Moving out from the crease, we have our first taste of new blood in 28-year-old Mike Commodore. Back in February, he joined the Senators in a trade that saw him and Corey Stillman head to the Sens, while in return the Hurricanes received Joe Corvo and Patrick Eaves.
After an uninspired finish to the season and dismal playoff performance with the Sens, Commodore was nabbed from the free-agent list by Columbus with a five-year deal. He immediately becomes the anchor for a sluggish defense corps, who have become notorious for being slow to move the puck and prone to costly turnovers.
At 6’5” and 228 lbs., Commodore is a mountain of a man. Don’t let the Ronald MacDonald hair fool you. If you find yourself in his crosshairs, eating through a straw for the next four weeks may be a real possibility for you.
Columbus’ original first-round selection (fourth overall) in the 2000 entry draft, Rostislav Klesla played in all 82 games last year, and racked up six goals and 12 assists in the process.
“Rusty”, now 6’3” and 220 lbs., has become a leader in the locker room and on the ice. At 26, he is clearly one of the top-two blueliners and ranked second on the team in ice time at 22:54. He continues to improve, and no doubt his best years still lie ahead of him.
Jan Hejda is a big Czech who quietly patrols the blue line, and has great hockey sense when it comes time to support the rush. His plus-20 is miles ahead of his closest teammate (Klesla, at plus-seven).
Hejda plays mistake-free hockey, and is extremely savvy about knowing when it’s time to lay a thundering hit or to dump the puck in the corner for a change. Hejda has been a great addition to the team, and with his focus on responsibility in his own zone, he can definitely become his goalie’s best friend.
A big blow to the defense corps came when Ron Hainsey signed with the Atlanta Thrashers. Hainsey had developed into a solid two-way player who was fourth on the team with in both points (32) and shots taken (161). He was also third in ice time, averaging 22:53 a game.
The Jackets need to shop the market to fill this hole. Guys like Aaron Rome and Clay Wilson (both in Syracuse and often on the bubble) are clearly going to be fighting for a spot on the roster, but neither will likely be ready to fill the role vacated by a player of Hainsey’s caliber.
The Jackets are relatively sound up the middle—however, many would argue that they are deepest on the wings. Case in point? Three-time All-Star Rick Nash, a workhorse who dominates the game each and every shift.
Nash is strong on the outside and almost unstoppable when he puts his head down and drives the net. I believe he is capable of putting up better numbers.
He’s fourth on the team in ice time, and first among forwards. His 38 goals and 31 assists are certainly not paltry, but given his highlight-reel goals, one wonders why he doesn’t rack up more points.
Nash's defensive skills were once to blame, but he has clearly gotten better on the backcheck and in his own zone. In all fairness, he isn’t exactly surrounded by a cast of All-Stars.
That being said, Nash needs to step up even further this year and carry this team on his back. If he is to be regarded as one of the greats of his time—and I think he is capable of it—he needs to do more.
Hopefully Hitchcock will shorten his bench more frequently, and play Nash at every opportunity.
In one of the biggest offseasonmoves thus far, the Jackets sent centre Gilbert Brule to the Edmonton Oilers for left winger Raffi Torres.
Torres, a 26-year old originally hailing from Toronto, is coming off of a season in which a knee injury restricted him to 32 games. In 22 career NHL playoff games, he has 11 points.
Gilbert Brule had been seeing some time in the AHL, and was in some ways simply a victim of circumstance, as Columbus is deep at the centre ice position.
Brule is about two or three years away from being at his peak while Torres is arguably in his prime. To Howson’s credit, making this type of move may buy some loyalty from the Jacket faithful, as the intended message appears to be “we want players at their peak now.”
The other significant acquisition—which seemingly drew little notice—was the signing of Kristian Huselius, who previously played for the Calgary Flames and Florida Panthers
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