AlisonL: “The jury was out on Richards early this year, in fact, I had to write in defense of the man just a few short months ago. I’ve been thrilled with the even keel and quiet determination that Richards personality has brought to the team. Likewise, we’d be fools to dis-regard the noise coming from all corners of the league that without Richards, this band of players may not have weathered the early storm of a starting losing streak. There’s no other candidate I see replacing Richards and I don’t see us looking to do so soon. I’d also like to give a special shout out to Coaches Acton and Hinote. These two men helped our PK unit this year which vaulted itself into the top ranked units in the league.”

Canadan: “Early this season, I was ready to cash out on Richards.  After the first fifteen games of the season, I was really disappointed with the on-ice product.  Forwards seemed to be taking themselves out of the play early, the defense seemed to be hesitant on which play to make, and the results simply were not good.

But as we all saw, it was simply a matter of time before the guys dialed in to what turned out to be a great system, providing Bobrovsky with the support to steal games.  That same system stymied the opposition, including some of the league’s best, game after game.  Richards was pivotal in giving the “lowly’ Columbus Blue Jackets a shot at the playoffs, and while he’s an exclusive for the Jack Adams in Columbus, he certainly deserves consideration at the NHL Awards level.  I can’t wait to watch this group out work opposition for the foreseeable future with Richards at the helm.”

CBJProspects: “While Todd Richards deserved every bit of credit he got. I wanna talk about his assistants. This was probably the most experienced coaching staff the CBJ has ever had. We were fortunate to have Keith Acton handing the forwards and Craig Hartsburg handling the Dmen and more than likely leading to the CBJ’s successful PK for most of the season. Ian Clarke helped Bobrovsky with his game and I believe increased responsibility for Dan Hinote really rounded out a competent coaching staff.”

The Coach: “I like the job Richards did this season. He finally realized ‘Controlled Chaos’ was a bad idea. He did a fantastic job of fixing the Blue Jackets breakout and tweaking their neutral zone play (by activating the defenseman a lot more than most teams). He figured out quickly that Bobrovsky was hot and he should just ride him as much as he could. He found a number of lines and defense pairs that really worked well and made a lot of sense. Really my only exception was the amount of ice given to the Gillies-Mackenzie-Boll line midseason. Fortunately, the addition of Comeau improved that line enough to deserve their ice time. Speaking of which, it really appeared that Richards made players earn their ice time. Those who were playing well, usually played more. This fits perfectly with what JD is hoping to build. Now I am not sure how much the introduction of Acton and Hartsburg influenced him, but adding respected guys like that is huge. The team really seemed to know what they were this year, which hasn’t always been the case.”

What was the favorite thing you saw Coach Richards do? Sound off in the comments…because next year is the final year of his contract. Do we extend? How long? When does it happen? More awards coming later in the week!

The post 2013 tUB Awards: Jack Adams Award appeared first on The Union Blue.

WINNER: Sergei Bobrovsky

AlisonL (1): “It’s amazing to think that we were full of questions about our goaltending when the season started. Bob played his position to a superior level among all NHL goal tenders and delivered many a win to the Blue Jackets this season.”

CBJProspects (1): “Most outstanding player yep that’s Bob. Who knows where we would’ve been without Bob.”

The Coach (1): “If anyone of my cohorts picks anyone else for this award, then they are wrong. There is simply no other realistic option for the Blue Jackets most outstanding player. In fact, Bob should probably win this league-wide. He was that fantastic this season.”

Mark Letestu

CBJProspects (2): “Yes the healthy scratch of the first few games who would end up leading the team in goal scoring and earned himself a 2 year contract extension. Mark also became a clutch performer scoring his 2 game winning goals during the teams 19-5-5 run.”

Brandon Dubinsky

The Coach (2): “I love Dubi. The way he plays the game blows my mind. He’s a forward version of what Nick Lidstrom was on defense, in that both players almost always make the exact right decision, are in the right position, or otherwise know exactly what to do. Beyond that, he was very unlucky in his shots, but he played tough minutes and drove play forward with consistency. Oh and he finished in the top five in the entire NHL in faceoffs. He’s a beauty.”

Marian Gaborik

AlisonL (2): “Alright. I will go there. While his tenure with the club was short this season, Gaby showed flashes of what a $7MM player brings to the table. His incredible patience with the puck resulted in goals and the respect other teams are showing him on the ice is undeniable. And let’s be real – I’m giving him this nod now because I expect to see him perform better next year.”

Fedor Tyutin

CBJProspects (3): “Tyutin played in every game led the d in scoring and was solid on the blueline.”

AlisonL (3): “Yep. My season long love affair with Tyuts continues. Our defensive leader demonstrated a quiet presence and was far less noticeable to me this year – which means he’s doing his job not making gaffes.”

Vinny Prospal

The Coach (3): “Vinny was outstanding this season. While he regressed the second half of the season, he still finished with the team lead in points, and had a fantastic year by any measure. His points per game this season were right there with his career numbers, which is crazy for a 38 year old.”

Well there it is, friends. Coming up next, we’ll talk about the Jack Adams award – AKA make our case / rant and rave about why Richards’ should have been considered by the league.

The post 2013 tUB Awards: Ted Lindsay Award appeared first on The Union Blue.

WINNER: John Davidson

AlisonL (1): “This is tough. I thought it was important to define how I would evaluate a good GM so I’m borrowing this definition from NHL.com. “(A Good GM considers) their ability to build rosters, hire coaches and draft players, and everything else that goes into winning a championship.” (I highly recommend the source material for this quote HERE. So with that in mind, my number one pick is John Davidson. JD brought respectability and credibility to the organization which infinitely impacts our ability to retain top level talent. He is also arguably the first to join the CBJ that brings proven success in the draft and a complete understanding of what it takes to build a championship team (as a player and team leader). While JD only tweaked the CBJ roster thus far, his restraint showed an ability to build a quality roster after a rough start – even using only what was already here. While JD didn’t hire a coach (yet) he did bring in Jarmo which is also a huge move for the organization.”

Canadan (3): “Davidson brings respect, tradition, and heavy expectations to Columbus, and I dig that like crazy.  His time in hockey and his success elsewhere will give players the confidence to come to Columbus that guys like Howson, and even Kekalainen couldn’t hope to provide.  He will continue to be a tremendous asset to this team as he and Kek decide the future and how we will find our way into the playoffs.”

CBJProspects (2): “I put JD here because I think it’s his presence that helped get Marian Gaborik to waive his no trade clause to come to Columbus along with helping the franchise get some national attention/respect.”

The Coach (1): “Davidson finishes first for me based solely on his ability to change the culture in Columbus. For too long, this team was not one taken seriously around the league. Merely bringing in a figure like JD (to add to Craig Patrick) helped change things. It meant adding accountability. It meant building something. While he may not have directly acquired the players, and his impact is purely intangible, what he has brought means something. And that something was sorely needed here.”

Runner Up: Scott Howson

AlisonL (2): “I admit, I like Scott Howson even considering his missteps with the CBJ. Scott get’s a second place (really almost place 1.5) because the roster that turned things around was his architecture. Bobrovsky? Thank Scott Howson. The once maligned Rick Nash trade done by Howson? Arguably a success. Scott finally seemed to get the right pieces of the puzzle in place – he just couldn’t light the fire to turn the ship around. That, coupled with his draft/development errors cost him his job and the number one spot – but any CBJ fan must acknowledge his role in getting the 2013 CBJ to where they got.”

Canadan (2): “For as much as I suspect him to be in last, I believe he put down the ground work for a strong Columbus roster this year.  Moving Nash for excellent pieces, bringing in Foligno and Bobrovsky for spare parts and defensive redundancy proved that he could get the job done, but his contracts often left more to be desired.”

CBJProspects (1): “Yes folks you read that right, I say this because other than Gaborik, Comeau and Leighton it was Howson that drafted, signed or acquired this year’s players however they came to be a Blue Jacket.  Not his fault one of his final moves was to bring in the man that would replace him.”

The Coach (2): “Howson did the work to bring in the bulk of this squad. He hit the Bobrovsky trade out of the park, and that even atones for his weaker deals. Bob was acquired for picks, primarily the one received for Antoine Vermette. He picked up Letestu for a song. He dealt Kris Russell (who was a healthy scratch a lot for the Blues) for Nikitin. He has a much better draft record than people realize, especially in the later rounds. He was very good at acquiring pieces and making the little moves. His inability to pull of the big moves and his faith in Steve Mason brought him down. But I think if he were still running this team, with Davidson in his current position, we still would have seen the progress that occurred this season. Howson has put the pieces in place for JD to build what he is looking to build.”

Honorable Mention: Jarmo Kekelainen

AlisonL (3): “Ranked third only for his limited time with the org – I think this summer is when Jarmo will make his mark through draft and FA moves. Jarmo further strengthens the credibility of the organization within the world of hockey (emphasis on world - given his knowledge of the European market) and was part of an epic series of deals to close out the regular season. Extensions to Cam, Calvert, and Letestu were smart and economical, and the blockbuster trade to bring Marian Gaborik (who waived his NTC in the process) is a huge step forward for us. I expect next year to (hopefully) have Jarmo on top of a similar exercise ranking our leadership.”

Canadan (1): “I believe Kekalainen has done an excellent job in his short time with Columbus, uprooting some of the longest tenured players in Brassard/Dorsett, which will more than likely remind the rest of the group that no one position is safe.  Bringing in Gaborik will be a much needed offensive boost, along with excellent contracts to Letestu, Atkinson, Calvert, and hopefully soon to Bobrovsky.”

CBJProspects (3): “Jarmo is last because well he hasn’t done much. Jarmo’s rank will probably jump up (in my eyes at least) on July 1st the day after the draft and also on July 5th (Free Agency) even if I don’t think we’ll be crazy busy.”

The Coach (3): “Jarmo had little impact on the team built for this season, but know he isn’t in third easily. I still do not understand how he got Letestu, Atkinson, and Calvert to accept their deals. I like the Gaborik deal, although time will obviously tell on that one. Liked the Comeau deal as well (mostly because it got Gillies off the ice), and hopefully he can be kept for cheap. All in all, I have liked all his moves so far, just not sure how much they really contributed to this season.”

So let us know your thoughts on the CBJ’s execs. Are we overrating the impact of John Davidson? Does Howson deserve more or less credit? What do you think above Jarmo’s moves so far? Anyway, stay tuned as we conclude this week with the selection of the Ted Lindsay Award, given to the most outstanding player.

The post 2013 tUB Awards: Executive of the Year appeared first on The Union Blue.

The post 2013 tUB Awards: King Clancy Memorial Trophy appeared first on The Union Blue.

WINNER: Vinny Prospal 

AlisonL (1): “I feel like Vinny’s going to get a lot of nods for a lot of honors. Vaclav’s age alone is a testament to his ongoing dedication to the game and this team. If he’s hurt we never knew about it – he showed up to every skate, every practice, and every GAME – leading the team in points. As far as sportsmanship – Vinny has been integral in changing the attitude of this team. A guy who celebrates every goal – practice or no – and literally stops to instruct others to do the same, is definitely someone who is part of other players now saying “this has been the most fun they’ve had playing hockey”. The meme this year was “Prospal Points at Things” – for the Masterson, I point to Vinny.”

Canadan (2): “I think this is a pretty obvious choice.  Throughout his long career, Prospal has made his presence felt, and Columbus is no exception.  His tenacity on the ice and his mentality around the game and winning has transformed the attitude of the players around him.”

CBJProspects (1): “Our real Masterson nominee, Vinny, is a perfect candidate because he’s personifies all the Masterson criteria: Perseverence – you don’t last as long as Vinny has without that. Sportsmanship…ok the Detroit Red Wings may disagree on this one and as for dedication to hockey, is there a Jacket that works harder/has more fun that Vinny?

Runner Up: Matt Calvert 

AlisonL (2): “Last year it was only a handful of games that had Matty in Columbus. But Mr. Hustle persevered and built up his frame, his game and his energy to earn a permanent spot with the big club.  The guy’s game is all about challenging his team to be better and raising the bar. If that isn’t motivated by a dedication to the game, I don’t know what is. As far as sportsmanship – think back to the shock when Matty actually got in a fight on ice – the first of his NHL career. The recent Calvert extension, another beautiful JD/Jarmo contract, ensures we’ll see Matty here for at least two more years. I doubt his work ethic and performance do anything but improve.”

CBJProspects (2): “Matty Hustle himself. Ok maybe Matt works harder than Vinny but his work ethic is why we like him so much. That goes with his perseverance – because of his size he’s gotta work harder than most.”

Honorable Mention: Sergei Bobrovsky

Canadan (1): “Struggling to make his presence felt in Philadelphia, Bob embraced the challenge in Columbus and quickly became the unconditional starter.  Often praised for his tireless efforts and technically sound play, I believe he is a prime candidate for the Masterton.”

Honorable Mention: Mark Letestu

The Coach (1): “This is a bit of a career achievement award for Letestu. He’s just such an unlikely player to reach the level of play he’s at this year. Not only was he undrafted, he barely even played Junior hockey in his draft eligible season (just 11 games in the Alberta Junior Hockey League). Not only was he not on NHL radars at that point, he barely would have been on NCAA teams radars. After three more years of increasing success he finally joined Western Michigan University (not exactly a powerhouse) as a 21 year old freshman. A huge year there led to him signing as a free agent with Pittsburgh, where he worked his way up from the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL, the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins of the AHL, to being a bit player on the Pens. Dumped unceremoniously to Columbus for a pick, Letestu continued to persevere, working hard to become a better player, all done with class.”

Honorable Mention: Derek Mackenzie

The Coach (2): “Like Letestu, DMac is my nominee in major part due to how hard he had to work and how much he had to persevere to make the NHL. A 5th round pick of the Atlanta Thrashers, Mackenzie was a 40 goal scorer in the OHL. He had to completely reinvent his game over the course of his near decade spent in the AHL. Most pro hockey players start to fade on the NHL dream after nine years in the minors, jumping to Europe for bigger money. Mackenzie used that time to become the consummate grinder. He’s continued that play in Columbus over the last three years, as he HAS to play that way to earn an NHL paycheque. Not easy to do, let alone without fighting or general tough behaviour.”

Honorable Mention: Jared Boll

The Coach (3): “I’m sure this pick will raise some eyebrows, especially in comparison to my other picks. I’ve been a huge critic of Boll’s play over the years, but I thought he was an acceptable fourth line hockey player when paired with Blake Comeau and Derek Mackenzie. He’s worked hard to become more than just a fighter. Further, he finished this season with a very bad hernia, something not easy to play with for any player, let alone a guy as physical as Boll. Beyond all this though, is that he has spent years being the Jackets fighter, constantly taking on guys much bigger than him. Believe me, that is a huge mental toll. It takes lot of dedication to continuously do that night after night, year after year.”

Honorable Mention: Nick Foligno 

CBJProspects (3): “Foligno never took a shift off all season despite seeming snakebit at times when it comes to scoring. As for sportsmanship and dedication to hockey was there a Jacket that was in tv and radio as much as Frank?”

Honorable Mention: Fedor Tyutin

AlisonL (3): “This is my surprise pick. I choose Fedor because I think he’s been with the organization long enough to know where we’ve come from. To say we need to change is easy, to actually CHANGE is hard. Tyuts put in the time, and, like Vinny, played every single game this season – even though we knew he suffered bangs and bruises along the way. Also, as far as sportsmanship – I see Fedor’s contributions here to be internal to the org. Tyuts’, while not vocal publicly, showed a dedication to this team and the sport by welcoming new Russians to our team and with the performance Anisimov and Bob brought, providing a level of understanding and belonging for these guys in a shortened season certainly helped.”

The post 2013 tUB Awards: The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy appeared first on The Union Blue.

With Springfield and Syracuse being in different divisions they only played twice in the regular season – splitting the two games. The teams’ first game was on February 1st with Springfield picking up a 5-3 win while Syracuse won by a 3-0 score on February 23rd. In the regular season series Crunch defenseman Mark Barberio led the scoring with a goal and three assists. It’s two Falcons in second with Nick Drazenovic and Ryan Craig each with three points. As for the goalies, each game featured a different goalie with Crunch playoff starter Cedrick Desjardins making 26 saves for the shutout, and Falcons backup Allen York making a career high 43 saves in the loss.

Looking at their playoff records so far, Syracuse has been off since May 2nd as they swept the Portland Pirates. Ondrej Palat led the way with seven points (3-4-7), tied for third in playoff scoring. Cedrick Desjardins was in net for all three games and has a .884 save percentage and a 2.33 goals against. As for the Falcons, Cody Bass leads the way with four points and Curtis McElhinney sits fourth among goalies with a 1.74 GAA and sixth in save percentage with a .943.

As for a prediction I think this could go the distance. Both teams have only allowed eight goals in the playoffs while Syracuse has scored 12 with Springfield being just behind them with 10.

MY PREDICTION

Falcons in 7 (Prove me wrong boys)

The post AHL Eastern Conference Semifinal Preview appeared first on The Union Blue.

So now the Jackets have a Vezina nominee, and probably even a Vezina frontrunner. As any Blue Jacket fan is probably aware, the Vezina is handed out to the NHL’s top goaltender. I’m sure you are all sitting on pins and needles waiting to find out who the CBJ’s top goalie is. Well wait no more, as the tUB Vezina Trophy goes to……

BOBROVSKY! No seriously. BOB. BOOOOOOOB. Bob Bob Bob. The undrafted netminder so very obviously ran away with this award that there is no point in even running other nominees. So without further ado, here is the tUB teams “Ode to Bob”.

AlisonL: “It’s funny to think back to this summer when people were still wondering if Bobrovsky just might be the answer to our problems. Fast forward past a “battle for #1 goalie”, all the NHL star honors, the accolades and the smiles and we can see that Bob not only demonstrated outstanding goal tending, but he ignited the entire Blue Jackets team to over achieve. For years we’ve hypothesized on how the team played “in front of Mason”. Certainly the roster has changed, but it seemed, with Bob, that finally players were free to take chances and play true to their position without worrying about playing backup goaltender. It’s also fair to consider his impact in the dressing room as his work ethic was everything we’d heard it would be and more. When the dust settled, we had our #1 Goalie who brought us play in all but 10 games, and a .932 save percentage second only to Ottawa’s Craig Anderson in regular season play this year.”

Canadan: “Sergei Bobrovsky is not only the obvious candidate for a Columbus Vezina, he may very well be the obvious choice league wide for Vezina honours this year.  His impact on Columbus this year was palpable, changing the mentality from being “Masoned” to getting “Bobbed” repeatedly.  Stunning Columbus fans with unexplainable saves and turning inevitable losses into grinding wins and OT thrillers.  In short, he was largely the reason for Columbus’ success this year with their limited offensive output, and deserves this award with a secondary nod for the Hart.”

CBJProspects: “SERGEI BOBROVSKY!!!! Bob for short. Like I said in a previous award, Bob is the only  Jacket I ever remember to acknowledge the fans when selected as a star. As for his play, well all I wanna say is how many other goalies have their own top 10 saves on NHL Network? None that’s how many. Bob should already have the Vezina in his trophy case and wish I could say at least a chance at the Hart (but I doubt it).”

Derdrache: “o/` Save of the game, and you’re too blame! You give shooters a bad name o/`

Bob, Bob, Bob. What is there to say that hasn’t been said already? When acquired in the off season he became an immediate fan favorite for three reasons:

1. He isn’t Steve Mason.
2. He is a goalie.
3. Jay Onrait’s hilarious Bobrovsky antics. Seen here if you’ve been in a cave this whole season.

 
The beginning of Bob’s season was rather unassuming but his presence in the net did seem to have a calming effect, even early. His latter half of the season was absolutely the stuff that legends and hometown heroes are made of. With Bob in net the fans knew that if the skaters could muster 3 goals, we’d pretty much automatically go home with a win. On a good night, 1 or 2 goals would do the trick. Bob further endeared himself to the fans by embracing the role of #1 goaltender and reciprocating the love they gave him for each monumental save he made by saluting them after the game, whether he was one of the three stars or not. Coupling JD’s philosophy of building the organization brick by brick and from the net out, Bobrovsky seems to be a solid cornerstone for the CBJ for years to come once a new deal is struck.”

The Coach: “Bobrovsky was amazing this season. However, I really feel like this level of play or something close to it is what his true talent level is. The rap on Bob before was that when his confidence got down, he would shrink in the net, his shoulders would slump, and he could easily get beat high. His first year was a very solid year for a rookie goalie playing on the North American ice. Then the Flyers crapped all over him in the playoffs, made him the scapegoat of their season, and forced him into a backup role. Confidence shot, he physically shrunk in the crease and was terrible. But that is not something that is going to happen here. He is the man in Columbus. A shaky start or two won’t change that. And further, there is now a former NHL goaltender upstairs. If anyone in the NHL knows how to handle a goalie, it’s John Davidson. I have faith that JD will be able to nurture this kind of incredible play from Bob moving forward.”

Give your praise, thanks, or what have you for BOB in the comments, and stay tuned, as later this week we will award the Masterton Trophy, given to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.

The post 2013 tUB Awards: The Vezina Trophy appeared first on The Union Blue.

WINNER: Fedor Tyutin 12 Points

AlisonL (1): “Fedor Tyutin. Fedor is only one of three players to play every game this year (with RJ and Vinny) and is the points leader from our defense. Sure, errors stand out – but when you DON’T notice Tyuts, arguably that’s when he’s doing his job. He dealt with a lot of change on the blue line and demonstrated a quiet strength throughout the season. Fedor even delivered us the GWG in Anaheim.”

Canadan (1): “Despite my endless frustrations toward his inability to hit the net from the point, Fedor Tyutin justifies the number one spot on this list.  Tough minutes along with being tied for third on the Blue Jackets in points give him a solid nod, with a quiet reminder to get some target practice in this summer.”

CBJProspects (1): “Tyutin was one of only 3 Jackets to dress in every game along with leading the team’s defense in scoring and was his usual solid self finishing second to “the new big plus” in +/- but more on him later.”

The Coach (1): “Tyutin reminds me of Bill Simmons ’10 Percent Theory‘ about basketball player Russell Westbrook. Basically, Westbrook does 90% of the things you want a basketball player to do, and the 10% he doesn’t are very obvious things, which makes people think he is worse than he is. Tyutin does 90% of the things you want an NHL defenseman to do, but his 10% is very obvious (can’t hit the broad side of a barn with a point shot, prone to the occasional boneheaded turnover). However, I really feel like he turned a corner this season. His decision making improved, he dropped his turnovers exponentially, and became a rock on the point.”

Runner Up: Jack Johnson

Canadan (2): “Jack Johnson belongs on this list, despite having some visible miscues at inconvenient times. A workhorse for Coach Richards game after game, Johnson played in any type of situation and often factored positively for Columbus.  Certainly worth a mention.”

CBJProspects (2): “JMFJ himself. Jack finished just a few points behind Tyutin and was one of the main leaders on the team – possibly wearing the C next season. Jack finished the season on a three game point streak and tied for the lead in defensemen goals.”

The Coach (3): “Johnson is a horse. There is no getting around that. He deserves to be in the running solely for the massive role he took with this team. There is something to be said for a guy who can play half a game and battle the opponents best players to a 50-50 draw. And while he has many negatives, he is a very dynamic player that opponents always have to respect. His ability to activate on the breakout brings an element that had never existed before he (and Wiz) arrived in Columbus.”

Honorable Mention: James Wisniewski

AlisonL (2): “James Wisniewski. Sure I’d like to see “Wiz” healthy a lot more – his ‘cost per game played’ is a bit high right now, but you can’t argue that he doesn’t improve our power play when he’s on the ice. The guy commands respect, directs the flow of play well and we can always use a Wizbomb or two. I also continue to shout from the rooftops that when it comes to players who ‘want to be here’ Wiz was the first in this era of CBJ play.”

The Coach (2): “Wiz is such an electric player, it is a shame he can’t seem to play a full season. He brings an attitude that really fits with this squad. His ability on the breakout allows the Jackets to push forward faster than they have been able to in the past. Plus his puck movement and shot on the powerplay provide a weapon that very few teams have, a deadly right-handed one timer that could tickle the twice at any time.”

Honorable Mention: Dalton Prout 

AlisonL (3): “Dalton Prout. I’ll be honest and say this vote comes mainly from the reaction to Dalton stepping up after being called from Springy and all the reasons I already gave why the guy deserves our Calder Cup. That aside, his plus / minus remains a huge reason to want Prouter on the ice -coupled with the additional grit he has brought to the team earns him my #3 vote.”

Canadan (2): “Out of the woodworks comes Dalton Prout.  Not a tremendous point producer, Prout made himself known with his massive (by CBJ standards) +15 while averaging just south of 19 minutes per game. It will be fun to see him improve over the next few seasons.”

CBJProspects (3): “‘The new big plus. Despite only playing half a season, Dalton’s +15 was the 3rd highest plus/minus total all time. Dalton was solid defensively bailing out Bob more than once(along with Bob returning the favor) plus bringing a physical presence to the blueline that some could say the team lacked (or could use more of).”

So let us know your thoughts on our picks, along with your own ballot, in the comments. Stay tuned, as coming up Wednesday is the much anticipated Vezina Trophy.

The post 2013 tUB Awards: The James Norris Memorial Trophy appeared first on The Union Blue.

Starting off in Springfield, the Falcons faced the Los Angeles Kings’ AHL affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs in a best of five series (only the first round is 5 games, each series become best of seven the rest of the playoffs). Starting off on Friday – after a scoreless first, midway through the second period, Blake Parlett would earn a penalty shot which was the Falcons first ever in the postseason. Blake must have watched Artem Anisimov because that’s the move he used to roof it backhand over Martin Jones. Midway through the third period though, the Monarchs would tie it. The game would go to overtime and midway through the period, after the Falcons kept the puck in for a good bit, David Savard would win a board battle getting the puck to Ryan Russell. Ryan would send a cross crease pass to Cody Bass who, with a Monarch all over him, scored the game winner. Curtis McElhinney made 29 saves in the 2-1 win.

Sunday brought game two. Early in the game, after Cody Goloubef took a slashing penalty, Ryan Russell bounced the puck off the boards sending Trent Vogelhuber off on a breakaway which, much like Parlett’s penalty shot goal, just bounced over Jone’s pads. The Monarchs would score twice to make it 2-1 with a goal in the first and second periods. After a scramble in front, Michael Chaput sent the puck to Jonathan Audy-Marchessault who got it to David Savard who sent a blast from the point past Jones for his first playoff goal. Late in the third, the Falcons would have a goal called back but, as usual with these, who know why? The game would again go to overtime and who else but Cody Bass would score the game winner off a point shot. Bass is the third player in AHL history with consecutive overtime goals in the playoffs. Curtis McElhinney would make 41 saves in the 3-2 victory.

For some reason game three wasn’t until Thursday (I don’t think it takes that long to get to Manchester). David Savard would score the Falcons only goal in a 2-1 game three loss with McElhinney making 26 saves.

Game 4 would be on Saturday and after the first period, it looked like the Falcons and the Monarchs would be playing game five on Sunday as the Monarchs taking a 2-1 lead. Blake Parlett opened the scoring when he deflected a Cody Bass shot; after that, Manchester would score two minutes apart. Early in the second, Linden Vey would make it 3-1. Finally, later in the second it would be time for two of the Jackets top prospects to get involved. At the 13:35 mark of the second, Boone Jenner took a Nick Drazenovic pass, got around two defenders and slid a shot past Jones for his first playoff goal. Five minutes later, Michael Chaput would score by banging home a rebound to tie the game. For the third time in the series, the game would go to overtime and well, this is one of those times I’ll turn things over to a professional. Here’s Mike Kelly‘s call/video of Nick Drazenovic’s game/series winning goal. Curtis McElhinney made 37 saves in the victory.

The Falcons next round opponent still needs to be decided but it will either be the Syracuse Crunch or the Hershey Bears. Leading the Falcons in scoring was Cody Bass with two goals and two assists then it’s a four way tie for second each with three points. Curtis McElhinney would have a 1.74 GAA and a .943 save percentage – third among goalies that have advanced. The Falcons are the first team since the 1956 Cleveland Barons to win three games in a best of five series in overtime.

Josh Anderson-London Knights (OHL)
Western Conference Finals Stats 4GP 0-0-0 -4 7PIM
Playoff Stats 13GP 1-1-2 E 21PIM
Josh and the Knights faced off against the Plymouth Whalers earning the series win in five games. Josh would pick up no points in the four games he played, missing game number five with an injury. Josh did help the Knights in game one by getting into a fight with Capitals first round pick/one of the Whalers top players Tom Wilson. I’ll admit that Josh took the worst of it but it’s one of those “get the other team’s best player off the ice for five minutes” fights – a trade the Knights would take any day. Josh and the Knights are now in the OHL Championship series facing off against the Barrie Colts. Josh missed game one which ended as a 4-2 Knights loss.

Gianluca Curcuruto-Plymouth Whalers (OHL)
Western Conference Finals Stats 5GP 1-6-7 -1 0PIM
Final Playoff Stats 11GP 2-7-9 +7 7PIM
Gianluca and the Whalers fell in game one with Curcuruto being held scoreless in the team’s 2-1 loss. Game two was a wild one going to double overtime along with the goalies facing a combined 109 shots. Gianluca picked up three assists in the 4-3 win. Here’s how the assists sorted out. With the Whalers trailing 1-0 after a save of a three on two rush, Curcuruto snapped a shot on net with a teammates stick deflecting it past the Knights’ goalie. After another Knights goal, Curcuruto would send a slap pass to Rickard Rakell who’d fire a shot that Anthony Stolarz would stop but then Tom Wilson would pick up the rebound tapping it past Stolarz. The Whalers tied it with less than a minute remaining in the game sending the match to OT. The teams took a combined 30 shots in the first overtime period including Gianluca hitting the post during a crazy sequence (in the highlights). Gianluca’s assist on the game winner would be almost identical to his second assist as he found Garrett Meurs who’s shot would rebound out to Rakell.

When the series switched to Plymouth, Gianluca picked up another assist in a 6-4 Knights win. With the Whalers trailing 3-0, including two shorthanded goals by potential Blue Jacket Bo Horvat (please Jarmo please), Curcuruto stickhandled and sent the puck in deep with Garrett Meurs picking it up to find Tom Wilson for his fourth goal of the series. Game four would go a little better with the teams being tied at two after twenty minutes. With the Whalers trailing 4-2 in the second, Gianluca found Garrett Meurs who’d fire a rocket past Stolarz for his sixth of the playoffs but the Whalers would fall 6-4 in the game four loss.

Game five would be a wild one with the Knights taking a 4-0 lead until late in the second period when the Whalers would begin the comeback. Gianluca picked up an assist on Plymouth’s first goal and would strike again after Meurs and Rakell scored two minutes apart. It was then time for “The Crimson Chin” to make his mark: Gianluca would curl around near the blueline snapping a shot that would beat a screened Stolarz. Another potential Jacket, Max Domi (again, please Jarmo), who had five points in the 5-4 win would end Gianluca and the Whaler’s season 20 seconds into overtime. The change of scenery helped Gianluca have a career year picking up 47 points in 64 games after scoring 42 in 119 games. As for next season, Gianluca could take on a bigger role with two defensemen running out of CHL eligibility.

There you have it folks! As for my next update, hopefully I’m writing about the Falcons in the Semifinals and the ninth appearance in ten years of at least one Blue Jackets prospect in the Memorial Cup.

The post AHL Quarterfinal/OHL Western Conference Final Recap appeared first on The Union Blue.

WINNER: Cam Atkinson

AlisonL (3): “The man demonstrates a level of play that far exceeds his much talked about height. Playing on an ankle that hurt for the entirety of a season, he produced by scoring, bringing energy to the game, and single handedly creating opportunities (see the first goal versus Nashville in our final game). Cam also represents the organization off ice – he’s always willing to engage with fans and even started his own autograph sessions mid-season.”

Canadan (1): “For such a small frame, you have to give credit to Cam for being so effective with the puck.  His speed and tenacity outweigh his limited physicality, and he continues to be a great story in the NHL as a smaller player.”

CBJProspects (2): “Atkinson was one of the Jackets leading scorers and set up autograph sessions on his own for fans after a few games.”

The Coach (1): “When a player is constantly going hard, mucking it up in the corners, and crashing the net, they usually rack up penalties. Coaches don’t mind, they just chalk it up to the one downside of having a guy who leaves everything he has out on the ice. Cam is one of those types of players, but he somehow manages to barely every take penalties. And when I say barely, I mean the guy had four penalty minutes this season. Not four penalties, four minutes of penalties. I honestly don’t know how you can play as hard as Cam and only get called twice in 35 games.”

Runner Up: Mark Letestu

AlisonL (1): “Letestu went from sitting his first few games to being an integral part of the offense. Not only did his play inspire teammates but he was second on the roster in overall points and powered this team to victory twice with two GWG. He signed a highly appropriate extension this year and demonstrated his character not only off ice at fan events – even thanking the buyer of his St. Patty’s jersey for buying it – but also “on” – appropriately relinquishing his assigned number for the second time in as many seasons when he gave Gaby the right to continue wearing #10.”

Canadan (2): “Hard work without the prototypical third line’ish grit, I think Letestu is a prime candidate for this award.  He simply goes about his business and fights for every inch with a clean edge.”

The Coach (2): “Letestu piled up six more minutes in penalties than Cam, but he also played eleven more games. Letestu is a consummate pro, who always seems cool and calm on and off the ice. It is pretty fantastic to have a guy like that around, as a young team like the Jackets could easily get too amped up over things that happen on the ice. Letestu is a nice calming presence.”

Honorable Mention: Sergei Bobrovsky

AlisonL (2): “Play speaks for itself and, even without words, how can you not positively judge the character of a guy who works his ass off, applauds the fans and smiles like 99.9% of his day. I’d bet $20 he smiles in his sleep.”

CBJProspects (1): “High standard of playing ability: check. Gentlemanly conduct: well, he’s the only player we’ve had (that I can think of) that applauded the crowd when being named a star.”

Honorable Mention: Marian Gaborik

CBJProspects (3): “Brought much needed skill to the lineup and was gentlemanly enough to waive his no trade to come here.”

Derdrache (1): “The guy waived his NTC to come to the Columbus Blue Jackets. That’s a courageous move and is something that is bigger than simply bringing him on board. It’s the first step in many of changing the perception of Columbus to being a destination where players want to play. This will be important in future trades where a NTC is involved or attracting free agent talent.”

Also Receiving a Vote: Nikita Nikitin

Derdrache (2): “ This one may come as a surprise and comes solely from my interactions with him at a season ticket holders’ event. In events past, Nikitin was always paired with a fellow Russian to assist in breaking down language barriers and you could tell he wasn’t very comfortable around fans. This year, he was the lone player sitting at a blackjack table. Not only did this represent a large step, but any time a new player/fan would come to the table he’d immediately extend his hand to shake hands and introduce himself and start engaging with the fans. This struck me as impressive.”

Also Receiving a Vote: Artem Anisimov

Canadan (3): “Fantastic skills both on and off the puck, Artem seems to make things happen again without taking any liberties with his opposition.  Add in his injury resilience, and I think he’s a great option.”

Also Receiving a Vote: Fedor Tyutin

The Coach (3): “Tyutin took a few more penalties than your stand Byng candidate, but he plays so many minutes and never seems to really lose his cool. Like Letestu, I think he helps to provide a calming influence over the team.”

Finally, the REAL Lady Byng

Derdrache (3): “Because she’s Lady Byng.”

Stay tuned, as next week we hand out the Jackets’ Norris, Vezina (drama!), and Masterton trophies!

The post 2013 tUB Awards: The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy appeared first on The Union Blue.