Don’t you believe just keeping Bjorkstrand and continue to build with the existing team in place then shell out over 84 mil to Gaudreau + Gundbranson for the next 11 years. It’s not like these two are moving the needle to playoff contention. IMO CLB is at least another 2 maybe 3 years away.

I’ll stand with not signing either was the right play

I totally agree that dealing Bjorkstrand does in fact cancel out some of the positives of signing Gudbranson-Gaudreau. They should have just paid to dump Nyquist over that. But signing Gaudreau, for a team that historically hasn't been able to bring over superstars or retain them long-term, means so much more than the on-ice impact of Gaudreau.

We definitely didn't think our defense would actually be good with 3 rookie defenders

I’m just guessing obviously but IMO they will look back at this summer wishing neither of those players signed. I would have continued building but I get the whole small market thing.

I think it depends on if Gaudreau sets a precedent and other stars choose Columbus in the near future.

Dumping Nyquist would’ve cost a 1st, you saw what it cost to dump Monahan, Pens GM didn’t dump Zucker because it would’ve cost a 1st, stands to reason it would’ve cost CBJ a 1st to dump Nyquist which is wayyy too much

Yeah it's a lot but after all it's Nyquist + 1st (they probably would have protected it) for Bjorkstrand, which is not that bad given Bjorkstrand's term

I don't think it would've been a first given Nyquist had a solid year before. Both Monahan and Zucker were having a struggle of a year, but Nyquist managed 50+ points.

Nyquist is cheaper than Monahan and is actually a decent player. He put up like 50 points last season

2nd time since the season started that USA (28) got more points than Canada (27) (First day USA had more points)

You would think Nyquist has value but nope, GM’s saw the 5mil and the fact that CBJ was over the cap and considered it a cap dump, hence why it would’ve cost a 1st

Bjorkstrand’s term may have actually gone against him, CBJ has a lot of decent young forwards coming up the pipeline

I'm not saying he has value, I'm just saying he doesn't have as much negative value as Monahan.

With the guarantee or at least very high possibility of the cap going up around 4m the next 2 years I think that we will see a dramatic price drop to rid yourself of useful players. I think next off-season there will be no free players like there was this year. I don't think we will see and Bjorkstrand or Patches move for a while. There isn't a big need anymore to move big cap AND 5m is less now because of the cap.


On a bit of a different topic, but also similar. Did GMs guess or estimate that this cap increase was coming hence the seemingly high amount of contracts given out for 8 years to younger not very proven players? Hughes, Norris, the 3 Tampa players, Samuelsson, Kyrou?, Thompson, Thomas etc. Im thinking NYR are wishing they did the same with Laf.

The Athletic's Aaron Portzline reported that, in order to move on from Gus Nyquist, for instance, it would have had to be a pure salary dump, "meaning the Blue Jackets may have needed to include a top prospect (Marchenko) or a first-round pick to make it happen." Best digging i could do, Nyquist while more productive, still costs a lot on a team that was at the time over the cap

Of the bottom 11 teams in the league in terms of points percentage, 10 are from the western Conference. Crazy.

Crazy. But not shocking. MTL, BUF, DET, OTT, PHI, NYI, CBJ and NJD are all vastly improved or just playing as expected. BUF and PHI are playing better than expected.

This team would be hilarious to watch.

TNJDHTBDITNHL

Holy cow, we've got a lot to do this morning.

Bobcat’s Post Game Notes, Game 5

Jackets win, 5-3 over the Nashville Predators.

-This is one of the two games where I’m pretty indifferent as to who wins. I like both teams, and hope that they make it out of here without any bad injuries.

-Tanner Jeannot scores on a scramble in front of Elvis, and I missed it because I forgot the game was today.

-I tuned in basically immediately after the Ryan Johansen goal where Gus missed his assignment and Elvis tried more to sell a GI call than actually save the puck. Ouch.

-Danny and Sean have a 2-on-2, Danny tries to get to Sean on the goal-mouth and Sean fans on the puck. That was agony to watch.

-Kevin Lankinen has looked better here in this game than he ever did in Chicago. I guess that’s what happens when you leave that hellhole…

-Erik Gudbranson takes his first penalty of the year (sent to the hockey prison for tripping Filip Forsberg) as the first period goes away. That is the THIRD penalty in the period. A rough way to start the game, but we can manage.

-Roman Josi on an odd-man rush rings it off the post and in, but, luckily, it was offsides. We actually won an offsides challenge for once. It’s a miracle…

-Mark “Lord Toothless” Borowiecki gets sent off for slashing, and, surprise surprise, we do nothing with that power play. Lol.

-A scramble in front of Lankinen, it looked like the puck was in the net, half the crowd jumped up, even Jake and Blanks threw their hands up, but alas, it wasn’t so. Kenny hit the side of the net. Ouch.

-JAKE BEAN TAKES A SHOT FROM THE SLOT THAT GETS BY LANKINEN GLOVE SIDE! WE’RE BACK TO WITHIN ONE! LET’S GO!

-Yakov Trenin takes an odd shot that Elvis didn’t see at all. We’re back to out by 2 again. This is gonna suck…

-Okay, that was a weak holding call. Andy’s off for holding when he didn’t grab Alex Carrier at all. What the hell was that?

-SINCE WHEN THE F*CK HAS KEVIN LANKINEN LITERALLY BEEN GEORGES VEZINA HIMSELF? 2-on-1, Gus, to Rosie, and he, somehow, someway, gets a pad on it! How the hell did he save that!?

-What a way to start the third! Johnny Blue Jacket on a breakaway goes top shelf stick-side and gets us back within one again! I love this guy.

-SO. MANY. PENALTIES. At least we aren’t getting scored on on these PKs. At the very least, it makes the stats look good.

-Matt Duchene gets sent off for slashing. That means 4-on-4 Hockey Time (tm).

-Nothing came of it, but we’ve got momentum on our side.

-JUSTIN DANFORTH, I LOVE YOU. DANNY ON A BREAKAWAY, ABSOLUTELY SHATTERS ALEXANDRE CARRIER’S ANKLES, AND GETS IT PAST LANKINEN TO TIE THIS GAME UP! STUNT ON THESE HOES, YOU ROCKSTAR.

-Goal-mouth scramble right in Elvis’s face, Columbus native Kiefer Sherwood takes a shot, and the King gets a pad on it.

-NICHOLAS. CLUTCH KING. BLANKENBURG. WE TAKE THE LEAD WITH 90 SECONDS LEFT.

-Johnny scores his second of the game on an empty netter, this game is iced. That’s his 4th goal of the year already. This was the right investment.

-What a game. We were down 3-1 at one point, and we came back and made it fun. This is definitely beginning to make up for the frustratingly slow start. Hell yeah.

Bobcat’s Post Game Notes, Game 6

Jackets lose, 6-3 against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

-This is one of those rare Pens games before the entire team gets hurt at the same time and their first line is Kasperi Kapanen and two career AHLers. Relish in this moment, fellas.

-Looking at the lineup for tonight, that third line of Danforth - Sillinger - Chinakhov really caught my eye. Lots of talent, lots of speed, I wanna see how this goes…

-Not even five minutes in, and someone’s stopped play with an injury: Brock McGinn takes a stinger to the arm. That looked like it hurt. Be more careful with your shots, Guddy!

-This is completely unrelated to the game, but I completely forgot Jan Rutta left Tampa Bay. I thought he was still a Bolt, but he’s found himself in Pittsburgh.

-Bryan Rust gets sent off for slashing Kent Johnson. Let’s see if anything comes of this…

-We had almost constant pressure on that PP, but Tristan Jarry morphed into a brick wall and didn’t let anything through. Jarry for Vezina…? Is it too early to say that?

-Okay, that’s the second time Tristan has dislodged the net, but this time was more suspicious than the first. About half the crowd rose up and put their hands outstretched forward in the air (which, when I word it like that, sounds awful). I don’t think it’s a penalty, but still, weird…

-AYE-AYE, CAPTAIN! Captain Boone Jenner scored his first goal of the year of a mis-playing of the puck by Kris Letang! I think this has to be the first time in a long time we’ve scored a goal before the other team even records a shot on goal.

-Andrew Peeke takes a hit from Josh Archibald, and retaliates with a cross-check. Not a smart move. Off to Hockey Prison you go. Maybe next time, retaliating with a hair-flip would be smarter.

-AN ODD MAN RUSH SHORTHANDED, OLLIE AND JUSTIN ALL ALONE, A WONDERFUL PASS, AAAAAND… Danny rings it off the post. Well, ya can’t win ‘em all. Tough luck.

-Another year, and Jake Voracek is still as snake-bitten as ever. For someone who’s known as a passer, he sure does shoot a lot, and those shots never really amount to much.

-Kent gets thrown in the box for a slash, and he looks rather mad at himself for it. Keep your chin up, kid, that happens to the best of us.

-Bryan Rust makes a rookie mistake, Rosie is right there on the breakaway to end all breakaways, and buries it glove-side to score his first goal of the season (and first career SHG!), after a bit of a wait! We go up 2-0 as the first period fades out.

-Okay, first thoughts: This is not the Pens team I remember from years past. At all. They’re off to a noticeably slow start. Jake Guentzel being out for this one is very much a factor, but that alone doesn’t explain giving up 13 unanswered shots on goal and two straight misplays leading to goals (and almost a third one with 6 seconds left). Knowing the Pens, I would expect them to adapt and play much better going into the second, but it’s still odd.

-Johnny Gaudreau’s father Guy was in the booth to start the second period, and he immediately starts talking sh*t about what his son was doing on the ice. I find that hysterical. Guy Gaudreau seems like the kinda guy I’d enjoy a couple beers with (if I was old enough to drink legally).

-Josh Archibald scores his first on the year off a harmless shot from the left side faceoff circle. Makes me wonder what Elvis was doing that far out of the net.

-COLUMBUS CLAPS RIGHT THE F*CK BACK. KENT “THE LORD AND SAVIOR” JOHNSON SCORES HIS FIRST CAREER GOAL 14 SECONDS AFTER THE ARCHIBALD GOAL. LET’S. F*CKING. GO.

-We kill off a penalty, but afterwards former Tampa Bay Lightning Jan Rutta takes a slapper from the point that blows by Elvis. The King looked pretty angry about that one, too. I couldn’t hear it but I could tell that he yelled something to the tune of “JĀŠANĀS!!” (Latvian for “F*CK!”) or something to that extent At least we still have the lead?

-OKAY, NOW WE DON’T EVEN HAVE THAT. Danton Heinen scores on a play where there was too much stuff happening at one time to really tell. Elvis was on his back, that’s all I really got out of it.

-Before the Heinen goal, the DJ played the Friends intro music over the PA and NOBODY CLAPPED ALONG. That is HERESY.

-As the second period ends, I came up with a new cute lil nickname for a line:

Kent Johnson (91), Jack Roslovic (96) and Jakub Voracek (93): The “Running In The 90s Line.”

-…As I type that, I look back up to my TV and Elvis is on his back, and Sidney Crosby is celebrating. Pittsburgh takes their first lead of the game. WE WERE UP 3-1 AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SECOND.

-Marcus Pettersson blatantly holds a Jacket against the boards… and no penalty. To quote Jay-Z, “I don’t respect the f*ckin’ referees.”

-We catch the Pens on a line change, Zach takes a shot, and… rings it off the crossbar. That was loud, too: sounds like someone unloaded their M1 Garand.

-Jake Bean in the offensive zone, and he basically just gives away the puck (otherwise known as “Pulling a Jake Bean”) but Elvis makes the save. Jake’s gonna hear from him about that one.

-Elvis loses his stick, and Danton Heinen scores again. We’re done here.

-The strong start was a mirage. Normally I would be yelling, but I won’t. I can’t, even. If anything, I have to admire the overall effort from both teams. We didn’t give up all game, and the Pens improvised, adapted and overcame a 2 goal lead. This was an overall fun game to watch.

Bobcat’s Post Game Notes, Game 7

Jackets win, 5-1 over the New York Rangers.

-After last game, it’s safe to say that I have no clue how this sh*t’s gonna go down. We’re rolling the same lineup as last night, with Liam Foudy in place of Danforth, as he is injured. Let’s see…

-May we all hold a vigil for Daniil Tarasov? He was thrown against several consecutive Stanley Cup-caliber offenses to start the year, and now he starts against another one in the Rags. Way to screw up his confidence…

-This game starts eerily similar to last game. Not much happens before an injury: Filip Chytil turns right into Cole Sillinger’s unsuspecting elbow, and that takes him out for the game. Hopefully he’s okay.

-Liam ALMOST scores his first NHL goal, but Jaroslav Halak shuts the door.

-…uh oh. Nick Blankenburg went down funny and is off to the bench. I hope it’s just a stinger, and he’ll come back.

-THE ZACHARY ATTACKARY HAS COMMENCED. Zach Werenski scores his second on the year (and gives Liam Foudy his first point on the season with a primary assist)!

-The first period was rather boring. Not many shots on goal, no penalties, and only one goal. Not something I can say I expected from two teams on the higher end of the talent spectrum.

-A Columbus area car dealership brought on Jody Shelley as the special guest for a commercial they run regularly, and I can’t help but laugh at the fact that the dealership owner refers to Shelley as a “hockey legend.” He was a good enforcer, and an even better color announcer, but nowhere near close to a LEGEND.

-Not long after the start of the second, Rosie makes a money pass to Andrew Peeke, who snipes it past Halak (who got a piece of it) to put us up 2-0! Prince Charming makes it count!

-Artemi Panarin makes a good pass from behind the net to Ryan Reaves, but Dani shuts the door from point-blank! Enjoy your stay at Scary Tarry’s House of Horrors!

-In these last 7 games, I am really liking the play from Erik Gudbranson. Not worth 4x4, but he’s been a rock defensively. I haven’t seen a single goal so far that I can say was his fault.

-GODDAMMIT. Blanks is out for the rest of the game. I hope he’s not out for a prolonged period of time, like Adam was on-and-off last year.

-Johnny Gaudreau finds himself behind the defense on a breakaway, but Halak makes the save. I guess that’s why they call him “The Brick Wall.”

-YEGOR BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMB! YEGOR CHINAKHOV SCORES HIS FIRST ON THE YEAR! That wrister will definitely go directly into the folder.

-It took 30 minutes of play off the clock, but we have our first penalty: Guddy is escorted to the sin bin for holding.

-Nothing came of it. I am really liking the defense so far tonight.

-Andrew Peeke gets sent off for tripping Sammy Blais at the goal-mouth. 45 seconds later, Gavi gets sent off for tripping Mika Zibanejad along the near wall. 5-on-3 hockey for entirely too long.

-…and the shutout is over. As the 5-on-3 expires, Breadman bakes up a wrister that blows by Dani. Why is Goose looking more and more like a trade candidate by the game? I thought the agenda was “Gudbranson is the defensive liability”…

-Not even a minute into the third and we’re on the power play: Ryan Lindgren gives Johnny a cross check to the back. What a d*ck.

-Boone gets a misplay right in front of the net, and noted deranged axe-murderer Jacob Trouba knocks him on his behind. Ouch.

-Guddy gets revenge by flattening Kaapo Kakko on the next rush.

-Erik Gudbranson… scored a goal? That’s not something you see every day. 4-1 now.

-Rosie, to Redbeard, to Kenny, tic, tac, toe behind Halak! We’re Running in the 90s tonight!

-You know, for a team that’s considered a Cup contender, the Rags were sleep-walking all night tonight. One thing that really hindered them is that they were starting their backup tonight. If they were starting Shestyorkin in net instead of Halak, things would be INCREDIBLY different.

tonight is the 10th match up of McDavid and Crosby

How does Phil Kessel's consecutive game streak compare with that of Cal Ripken, or other streaks from other sports? It doesn't seem like Phil is getting much attention outside of the traditional hockey media.

I don't think it will compare to Cal Ripken's streak of 2,632 consecutive games played unless he makes it closer to like 1,500 (which would take about 6 more years of playing, and i don't think Phil can do that, at this age).

It does beat the record for most consecutive starts by an NFL player by a large margin, though (Brett Favre, 321 [including playoffs])