Around these parts, we’ll do our best to give you everything you need to know about the Columbus Blue Jackets. We’ll also fill you in on the stories you may not have heard about (or those you didn’t think you need to know about), the social media buzz around the league, along with a few random nuggets for good measure.
Think of it as your morning coffee with a shot of hockey talk.
PEN-SATIONAL START: In a stunning upheaval of the food chain, the Penguins find themselves leading the Predators 2-0 after defending home ice at PPG Paints Arena. What seemed probable or likely on at least two occasions in each game – a Nashville split – was turned on its head by the opportunistic Penguins (sound familiar, Blue Jackets fans?) who now have full control of the Stanley Cup Final as it shifts to Music City.
Pekka Rinne seems ordinary all of a sudden, which is rotten timing for the Predators considering they’re down two of their best offensive players and their captain just came back into the lineup. It’s putting a ton of pressure on their star-studded defense, which has contributed its fair share offensively in the absence of Ryan Johansen and Kevin Fiala.
Predators coach Peter Laviolette, of uncensored NBC f-bomb fame prior to Game 1, was hesitant to commit to Rinne for Game 3. Rinne watched the end of Nashville’s Game 2 loss while Juuse Saros cleaned up in relief.
So now the Predators are up against it; a loss in Game 3 would feel like a gut punch in front of their raucous home crowd, a group of 17,000-plus that will be doing everything it can to help the locals get back in the series. The Penguins, meanwhile, look like a locked-in bunch as they seek to become the NHL’s first repeat champion in 20 years.
KOVY'S COMEBACK: The NHL return of Ilya Kovalchuk, who fled New Jersey for the KHL in “retirement” fashion four years ago, is rumored to be a legitimate thing. Imminent, even, depending on who you talk to – and it sounds like the Devils are willing to make a deal to accommodate their former star.
The Devils aren’t really in a position to welcome back Kovalchuk and his big-ticket salary (they’re in the midst of a rebuild) and the Russian winger would reportedly like to play for a contender if he’s to come back to the NHL.
Devils GM Ray Shero has options and isn’t in a hurry to make something happen. New Jersey could conceivably net an asset in return for a sign-and-trade deal with the club Kovalchuk agrees to play for, since his old contract is no longer valid due to retirement. The Devils own his rights, and in essence, all of the cards.
Here’s what Shero told NHL.com’s Mike Morreale at the Scouting Combine:
"I can't go out calling teams because that's a waste of my time," Shero said. "He's going to tell [us] where he wants to play, and in the end, if that does work out and it's not the Devils, then I've got to see if that makes sense for us to do that."
YOU'RE WELCOME, VANCOUVER: It has to be slightly annoying for the Blue Jackets that, not long after they hired John Tortorella in October 2015 and forfeited a future second-round pick in doing so, saw the NHL “update” that rule.
As part of the update, clubs no longer must transfer a draft pick to GMs or coaches who were fired prior to the end of their contract; the Blue Jackets, however, closed the loop on Tortorella’s hire by shipping their 2017 second-round pick (No. 55 overall) to Vancouver earlier this week.
TRANSACTION: #CBJ have transferred their 2nd round pick in the 2017 #NHL Draft to the Canucks as compensation for hiring John Torotorella.
— CBJ Public Relations (@BlueJacketsPR) May 31, 2017
Now, the timing isn’t great considering the expansion draft is a few weeks away and draft picks are great trade chips to help protect players in a “side deal.” Vegas GM George McPhee is the league’s most popular guy right now as teams scramble to try and protect players they may fear losing to the Golden Knights, and the Blue Jackets are absolutely one of those teams.
They might have to give up a pick (not this year’s second anymore) in order to protect someone like Josh Anderson, who is at risk of being exposed.
For a league with plenty of silly rules – offside reviews, delay of game, four minutes for high-sticking if blood is drawn – this compensation rule is yet another example. Thankfully, they righted the wrong in this case but not before the Blue Jackets were forced to hand over a valuable asset. No doubt they’ve done their homework and were prepared to part with the 2017 pick, but who knows what could pop up in the coming weeks?
ICYMI: Our season report card series is winding down, and recently, we looked at Joonas Korpisalo's up-and-down season ... The Blue Jackets are walking away from unsigned draft picks Markus Soberg and Sam Ruopp ... Announced yesterday, the Blue Jackets are again returning to Traverse City's NHL prospects tournament where they've won two titles in the last three years.
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