Changes have to be coming after a 9-2 dismantling of the Columbus Blue Jackets by the Philadelphia Flyers. Some would say that if the team was just a little under .500 after a performance the CBJ put out against Philly but when your team is now 2-11-1, someone is going to have to pay with their job and maybe multiple people.
With the way that the team looked to be just skating around with their heads cut off, obviously eyes start looking at the coach. It was so bad against Philadelphia that the team gave up a 3 on 1 short handed rush to surrender the sixth goal by the Flyers.
The defense is pee wee level in performance. They may be bigger, faster and stronger but the ridiculous decisions, turn-overs and ability to expose the net has all the signs of a 13 year old defenseman. Not to lay it all at James Wisniewski's feet but he is a combined minus 7 in the last two games.
Steve Mason surrendered a goal on the first shot by the opponent for the second straight game. Anything more need to be said?
Aaron Portzline from the Dispatch had an incredible stat in his Puck-Rakers blog, Mason has now given up a goal on the opponent's first four shots in 10 of his 13 starts.
Mason is the worst starting goalie in the league and it's not even close. With a .869 save percentage (47th in the NHL) and a 3.70 goals against average (47th in the NHL) many should know by now that the likelihood that Mason ever repeats his rookie year performance is probably not in the cards.
Not to rub it in but to show the loss of Mathieu Garon to the Lightning via free agency was overlooked by most as not a big deal. He currently has a 2.43 GAA and a .921 save percentage. That's just because he has better defense in front of him right? Dwayne Roloson, who led the Lightning to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, has a 3.71 goals against average which is the only goalie worse than Mason.
Derick Brassard is minus 11 on the season which gives him a rank of 678 of 679 ranked by the NHL in that category. Both Mason and Brassard are two players that general manager Scott Howson questionably signed to extensions before he had to and now are looking to be players that won't live up to the contracts that they were given.
“We’ve hit a lot of bottoms this year,” Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel said, “and this is another big one.”
I would disagree as the team has hit some low points but this is rock bottom. An intervention is necessary before this franchise over doses on failure.
Arniel said when asked about his future with the club after the game stated, "Nice question, all right. Nice question. I'm not in charge of that. I'm worried about what I have to do tomorrow with this hockey team."
“It’s tough to take,” Blue Jackets captain Rick Nash said. “Guys are embarrassed for the effort we put out for the coach and coaching staff, and management. It’s just not good enough.”
But obviously not embarrassed enough to put out an effort that shows you care. Words are hollow and actions say a whole lot more. Nash and the teammates he captains have shown that the losing is too easy and really doesn't hurt that much anymore. Because of that a complete clean out has to happen to change this culture of losing.
It starts at the top with President Mike Priest who was a bean counter for the McConnell family trust (JMAC, Inc.) who was promoted to President of said trust and then given the reigns to the Blue Jackets. At no point does anyone think he is a hockey guy nor would he profess to be but it is time that the Blue Jackets have someone that understands the NHL at a much deeper level.
Scott Howson also has had too many misses on trades, signings, draft picks and now it looks on a coach also. Howson is extremely smart that is a hockey guy with an attorney chaser. That chaser makes him very analytical but the label of conservative is completely wrong. He has taken chances especially with early re-signings of existing players trying to get them on the cheap before they put up a big season and they no longer could afford them. Mason, Brassard, Kris Russell are all players that he jumped the gun to sign and currently are backfiring on him. The assessment of players and the people that give him that information has seem to steer him wrong. Both Bob Strumm and Don Boyd were fired in the off season who were the scouting brain trust for the organization from the start. Obviously too early to see the results of the change but the change also may have come too late.
The amount of missteps by head coach Scott Arniel have been numerous and the biggest is never setting an identity of this team. He has a style that he wants to play but it seems to be a style that is played by the team only when is convenient. It obviously has confused the defensive corp to the point that it's hard to call them defense with a straight face. The style that Arniel was to bring was a higher scoring style but instead in 96 games behind the bench the team is averaging 2.51 goals a game. Far from an offensive juggernaut.
There is plenty to discredit with Ken Hitchcock as coach but he created an identity with this team and even though the team may have tuned him out at the finish they always respected him. With Arniel, it's hard to see much respect as the team's effort continues to go away on a consistent basis.
Also, Rick Nash as captain is not working. He doesn't have the fire and is not comfortable being the lead person. It's why he plays so much better when on Team Canada. He just blends in and no one thinks of him as a leader on that team. He just has to play. Whether the team thrust the “C” onto Nash's sweater to help keep him in town or he lobbied for the spot is hard to say. What is not hard to figure out is that the position doesn't fit and something should be done about it. They always say you can't fire all the players but you can change roles on the team. This should be done immediately.
What also should be looked at is the concept of trading Nash. The culture is wrong and the amount of losing that Nash has endured over the years has made it too easy for him to accept. The team could gain several pieces that could be added to Jeff Carter, James Wisniewski and R.J. Umberger corp that could lead the team forward. Something has to be done soon in regards to Umberger or he will also get use to the losing and lose one of his biggest attributes that he brings to the team.
My suggestion is obviously on the extreme side of things but extreme losing demands extreme action and it needs to be done quickly.
Columbus Blue Jackets Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»