Let's take a deep breath first.
The Columbus Blue Jackets are just fine. At least for now.
They've won four of seven, they've found ways to win games and also found ways to lose. That happens early in the season, every year. Nothing surprising there.
But don't you feel their 4-3-0 record should be...at least one game better? I'm looking, of course, at Saturday's loss to the Chicago Blackhawks – and there are two ways to look at it. I'll leave it up to you to decide which route to take.
1. What the hell happened? A lot of people feel this way. The Blue Jackets were dominant for long stretches of that game and the way the game ended shouldn't sit well. Are they good, but not good enough? Are they fundamentally lacking a finishing touch that would help them convert some of those 40 scoring chances? This approach looks at their 4-1 loss more pessimistically, but I know many fans who weren't happy with how that game ended.
2. Brighter days ahead. You could call this the glass-half-full approach to analyzing one regular season game, but often times we see teams become "what they are" around this time of the schedule. From now until U.S. Thanksgiving is a sprint to solidify your playoff position, and the Blue Jackets want to make sure they're playing their brand of hockey on a regular basis to get themselves in that discussion. Guess what? They were pretty darn good Saturday, even without the result. They juggled lines and might have found something at 5-on-5 even while the power play continues to underwhelm, and when you create 40 scoring chances, you're doing a lot of things well. They've had a few of these games now where they're skating and playing aggressively (granted, not for as long as they did against Chicago) but you hope this is the start of them trending upward offensively.
Columbus has to be able to score 5-on-5, or at least until their power play comes around. So far, so good; the Blue Jackets have four lines that can at least drive play and if they can ever find more opportunities for guys like Sonny Milano and Oliver Bjorkstrand, they might really have something.
"So, Rob, what are you actually saying?"
I'm saying that it's OK to have conflicted feelings on what the Blue Jackets have done so far. And I caution you to fall into the "it's early" trap because, as you know, Thanksgiving is a critical date on the NHL schedule in terms of postseason odds and positioning. They've been good enough to win on a few nights, and just good enough to lose on a few others – but I really, really like how they played Saturday night.
John Tortorella said he wants his team to be cognizant of the fact their record can tell a lie. Their result on Saturday didn't tell the whole truth: that's a game they should've win, and if they play as they did, they'll win a lot more.
HUMOR ME, IF ONLY MOMENTARILY
I love the Browns. I deeply love the Browns.
But like many of you, I also hate them.
They're one of the best watches in the NFL right now. They've been in every game, and yet have only won two of their first seven (a stretch that included six winnable games). It's no longer "be competitive" time in Berea, because the Browns are built to win. John Dorsey knows it, the Haslams know it (shout out #SaveTheCrew) and if that's truly the case, Hue Jackson has coached his last game with the Browns.
Watching Sunday's game was painful, even as the Browns rallied from a two-touchdown deficit to force overtime. They were so undisciplined, so markedly and obviously unprepared, and badly out-coached in a game that was right there for them to win – again.
Penalties are correctable. That's why you practice. But the Browns repeat mistakes in the way a defiant child refuses to listen to its parents. It's not good, and it has to change. Beginning with the head coach.
