While We’re Waiting… Corey Ivy, Lebron James, Thad Matta, Cliff Lee (Oh My!)
March 19, 2009March Madness for Ohio
March 19, 2009Blue Jackets 4, Blackhawks 3 – OT
(Box) – Highlights
Record: 37-28-6 (80pts – 6th place)
Sports Club Stats Rank: 6th, 91.9%
Antoine Vermette is making Jackets GM Scott Howson look like a genius. There’s really no other way to say it than that, right now. Whether it be his work on the penalty kill, his faceoff winning, his speed, or the fact that he’s seamlessly meshed into the rotation of this team, Vermette has made this Jackets team IMMEDIATELY better since his arrival. His great stretch continued last night as he scored the game-winning goal two and a half minutes into overtime last night to propel the Jackets past the Chicago Blackhawks for the second time in six days.
The win earned them their 79th and 80th points, which tie a franchise record for most points in a season (set last year). With 11 games to go, it’s not unreasonable to expect that record will fall between now and the end of the year. 37 wins is also a franchise record, as well. This season has been almost magical from the perspective of the Jackets fan, and the addition of Vermette is a move that has worked almost perfectly and paid immediate dividends.
Not only did Vermette play well, but I think the biggest/best move the Jackets made yesterday was bumping winger Jakub Voracek up to the line with Vermette and RJ Umberger. That line has a TON of speed now, and Voracek is a better puck handler to go with those other two guys than was Jason Williams. You could see flashes with that line last night (I was able to attend the game thanks to the generosity of my friend Jeff, who rules, BTW). There was play in the first where Vermette worked his way in on the left wing, made a spinning pass to the slot, and the Jackets almost scored a goal. It was just beautiful, and is indicative of the seemingly instant chemistry Vermette seems to have with his new teammates.
And, if I can digress for a moment, Voracek has very quietly put together a great rookie season for himself. While not scoring the goals that perhaps some (read: me) expected or hoped he would score (he has nine on the year), he has put up 35 points on the season, and is closing in on Rick Nash’s rookie points record (39). Voracek is currently fourth on the team in points, and tied for third with Nash for +/- at +10. At age 19, Voracek is only going to get better in the coming years. Adding him to the line with Umberger and Vermette should only help him close in on the rookie points record number over the last 11 games.
All of this glowing discussion of Vermette and Voracek does not mean that there weren’t some things to be concerned about in this game. For one, the Jackets gave up a goal one minute into the game. They took far too many penalties, though two of the penalties in the third period were on two of the worst calls I’ve ever seen. Fedor Tyutin managed eight minutes in penalties all by himself, including a 4-minute double-minor for high sticking in the first period. The Blackhawks’s Power Play is very solid, and so giving them that many opportunities is just like playing Russian Roulette. The Jackets managed to kill off six out of seven Power Plays, which is a solid effort against a good PP unit. But, the underlying fact that they were down a man so many times is cause for some concern.
Equally alarming is the fact that, since these teams last played on Friday, this was the Blackhawks’ third game compared to only the second for Columbus. Plus, the Hawks were traveling, whereas Columbus was at home the entire time. Plus, the Hawks had played Tuesday night whereas Columbus hadn’t played since Sunday. So, looking at that, you would expect one team to have a little more energy than the other. What you probably wouldn’t expect is that it was the Jackets who looked worn out, and not the Blackhawks. While it’s great that the Jackets have been winning (winning cures all, after all), the fact that they’ve been doing it without guys like Jason Chimera and Fredrik Modin seems to be wearing some of the key players down a bit. Chimera and Modin may not be top-flight players, but they are certainly very solid guys, and help to provide some of the new-found depth the Jackets have displayed this year. Not having them increases the workload of the other regulars, and it seems as though it’s taking a toll on the guys.
The other “fatigue” angle is that of Steve Mason. He continues to win and to play well. His team hung him out to dry a few times last night, and he did make some great saves along the way. But, the Jackets are kind of playing with fire: Mason is 20 years old. He’s played exactly one year of pro hockey, and it was at the junior level (where they don’t play nearly the amount of games, nor do they have the travel schedule of the higher-level minor league teams and the NHL teams). He also is not even a full year removed from major knee surgery, and battled through mononucleosis this season. Yet, I will be shocked if he does not make the remaining 11 starts the rest of the way. That would put him at 61 games on the year, which is a HUGE jump in workload from anything he’s ever done before, and as we’ve seen in every other major sport, the “rookie wall” is a very real thing. He’s been able to largely avoid it for long stretches, but it does seem to crop up from time to time. The Jackets’ schedule does let up a bit in terms of getting a couple more off-days the rest of the way, which will hopefully help keep Mase fresh.
Next up is a road trip to Florida, where the Panthers are playing solid hockey, but the Jackets catch a Tampa Bay team that is floundering near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. The Jackets have been great against the East this season, and Mason has been very, very solid against the East with six shutouts and only one loss. The Jackets probably need to win one of these two road games, and one would think Tampa Bay is a good bet to be a game that the Jackets can win.
Other Important Scores
Thanks to the great people at Sports Club Stats, we have started looking at Jackets games in the context of the rest of the conference and who the Jackets are fighting with for those playoff spots. Picking up from the “Who To Root For” section of the preview, here are the “Other Important Scores” from around the Western Conference last night:
Chicago at Columbus – CLS wins, 4-3 (OT)
Dallas at Calgary – CAL wins, 2-1
Nashville at Anaheim – ANA wins, 4-3 (OT)
Not too many games last night, but the Jackets did get some help. Dallas is in trouble, and while Nashville did get a point, the Jackets picked up a point on them with their win and are now five points clear of eighth place in the conference and six points clear of ninth. SCS has them back up over 90% as a result. They still need to keep winning, but like the song in Office Space says, “Damn it feels good to be a gangsta.”
And, lest we get ahead of ourselves, it is important to note as well that the Jackets are now within four points of the Blackhawks in the standings, and have two more head-to-head meetings with them. Not sayin’, just sayin’.
6 Comments
GOOOOOOAAAALLLLL! CAN WE DANCE WITH YOUR DATES?!?!
Also, good work with the Office Space quote. I dropped one today in a meeting and it went over like a lead balloon…
I have no respect for people who don’t appreciate Office Space quotes in an office setting.
Also, Jackets play Florida next. When worlds collide…
I really thought that when we missed that one-timer that was our lost chance, thanks for proving me wrong once again Jackets. Yeah if we could move just a little further (to the 4th spot) yeah right there that would be great.
Scotty, I think 4th isn’t realistic, because Vancouver is playing solid right now and the Jackets don’t play them head-to-head the rest of the way. If anyone sneaks into 4th, it will be the Canucks. But, with Chicago struggling without Patrick Sharp and having no timetable for when he’ll come back, it’s not unrealistic to make a run at them and possibly 5th.
5th would be better than 6th in any case. The Jackets would struggle against Calgary in round 1, and Calgary has all but locked up 3rd place right now.
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