From The Archive: "JACKETS FACE FAN PRESSURE"

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"JACKETS FACE FAN PRESSURE" - OCT 3, 2006 - Vol. 60, Issue 4 - Aaron Portzline

Sports fans in Columbus don’t abide losing, or even losses.

The masses here have been weaned for generations on Ohio State football, which has been known to fire coaches after too many 9-3 seasons.

Even so, the city’s first foray into major league sports, the Blue Jackets, were given a pass for most of their first four seasons in the NHL. As the losses piled up – an NHL-high 216 since 2000-01 – the fans continued to come in droves, plunk down $200 for a Rick Nash No. 61 jersey and cheer at the smallest successes, even when the Jackets did so little as clear the puck out of harm’s way without an icing call.

All of this started to change last season when Columbus emerged from the lockout with a new captain (Adam Foote), a budding pair of superstars (Nash and Nikolai Zherdev), and unabashed plans for a playoff run, only to fall flat on their faces with a 9-25-1 start.

In a span of six weeks, Nationwide Arena turned ugly. Fans booed. They left games early, calling sports radio to rant on the drive home. They fired off nasty letters to the local newspaper.

The season was turned around – whew! – when Nash returned from ankle and knee injuries and Sergei Fedorov was acquired in a trade with Anaheim.

A 26-18-3 finish in the final 47 games was the best stretch of hockey the Blue Jackets have ever played.

And now the market is back on the precipice, jacked up at the prospects of a playoff race, but wary of getting burned yet again by high expectations.

The Jackets have fortified their forward corps with the additions of left winger Fredrik Modin, right winger Anson Carton, and rookie center Gilbert Brule, a viable Calder Trophy candidate.

Even without Zherdev (he had yet to reach a contract agreement with the Jackets), Columbus has a top-six group of forwards that on most nights can hang in the new NHL.

The Jackets have a formidable third line, too. Left winger Jason Chimera (speed), center Manny Malhotra (size, strength), and right winger Eric Boguniecki (fury), form a great combo

Now, to be sure, the roster is full of concerns, some might say out-and-out holes. The defense, behind Foote and unheralded Duvie Westcott, is a mixture of unproven and uninspiring players.

The goaltending could be very good if 25-year-old Pascal Leclaire is ready to assume the No. 1 role and play 60-65 games this year. Last year, in only 33 games, he finished 11th in the NHL with a .911 save percentage. His potential is enormous. Here’s the hook, though: Leclaire has never played more than 46 games in a single season since he began junior hockey in 1998, mostly because of injuries.

Now he’s supposed to play 65? The backups, by the way, are Ty Conklin (cast off by Edmonton) and Fredrik Norrena, a star in Europe, but a newcomer to the NHL.

The Jackets – from the front office down – are talking, without hesitation, about making that long-awaited playoff run. The fans, once again, are dreaming about hockey in late April, when in the past they’ve turned to baseball or – no joking – Ohio State’s spring intra-squad football scrimmages. Unlike in previous years, anything less than a serious run at a top-eight spot in the West just won’t be good enough.

The honeymoon is back on…for now.

Winger’s arrival gives Jackets two legitimate scoring lines, a luxury they’ve never had.

Columbus’ depth chart is ranked in terms of value to the organization in 2006-07. Player positions may change according to team needs.

1. Pascal Leclaire

2. Ty Conklin

3. Fredrik Norrena

1. Adam Foote

2. Duvie Westcott

3. Bryan Berard

4. Rostislav Klesla

5. Ron Hainsey

6. Anders Eriksson

7. Aaron Johnson

8. Tomas Kloucek

9. Ole-Kristian Tollefsen

10. Marc Methot

1. Rick Nash

2. Fredrik Modin

3. Jason Chimera

4. Jody Shelley

5. Alexandre Picard

6. Joakim Lindstrom

1. Sergei Fedorov

2. Gilbert Brule

3. Manny Malhotra

4. Alexander Svitov

5. Mark Hartigan

6. Per Ledin

1. David Vyborny

2. Nikolai Zherdev

3. Anson Carter

4. Eric Boguniecki

5. Dan Fritsche

6. Jaroslav Balastik

1. Gilbert Brule, C, 19

2. F. Norrena, G, 33

3. O-K Tollefsen, D, 22

4. A. Picard, LW, 20

5. Geoff Platt, RW, 21

Next Up: The Blue Jackets are back home on Saturday to face their expansion cousin Minnesota Wild.

Join Jason Newland's Columbus Blue Jacket page on Bunches, a new app that connects sports fans. Also, you can watch a new YouTube game show about the Blue Jackets, Around the Fifth Line.