BRIGHT LIGHTS ON THE NIGHT
* Jackets make it 4 in a row!
* Chimera and Torres turn tide
* Hat for Heroes!

-LTL

Don’t look now but here come the Kings!

The Kings remind me a lot of the Blue Jackets last season. They are a team who has a tremendous collection of yount talent with some solid veterans mixed in.

They are 4-3 so far this season and appear, at least early on, to be a dangerous team on the rise.

OFFENSE
The Kings haven’t had much of a problem scoring goals. In fact they’ve potted 23 of em so far which is an average of 3.29 per game – that is good for 10th in the league. Andre Kopitar leads the way with 11 points and new acquisition Ryan Smyth is meshing well out of the gate with 9. Keep an eye on second year defensive dynamo Drew Doughty whose already racked up 6 big ones.

Other than Rick Nash, the Jackets offense hasn’t done a whole lot of scoring of late. In fact they have just 7 goals over their past 3 games — fortunately that was enough to get em 2 wins. The good news is they are creating chances, especially the Umberger-Vermette-Voracek line, now they just need to get to em to fall (and not prematurely blown dead).

This is a tough one to call. The Kings can roll 3 lines that can score but so can the Jackets. Doughty gives them a nice dynamic on the blueline but I don’t think it’s enough to give them the edge on the road.

Edge: Push

DEFENSE
The Jackets continue to butter their bread by being responsible defensively in all 3 zones. They are 4th in the league in goal against only giving up on average 2.20 goals a game. Everybody has bought in to Hitch’s system and they are piling up the wins early.

The question of the game is how does this squad respond without their bedrock defensemen in Jan Hejda? How do the new pairing gel?

The Kings on the hand are suspect in this area. They’ve given up on average 3.43 goals per game — good for 20th overall in the league. They are venerable and my guess is that this has a lot to do with their inexperience on the blueline.

Even withtout bacon (i.e. Hejda) on their cheeseburger this is an area the Jackets clearly have an advantage and will need to exploit.

Edge: Jackets

GOALTENDING
Quick vs. Mase.

I haven’t watched much of Quick so I’ll have to go off stats. He’s backstopped the Kings to 4 wins but has a 3.18 GAA and .893 save %. Not exactly great numbers for a goaltender.

Mase bounced back well against Calgary after a tough night in Vancouver. Goaltenders need to have a short memory in this league to be successful and Mase has shown the ability to do that. He’s got 3 wins a 2.71 GAA and .916 save %. Need to tighten up those rebounds.

I like Mase over Quick at this point as Quick hasn’t shown enough. The Kings have a lot of skill on their forwards line who can break a game quickly so Mase will need to be sharp.

Edge: Jackets

SPECIAL TEAMS
Kings have the 13th ranked PP and 29th ranked PK.

The Jackets have the 18th ranked PP and #1 PK.

Clearly the Jackets PP will need to take advantage of a very suspect LA PK. Who else is up for another Stralman one time goal? I think Umberger is due to cash in as well with his work in front of the cage. The Jackets have been really good entering the zone with puck possession. That will need to continue.

The Jackets will need to contain Ryan Smyth who is a major pest around that net. Drew Doughty also has a nice bomb from the point.

Edge: Jackets

X FACTOR
The Kings are on the 5th game of a 6 game road trip. So far they are 2-2 having dropped their past 2. They’ll be a motivated bunch as they look to get back on the winning track.

This is the Jackets last home game before they depart on a challenging 4 game west coast trip of their own. They need to take advantage of that and pad their spot in the standings. They also need to take advantage of what should be a good crowd at Nationwide Arena on a Saturday night.

Then there is Jan “bacon” Hejda situation. It will be very interesting to watch how the defense plays without him eating up those major minutes against the other team’s top players. Everybody will need to elevate their games to make up for his absence.

No word yet if Nikita is Filatin or Filatout of the lineup tonight.

For those attending the game don’t forget to show your support for Hats For Heroes!

GO JACKETS!

-LTL

Rick Gethin of The Hockey Writers discusses Unfamiliar Territory. A good read you can find here.

Peter points us to the Sharks web site and Jody Shelley’s blog.

Last Friday, sitting in my stall, fresh off the ice from a high paced practice, I scanned the room to see who I could converse with. Me, at the ripe age of 33, was in the locker room with Staubitz, Demers, Ferriero, Greiss and McGinn, the young lads. These guys are all staying at the hotel and have mentioned on a few occasions how they have a tough time staying busy throughout the day and how they can even become a bit bored.

Aha! I could help them out!! With an 11 month old at home who goes to bed at 8 and wakes up 10 to 12 hours later, I figured what a gig . . . babysitting for the Shelleys while we (myself and my wife Mandy) went to see Couples Retreat. Genius!!

We could put junior to bed, head to the theater for the 8:45 showing, be back by 11:00 and the “sitter” was done. The lucky winner could watch TV, surf the net, raid the fridge, talk on the phone, whatever they want. Plus the offer of 12 bucks an hour was on the table. What a proposal!

Gotta love Jody.. even as a Shark.

Here’s one for ya. Did you know that hockey is making a comeback in the Hallmark X-mas ornanment lineup?

The lucky player…..? Sidney Crosby.

Hallmark used to release a new hockey player every year.. but they stopped making them a few year’s back… I assume due to the fact they weren’t selling. Perhaps this is another subtle little sign that the NHL is finding its way back into the American mainstream.

Regardless I’ll break down and buy one to add to the ole man-tree (complete with the Stanley Cup topper…c’mon — every man needs one!)… Not a big fan of the Penguins but the Wings they ain’t…

Now just get me one with 61 on the back.

This was sent in by Chris and it’s a Globe & Mail article called “Blue Jackets Sold On Hitch“.

As Chris says there isn’t a whole lot new but always great to see the Jackets getting some positive press.

The Men’s Hockey Buckeye’s dropped their 3rd game in a row to #3 ranked Denver last night by a final of 2-0. They’ll get one more crack at Denver tonight at Nationwide.

What a nightmare opening to their season. This game is a must win if they hope to salvage something this year.

Check out this new article from Ed over at Insidehockey.com. It’s all about the glut of fowards in Columbus.

Did you know the central division used to be referred to as “Comedy Central’? Hadn’t heard that before the boys mentioned it on Jackets post game show on Tuesday.

That certainly isn’t surprising considering how bad that division was for a long time… but damn, why couldn’t I think of that!

As I stated earlier… bare with me on the posts over the next few days. Working away on the new and (hopefully) improved home for LTL.

-LTL

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS RECOGNIZE HOCKEY FIGHTS CANCER™ NIGHT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OHIOHEALTH ON SATURDAY AT NATIONWIDE ARENA

Blue Jackets Foundation to honor heroes and raise awareness for fight against pediatric and other cancers during game against Los Angeles Kings

The Columbus Blue Jackets and the team’s charitable foundation recognize the National Hockey League’s Hockey Fights Cancer™ Awareness Month with a special Hockey Fights Cancer Night in partnership with OhioHealth on Saturday, Oct. 17 when the Jackets host the Los Angeles Kings at Nationwide Arena. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

In support of the Blue Jackets Foundation’s signature program, Hats For Heroes, and its mission to fight pediatric cancer, the Foundation will host more than 20 pediatric cancer heroes and their families during Saturday’s game.

The heroes and their families will also be involved by selling Hats For Heroes hats and t-shirts at several locations throughout Nationwide Arena. Thanks to a generous donation by the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #9 and Relay Gear, 100% of the hat sales will directly benefit the Foundation’s pediatric cancer research initiatives.

NHL.com also has a story titled “Ryan Salmons’ spirit lives on in Columbus“.

“Even today, I cannot even comprehend the magnitude of Ryan and what he meant to the community and the Blue Jackets,” Ryan’s father, Brad Salmons, told NHL.com. “I was so busy helping Ryan that I just never saw the impact he was having. I mean, I tell people who want to help that sometimes I just want to sit in the corner and grieve, but I can’t because that’s not want Ryan would want.”

He’s right. When NHL.com was on the scene for the historic opening two playoff games in Columbus last spring, the Salmons family graciously opened their home to us for an exclusive interview with Ryan.

“When the doctors diagnosed me, my first thoughts were, ‘I can’t have cancer, I’m an 18-year-old kid who is physically fit,’ ” Salmons told NHL.com in a one-on-one interview last April at his Grove City home. “I’ve been lifting weights for a year and a half. I’ve been staying on top of my physical stuff so there’s no way I can have cancer.”

Cathy, who’s daughter Coryn has battled cancer, via email encourages everyone who can to get out to the game tomorrow and support this great cause:

“Please remind everyone to come out tomorrow night and support not only our great guys on the ice – but also the kids who’s lives they have touched..Ryan, Sam, Coryn, Noah, Hannah, Seth….. I could go on and on….”

In some sad news Cathy also went on to share…

Some additional sad and somewhat related news to pass along – one of the kids from the “Dude Where’s My Hair” cast passed away last night. Samantha McCarthy was a courageous 12 year old girl who has been fighting cancer for the last five years.

You can learn more about Samantha’s story by visiting her Caringbridge web site here.

I have a daughter of my own and just can’t imagine going through something like this but this is reality for a lot of families out there.

This is a great chance for folks to make a difference. If you have the means to donate a few dollars or to buy a Hats For Heroes hat it all makes a difference for these families and especially the kids who battle this disease every day of their young lives.

My hat is off to these families and to the Blue Jackets for such a great program and my heart goes out to all the young kids fighting this fight. Stay strong and let’s see if the Jackets can get a big win for all of ya tomorrow night!

For more information on Hats For Heroes and all that the Columbus Blue Jackets foundation does please visit their official web site.

For those that can’t make it to the game and would like to make a contribution you can visit the official CBJ Hats For Heroes to do so.

A small note to share from that web site:

Thanks to the generous donation of the Capital City Lodge #9 Foundation, 100% of the proceeds from the sale of the Hats For Heroes hats are dedicated to fighting pediatric cancer.

-LTL

Anyway, this is totally in fun. We love (almost) everyone below! And, for the record, game-ops is MUCH improved so far this year.

Here is a fan’s version of the CBJ Celebrity Look-Alike game. Play with your friends at the R Bar. It is a great time.

Larry Hoepfner (Senior VP) = John Gotti

TJ LaMendola (CFO) = Jared the Subway Guy

Ken Hitchcock = Captain Kangaroo

Steve Mason = A Player in the Movie Hoosiers

Nikita Filatov = Twiggy

Sammy Pahlsson = Vladamir Putin

Anton Stralman = Beeker

Jeff Rimer = Satan

Dispatch.com
Rank: 6
Funny how free-agent signings like Sammy Pahlsson and Mathieu Garon don’t get much attention, when they’ve been key to the Blue Jackets’ fast start.

FoxSports.com
Rank: 5 (+2)
Rick Nash’s six-point week helped Columbus take two of the three games it played. Nash collected one game-winner and three assists in the two Blue Jacket wins.

TSN.ca
Rank: 8 (+5)
Surprisingly loose defensively, the Jackets have allowed 140 shots in four games, even with checking centre Samuel Pahlsson getting better than 18 minutes per game and shutdown defencer Jan Hejda leading the team with a plus-7.

CBC.ca
Rank: 13 (-5)
Off to a good start on the road.

CBSSports.com
Rank: 10 (unchanged)
Columbus has spent too much time killing penalties so far. But the Jackets aren’t suffering from it, shutting down opponents in 17 of their first 18 tries.

Sportsnet.ca
Rank: 5 (+6)
Ken Hitchcock has the Blue Jackets hitting on all cylinders defensively which you just know leaves him smiling.

CNNSI.com
Rank: 5 (+10)
It says something about improving conditions in Columbus that Steve Mason is doing nothing to enhance his Team Canada chances but the Jackets are still finding ways to win. The NHL’s most smothering penalty kill has scored as many goals (one) as it has allowed and a disciplined approach with the puck (league-low 19 giveaways) means these Jackets won’t beat themselves.

THN.com
Rank: 8 (+3)
Random thought here, but when was the last time a team’s starter and backup were both lefties?

Yahoo.com
Not published

Meta-score: 7.6 (Last week: 12.2)

High: 5 (FoxSports, Sportsnet & CNNSI)
Low: 13 (CBC)

I think this may be an all time high in the Power Rankings meta-score. Heck it could be higher as a lot of these were published even before the win against Calgary.

Not sure what the Jackets did to drop 5 spots in CBC’s eyes but that’s how it goes. As you can see most have the Jackets in the top 8 which is exactly where they should be based on how and where they’ve played.

-LTL

John Moore(OHL): 2g 2a in 5g
Matt Calvert(WHL): 4g 0a in 6g
Kevin Lynch(NCAA): 0g 0a in 2g
David Savard(QMJHL): 1g 10a in 11g
Steven Delisle(QMJHL): 2g 4a in 10g
Tomas Kubalik(QMJHL): 3g 4a in 10g
Brent Regner(AHL): 1g 2a in 4g
Stefan Legein(AHL): 1g 0a in 4g
Will Weber(NCAA): 0g 0a in 1g
Maksim Mayorov(AHL): 0g 2a in 4g
Tom Sestito(AHL): 1g 1a in 4g
Alex Picard (AHL): 2g 3a in 5g

Also not really a prospect but Pascal Pelletier is leading the Crunch in scoring with 2g 4a in 6g.

Jake Hanson, Ted Ruth and Cody Goloubef NCAA seasons have yet to kick off so no stats to report.

As we know stats don’t always paint the entire picture – especially for defending d-men like a Will Weber – but for offensive guys it can give you an indication as to how well they are playing.

The numbers for David Savard (11p in 10g for a d-man) and Tomas Kubalik (7p in 10g for his first season in Major Junior) are certainly promising.

-LTL

Thansk to Ryan and Jeff for the heads up!

-LTL

They have a chance to quickly redeem themselves as #3 Denver is in town. They’ll face off against them tomorrow night at the Schott and then again on Friday night at Nationwide.

As I’ve stated in this space numerous times if you have never seen NCAA D1 hockey not only is it a great brand of hockey, it’s extremely affordable.

The Buckeye’s official web site has a great video previewing this 2 game series. Check it out here.

-LTL