GDT: Game 2 - CBJ (0-1-0) at PIT (0-1-0) - 5 Oct 2019, 7pm

[Cyclones Rock]

Pretty sure he has to go thru waivers to be sent down , thought he signed a 1 way deal ?

Elvis Merzlikins - CapFriendly - NHL Salary Caps
He is waiver exempt. He also has a one way deal.

 

[Johansen2Foligno]

This is going to be a long year.

 

[Absolut]

I don't understand why Jarmo passed on Lehner. He's only 28, has all the tools, and was very solid last year. Though the fact that NYI went with the talented but always injured Varlamov (who's also 3 years older) over Lehner may give some insight in to the situation.

 

[CharlotteJacket]

Hmm... I might have to increase my beer budget over the next six months. Either that or start drinking stronger stuff.

I was goin to say...you might need straight hard liquor if you follow this team

 

[Cyclones Rock]

Bob acted like a child, but he was not malicious. The situation should've been handled differently. It's never a good idea to publicly embarrass a veteran player. Jarmo made a miscalculation: he thought no one would be able to offer Bob the money & term he wanted. So he was playing these silly ego-driven games. Anyone looking from the outside could tell it was not a smart move.

Something is not right when every single free agent is willing to take less money to go somewhere else. Columbus is not London, but it's a fine city. So it comes down to something else. And I think that a) people don't want to play for Torts; and b) Jarmo's ego gets in the way of everything.

Outstanding post.

 

[Fred Glover]

I was goin to say...you might need straight hard liquor if you follow this team

Sorry I don’t drink the stuff

But as a PSA you can get it a NWA in sections 105,110,209, 219, the Bud Light terrace, and the Labatt Blue Zone

 

[KJ Dangler]

I don't understand why Jarmo passed on Lehner. He's only 28, has all the tools, and was very solid last year. Though the fact that NYI went with the talented but always injured Varlamov (who's also 3 years older) over Lehner may give some insight in to the situation.

Because he feels Korpi and Merzlikins are good goalies , and understands the game way more then anyone posting in our forum. And I doubt that 2 games makes home feel any different . Last year coming out of camp , our defense and goalie play was an absolute train wreck, especially Bob . Many , me included , assumed it was because of Torts putting Shaw to offense , and Larsen to defense . But, here we are , 2 years in a row , with the exact same situation . Makes me wonder if Torts camps, and how they prepare is the issue .

 

[Viqsi]

Because he feels Korpi and Merzlikins are good goalies , and understands the game way more then anyone posting in our forum. And I doubt that 2 games makes home feel any different . Last year coming out of camp , our defense and goalie play was an absolute train wreck, especially Bob . Many , me included , assumed it was because of Torts putting Shaw to offense , and Larsen to defense . But, here we are , 2 years in a row , with the exact same situation . Makes me wonder if Torts camps, and how they prepare is the issue .

We've seen that phenomenon in the preseason - folks being absolutely exhausted because of how the camp is run. I'd say it's very probable that that means we're just going to have to get used to slow starts with Torts behind the bench until everyone's recovered. Fortunately, they have a significant amount of time to do so over the next few days. Unfortunately, that does mean we get a lot of horror and worry to start the season.

The team is almost certainly more resilient than the fanbase, so I'm not too worried about them getting down on themselves. My only worry is if it turns out that the worst-case scenarios some folks are proclaiming to be proven turn out to actually be so.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Maybe the team is just not that good.

 

[majormajor]

Borkstrand, where are you????

He was zipping around last game. Made some nice moves and impressed the heck out of the coach with some hard boards play. Scoring chances were about 2 to 1 in favor of the Jackets when Bjorky was out there.

 

[majormajor]

Pretty sure he has to go thru waivers to be sent down , thought he signed a 1 way deal ?

Elvis is waivers exempt.

If it was me, I’d be looking to send Texier down. It won’t happen though. They banked on him too.

There’s nobody else to replace Elvis. Unless you’re in favor of trading an asset for a backup, which I’m not. Elvis isn’t going anywhere.

To be clear - what I'm proposing is sending Elvis to Cleveland so he can start a run of games there, and replacing him with a benchwarmer (VV or Kiv) in Columbus while we test out the old "Korpi just needs a starter's load" theory. We're not actually starting the replacement in any games. Could be 2-4 weeks of that, then re-evaluate.

or may have to suspend Elvis if he refuses to report to the AHL.

He doesn't have a choice, unless he wants to walk away from his NHL dreams. He was never sent to the AHL in the Spring by the way, his "burn" contract last Spring was signed under the condition that he wouldn't have to go to Cleveland in the Spring. Now he has no say in the matter.

I said it several times: Georgiev. The Rangers will bring up Shestyorkin at some point. Georgiev is a legit #1, and if Shestoyrkin is as good as advertised, NYR do not need both. He won't be available this year, so you need a vet (Quick is a good suggestion) - but can trade for him in the off-season.

That's more of a long term play, I think we need to have a backup plan for this year.

Quick

Quick is maybe not even an NHL caliber goalie at this point. And he has a big contract with four years left on it. You might as well get Lucic.

I could see a chance of Lundqvist though, if he's interested in coming here, and the Rangers throw in a pick for helping them with their cap issue. That's not a big chance though.

Jimmy Howard? He's on the last year of his deal, and he should be about a league average goalie, if not better. He's always had impressive numbers playing in front of a shit defense. Also he has no NMC. Howard is the best target that comes to mind.

 

[majormajor]

Bob acted like a child, but he was not malicious. The situation should've been handled differently. It's never a good idea to publicly embarrass a veteran player. Jarmo made a miscalculation: he thought no one would be able to offer Bob the money & term he wanted. So he was playing these silly ego-driven games. Anyone looking from the outside could tell it was not a smart move.

Jarmo wasn't playing silly-ego driven games regarding Bob's contract offer. He offered him something like $9-9.5m x 8 a year ago, and Bob refused. I don't know what the offer was this Spring and Summer but Bob didn't accept it, he didn't even look at or consider it. He said he wasn't going to re-sign period. And if Jarmo didn't offer Bob $10m+ per season, are you really going to complain about that? Jarmo handled the contract issue appropriately, it was criticizing Bob's playoff play that caused the riff.

On that issue I empathize with Bob. He was thrown under the bus for the playoff series losses. It was actually after the Pittsburgh series that the psychologist was brought up (by Jarmo? I don't remember who.), and though Bob seemed initially receptive, this clearly aggravated him over time. It was Bob that brought it up after the Washington series, in front of reporters, when he said "I don't need to see a psychologist". Immediately after that he told the team that he wasn't going to re-sign. Jarmo plied him with big offers but Bob did not budge.

And what does this have to do with today's situation? You are implying that Jarmo was caught unprepared for Bob leaving? On the contrary, he had both Korpisalo and Merzlikins lined up to play here, and stuck with that plan through free agency, declining to sign very good starters that were available on the market (e.g. Lehner). I think that was a big mistake, but it has nothing to do with Bob. Bob was gone long before free agency.

 

[CharlotteJacket]

I've decided I'm going to pick the arbitrary number of 10 games to right this ship before I crap all over them.

 

[Iron Balls McGinty]

Maybe the team is just not that good.

So we have everyone ready to burn Elvis at the stake after 1 game but I don't see many people chastising the rest of the team for playing like sh*t in front of him. They were supposed to be playing better defense to support the goalies and they generate no offense.

 

[majormajor]

So we have everyone ready to burn Elvis at the stake after 1 game but I don't see many people chastising the rest of the team for playing like sh*t in front of him. They were supposed to be playing better defense to support the goalies and they generate no offense.

They played like shit. Should have lost 4-2.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

So we have everyone ready to burn Elvis at the stake after 1 game but I don't see many people chastising the rest of the team for playing like sh*t in front of him. They were supposed to be playing better defense to support the goalies and they generate no offense.

Goalies, like a QB, are the easiest to blame. We got completely outclassed in every category.

 

[JacketsDavid]

It was too late. The relationship has effectively ended after this: Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky will not be with the team for tonight's game vs. the Nashville Predators, club General Manager Jarmo Kekalainen announced today. "There are certain expectations and values that we have established for our players that define our culture," said Kekalainen. "An incident occurred in which Sergei failed to meet those expectations and values, so we made the decision that he would not be with the team for tonight's game. This is an internal matter and we will have no further comment at this time."

Bob acted like a child, but he was not malicious. The situation should've been handled differently. It's never a good idea to publicly embarrass a veteran player. Jarmo made a miscalculation: he thought no one would be able to offer Bob the money & term he wanted. So he was playing these silly ego-driven games. Anyone looking from the outside could tell it was not a smart move.

Something is not right when every single free agent is willing to take less money to go somewhere else. Columbus is not London, but it's a fine city. So it comes down to something else. And I think that a) people don't want to play for Torts; and b) Jarmo's ego gets in the way of everything.

Agree 100%. We have so many guys leave on bad terms it has to tell a story - seems like we give too many years and too many dollars to GRINDING players who are RFA. Maybe it's because they are gritty, or play like Torts wants. But too many of our high level RFA end up in a p-ing match with Jarmo. Now I like Jarmo but something isn't right.
I hope it's solved by firing Torts, but this team if Torts is gone doesn't have the talent to do anything.

 

[JacketsDavid]

Loyalty is the new “All Out, All Season”

The Loyalty thing shows how idiotic management is.
From the "we only want guys who want to be here" to flashing "loyalty" on the scoreboard.

Listen we're in a much better place than any other era for this franchise, but management is absolutely delusional if they think free agents will want to play here if they have other similar options. We have a old school coach and a GM who seems to enjoy engaging with agents and players to leverage contracts (keep it behind closed doors Jarmo, throwing out a monster contract to Panarin on night before free agency reeks of desperation and shows how much he didn't want to be here).
Suck it up CBJ. Quit being bitter that a lot of folks left.

 

[Absolut]

The Loyalty thing shows how idiotic management is.
From the "we only want guys who want to be here" to flashing "loyalty" on the scoreboard.

Listen we're in a much better place than any other era for this franchise, but management is absolutely delusional if they think free agents will want to play here if they have other similar options. We have a old school coach and a GM who seems to enjoy engaging with agents and players to leverage contracts (keep it behind closed doors Jarmo, throwing out a monster contract to Panarin on night before free agency reeks of desperation and shows how much he didn't want to be here).
Suck it up CBJ. Quit being bitter that a lot of folks left.

I agree, this is an idiotic strategy. Self-pity and bitterness do not rally the troops. This victim mentality has to go. Focus on the positives - your young core. Define a long-term goaltending strategy (mediocrity is not acceptable) and roll with it. If things are handled correctly, losing Bob will be a good thing in the long run. Nobody wants a 35-38 year old goalie with a $10M contract. Panarin leaving is devastating on every level, but it is what it is.

 

[blahblah]

Because he feels Korpi and Merzlikins are good goalies , and understands the game way more then anyone posting in our forum. And I doubt that 2 games makes home feel any different.

He may "understand" the game better, but I said it at the time his decision to run with those two was ill advised. He was taking a massive gamble with a goalie that Torts has shown no faith in and a guy with zero NHL experience and is going to have to adjust to the NA game/ice.

It was a foolish decision. I hope, for the franchise, that is works out. He should have had a veteran on this roster. He's thinking like a GM, which is he wants to see what Korp does with the starter responsibilities while Elvis gets used to the game. I'm sure he's taking a calculated risk that Elvis picks things up quickly and Korp moves back into his normal role. I highly doubt either JK or Torts thought Korp was going to stay the starter the whole season.

The reality is that Torts hasn't shown any faith in Korp, we should have just traded him and went with a veteran that would have provided stability while Elvis got in his 20-25 games this season.

This isn't about "knowing the game" as much as risk management. JK has been awful with risk management, especially in goal. We know that our team defense is sketchy and it's taken Vezina Bob on hot streaks to keep this team in contention. Despite our streak we've lived on a razor edge to get into the playoffs, other than 1 season. There were always real odds going into this season that this would just implode. We'll see if that is case.

On a positive, I've noticed that Wennberg has figured out how to win a face off it seems.

 

[elmariachi227]

Elvis made it clear that it was NHL only or nothing. Jarmo felt it was with the risk.

I always thought it was a mistake to make that bet.

Elvis may be good, but he needs more time to acclimate to the North American game than the Blue Jackets can afford as their goalie.

If they could have gotten him time in the AHL, it would have been best. But Elvis refused.

 

[blahblah]

Elvis made it clear that it was NHL only or nothing. Jarmo felt it was with the risk.

I always thought it was a mistake to make that bet.

Elvis may be good, but he needs more time to acclimate to the North American game than the Blue Jackets can afford as their goalie.

If they could have gotten him time in the AHL, it would have been best. But Elvis refused.

I'm just going to assume, for this discussion, everything you said is true. I tend to think that some of it is debatable, but we'll leave it. From a risk management perspective, the issue was never with how we dealt with Elvis going into the season - this type of things is actually fairly common. It was always how we dealt with Korp. There was really no evidence to suggest that Korp is a starting goal tender on this team and probably in the league. It's clear from the way that Torts handled him that you should have parted ways with either the player or the coach.

Unless Korp is just oblivious, or just doesn't care, he's always going to be looking over his back with Torts as the head coach. Korp has probably realized that he's not Bob by now and is probably going to have a journeyman type of career. He probably realizes they same thing that I have, he's probably a fill in until Elvis is ready. Korp might be able to carve out a serviceable period as a starter on this team, but the reality is he's probably not up the task of covering up for our shortcomings in our team defense for long periods at a time. He probably realizes that he's just there until Elvis, or someone else in the system, is ready to take the starter roll from him.

We have periods where we've got our forecheck going and we've just kept the puck out of our zone. However, that tends to manifest in a month or two at a time. The better Bob was the more we tended to open up our game and just play sloppy.

We're just going in to game 3 obviously. I'm just hoping the team gets things together, there is enough charter in the room, as well as some young talent, to get us going and have a decent season.

 

[DarkandStormy]

The Loyalty thing shows how idiotic management is.
From the "we only want guys who want to be here" to flashing "loyalty" on the scoreboard.

Listen we're in a much better place than any other era for this franchise, but management is absolutely delusional if they think free agents will want to play here if they have other similar options. We have a old school coach and a GM who seems to enjoy engaging with agents and players to leverage contracts (keep it behind closed doors Jarmo, throwing out a monster contract to Panarin on night before free agency reeks of desperation and shows how much he didn't want to be here).
Suck it up CBJ. Quit being bitter that a lot of folks left.

Ryan Johansen wanted to be here (he was so loyal he installed the CBJ logo on his basketball court in his backyard!) - traded
James Wisniewski wanted to be here - traded
Scott Hartnell wanted to be here - bought out

Loyalty is a one way street in professional sports and using it as a marketing slogan because some high profile players spurned you is tacky as hell.

 

[Monstershockey]

I don't buy the smaller ice surface excuse. Maybe there is a little more congestion in front of the net, but for goalies, the job is the same. He's had plenty of practice and a few games on this surface. He just had a bad game. It is now his job to fix what he wasn't doing and get better. I don't want him sent down, or on the bench more, I want him to play better. The defence in front of him needs to be better, the offence needs to be better. If that all happens it will be fine.

 

[Absolut]

Ryan Johansen wanted to be here (he was so loyal he installed the CBJ logo on his basketball court in his backyard!) - traded
James Wisniewski wanted to be here - traded
Scott Hartnell wanted to be here - bought out

Loyalty is a one way street in professional sports and using it as a marketing slogan because some high profile players spurned you is tacky as hell.

Ask Panarin about loyalty. He gave Chicago a sweet hometown discount and was unceremoniously traded shortly after. Found out about the trade on social media. Chicago GM didn't even bother to text him. That's loyalty, baby.

One organization that seems to get it is the Bolts. Kucherov came from Russia as damaged goods (physically) and they stuck by him. He rewarded them with team-friendly contracts. Tampa ain't New York either, but everyone wants to play there. Point had multiple offer sheets on the table - didn't take them. The culture of DEVELOPING team loyalty rather than demanding it breeds success. Self-pity and posturing - not so much. Whatever this year brings, success or failure, I feel that this Loyalty thing is really embarrassing. And recruiting current players (who can themselves be traded at any given moment) to essentially speak poorly of their former teammates, is not good team culture.