Blue Jackets Draft Ryan Murray #2 Overall, No Rick Nash Trade

The NHL Draft began last night with the usual suspects owning the top picks. The Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, and Columbus Blue Jackets have found themselves drafting in the top 5 too many times. They have whiffed on many picks over the last decade, with Columbus having the worst drafting record in the entire NHL.

Going into the draft, everybody knew that Columbus would be drafting a defenseman and a Rick Nash trade would be imminent. The CBJ drafted defenseman Ryan Murray, but has yet to pull the trigger on a Nash trade.

I will give you the lowdown on Ryan Murray and when/where will Rick Nash be traded.

Columbus drafted Ryan Murray, who played for the Everett Silvertips of the WHL, over a group of defensemen that includes Griffin Reinhart, Moran Reilly, and Hampus Lindholm.

Murray is only 18 years old,  but has great leadership skills. He played for Canada in the recent World Championships. A couple defensemen drafted after Murray have a better two-way game at this point, but the leadership ability is coveted by a team who will be searching for a leader once they trade Nash.

Here is a video of NHL Network's scouting analysis on Ryan Murray...

Nash could be traded this weekend, but you shouldn't hold your breath. Over the last two years, I think every team in the NHL has been rumored to be trading for him. The San Jose Sharks is the current rumored team to be close to trading for Nash. The package Columbus would receive in return would include center Joe Pavelski and other compensation to sweeten the deal. This trade would fill a need on the Blue Jackets, but I say that sarcastically because they have a need at every position.

In the long run, it is hard to see Columbus coming out as a winner in any trade that would include Nash. There is no doubt when he gets traded to a better team, insane numbers will fill up the box score next to his name. Nash has always looked great in Olympic competition and in every All-Star game he played.

No matter where Nash winds up, he will get a standing ovation when he returns to Columbus to play against his former team.

The only trade the Blue Jackets made last night was with the Philadelphia Flyers. They traded three draft picks for goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. They needed help at goalie since Steve Mason can be a basket case in the net. Mathieu Garon had success splitting time with Mason a few years ago and GM Scott Howson is hoping that competition will bring out the best in Mason.

Let's just hope this trade will turn out better than their trade with the Flyers last off-season. The 'Jakub Voracek + others for Jeff Carter' trade may go down as one of the worst trades this decade. Carter whined his way out of Columbus and the Blue Jackets traded him to the Los Angeles Kings for 20 cents on the dollar. Oh, by the way, the Kings won the Stanley Cup this year.

Mason Puts Blue Jackets In Tough Situation

It's hard to look at that picture of Steve Mason with the Calder Memorial trophy and not scream out "What happened?!" He has been one of the most inconsistent goaltenders in the NHL since his rookie season. Head coaches have let him start games, but they have a quick hook on the young man. He has the ability to register a shutout every time he's on the ice, but he's also prone to letting pucks get in the net in triplet. What can the Blue Jackets do to help Mason bounce back? The team must figure out if they want win now or build toward the future.

It's fair to say that Mason has been inconsistent, it's not an opinion it's fact. Fans and critics must remember that he has had three head coaches the last two seasons (Ken Hitchcock, Claude Noel, and now Scott Arniel). They have tried many approaches to help the young goalie out. Hitchcock implemented the "ride the hot goalie" method, but at times Mathieu Garon was in net multiple games in a row and Mason sat on the bench collecting dust.


When Hitchcock was fired, Noel took over and modified Hitch's technique and let Mason go out there and he played very well down the stretch. He built up the anticipation that he will have a good season between the pipes. Arniel decided that he wants to see both goaltenders see action, but so far it's been a fairly even split. He has pulled Mason out of games quite a bit, but that isn't new to him, he leads the NHL in that statistic over the last two seasons.

Because Mason's rookie season was such a success, people forget that he's only 22 years old. His rookie campaign might have been an anomaly, it definitely isn't the norm for a rookie to come in and do so well. His 2.29 GAA and 10 shutouts were not expected so soon. Last year, he finished the year with a 3.05 GAA with 5 shutouts and a record of 20-26-9. The team could live with those numbers from a young goalie, but it was the inconsistency that frustrated the team and fans.

After the 6-3 loss in Edmonton Thursday night, Arniel said that Mason was 'in his own head." The head coach is starting to sound like a broken record when he comes to him. What can the Blue Jackets do? They are sitting near the 8th spot in a tough Western Conference. The team must decide if this is the year to push their young goalie or maybe it's time to let him regain his form in Springfield, their AHL minor-league affiliate. The team did send down another top-prospect, Nikita Filatov, just last week. It might be time to give Garon the starting job full-time and call up minor-league goalie, David LeNeveu. LeNeveu is 31-years old, spent nearly his entire career in the minors, with a cup of coffee with the Phoenix Coyotes in 2005-06 and 2006-07. He may not have the ability to dominate, like Mason shows flashes of, but he could keep the pipes warm while Mason gets his form back.

Mason is a fan favorite and the fans of Columbus are hungry for a winning team. This is the tenth year of the club and GM Scott Howson definitely wants to see the team reach the post-season for only its second-time in its history. Making a move like this would take a lot of faith in the process and that Mason wouldn't completely check-out. He already appears to be a bit fragile mentally. Fans are hoping that Mason can turn it around over the next few games, if he gets a chance to start. Their next game is at home against the Dallas Stars. Garon will likely get the start and will be looking to improve on his 7-3-2 record.

Help A Blogger Out!

Hey guys, as many of your know, I write for a Columbus Blue Jackets team site for Fanball. I will soon be under review to get media credentials to cover the games live. I would love to boost my traffic numbers up, so if you guys could please visit a few links here and check out the site, I would helps me out a lot. Thanks guys, you are the best.

Blue Jackets Studs & Duds Of The Month

Blue Jackets Hold Off Capitals

Blue Jackets Face Three Games Of Doom

Mike Commodore Doesn't Deserve A $1 Dog

Can Nikita Filatov Earn More Minutes?

Thanks guys!

Columbus Finally Has A Hockey Team!

I've lived in Columbus, Ohio for over two years and never went to a Blue Jackets game. There are a few reasons for this, but mostly it is because I didn't want to pay to watch the home team get trounced on a nightly basis. I'm a casual hockey fan and have been a free agent, but no team has really caught my eye. I'm originally from northern Indiana and there are no teams in the state and the Blackhawks have been bad for most of my life. I think I have finally found my team, the Columbus Blue Jackets.

I finally went to an NHL game last night, the Blue Jackets played the Dallas Stars. I had great tickets and saw the game from the 5th row. I never realized how tall most of the players are and the speed of the game. I have watched hundreds of games on television and I have found myself watching more the last few years, but my attention usually strays away after one period. I found myself in-tune to every play and didn't want to leave my seat. Dallas ended up winning the game in a blowout, 7-3, but really the Blue Jackets played a horrible first period and pulled the rookie goalie, Steve Mason, in the middle of the first period. They ended up putting even more of a rookie in the game to see what he can do, it wasn't too pretty.

The Blue Jackets are setting themselves up for a possible playoff spot. As of today, they are sitting in the 8th and final spot, but there are a few needs they need to address. They need a veteran goalie to backup Mason and to also provide a mentor for the young stud. Pascal Leclaire might be out for a long time and they need someone other than "Dubie," the young, young goalie, for backup purposes.

Another need would be a defenseman that has been in the playoffs before and can handle top-tier forwards. They never really filled the void that Adam Foote's depature left in the defense. Russell, a promising player, isn't much of a defenseman, he can skate like a forward and should probably be a "4th line" forward, not a 1st or 2nd line defenseman.

Lastly, they need to trade for Doug Weight. There have been rumors that they have been inching close to a deal for about a month, but no new news lately. Adding a few veterans at each position may be needed for them to even make the playoffs and not get swept.

The Blue Jackets are a fun, young team and could be peaking over the next few years. The state of Ohio have never had a winning team and I believe if they start winning, the crowds will come out and support the team. The game that I went to last night was a sellout, if not really close to one. Columbus has one of the best stadiums in the NHL and the city needs to see a winner before this town can become as nuts about the Jackets as it is about Buckeye football. If the Jackets miss the playoffs this year, I'm positive that next year they will improve even more and could possibly contend for a spot near the top. Filatov, Voracek, Mason, and Brassard will all have a year under the belt and will improve enough to help Rick Nash and the Blue Jackets to become a contender in the NHL. It's a bold statement, but if the Tampa Bay Rays can become a winner, why can't the Blue Jackets?