kipwinger

AA has a little more maturing to do, if Blahill's criticisms are to be believed. I think there's some credence to them actually. He's got elite level skill, but may have been rushed along in his development. I think he's still got the mindset that skill is the most important thing. But what separates good players from great players at the NHL level is their engagement. Think about a guy like Alexander Semin. More skill than 99% of NHL players but the drive wasn't there. When AA finally realizes that he can be as good as any player in the league when he puts in an honest effort, he will be. I've said in the past that I think he could be Tyler Seguin level. I stand behind that. But he's got to mature. As for your second question, I do believe he's more skilled than Larkin. AND I agree he hasn't had the same level of opportunity as Larkin (or Mantha for that matter). But I disagree with trading any of them. You need two good centers in the NHL anymore, and moving one out for a defenseman just creates another hole. As I've said elsewhere, if we want a top defenseman I'd call Calgary and offer Dekeyser, Svechnikov, and a 2nd for Hamilton. No need to trade any of our future core.

No AA, but Sheahan and Jurco are on the ice? Good call Blash.

I am, but I guess it's fair to question his attitude. Otherwise he's a stud. He's got better fancy stats than Trouba or Fowler (for example), much better offense, is bigger, younger or as young, plays as many minutes, and is cost controlled. Maybe he's got an attitude, but so did Trouba when he demanded a trade. People seemed willing to overlook that bout of bad attitude (admittedly I don't know if you wanted Trouba or not, just using him as a benchmark).

I agree. But that doesn't mean he's not worth trading for Hamilton. In another thread you argued that a top defenseman is worth more than a future second line center (You were talking about Larkin). If that's true, then surely you think a top defenseman is worth more than a lesser defenseman who's in over his head, plus a draft pick, and a prospect?

Maybe. But he's got 21 points in 37 games. He's poised to hit 40+ points from the blueline for the third time in his short career. He's huge, plays big minutes, and is signed through 2021 at 5.75 million. It's entirely possible he's the next Evander Kane. It's also entirely possible he's the next Tyler Seguin. Both were accused of attitude issues early on, though neither were traded twice. You're right, there may be some risk involved. But I'd gladly move a mediocre defenseman with a bad(ish) contract, and an unproven prospect, for the chance to find out.

1. Fire Blashill and hire Todd Richards with the understanding that he will play the kids, in their right positions, regardless of how the season turns out. Line combos and depth chart are his decision, Larkin and AA at center are non negotiable. 2. Trade Dekeyser, Svechnikov, and a 2nd for Dougie Hamilton. 3. Trade Vanek, Ott, Miller, at the deadline for picks if out of playoff contention by the deadline. 4. Draft best possible center. 5. Reassess next year after seeing whether a coaching change improves our offensive output.

I think AA is better than Larkin too. Not that this means Larkin is bad or anything. But they're both pretty good defensively, so I'd call that a wash. Larkin scores more total points, but that's probably because he gets more minutes. AA scores at a better rate than Larkin per 60 minutes, so he's probably the more dangerous offensive player during any game. I think these two both have it in them to be high end NHL centers. They just both need to A) Mature physically, and B) Actually play the center position and gets some reps. Otherwise, Mantha will be a good (but not elite) power sniper. Someone like James Neil comes to mind, and I'm not scoffing at that kind of production. Same with Mrazek, I think he'll be good but not "elite". Then again I don't think most goalies who are labeled "elite" actually are (other than Carey Price obviously). I think the two biggest X-factors are Sproul and Frk. Sproul is quietly having a very good rookie season on the blue line and should only keep getting better. Pair that with his tool set and he's got a real nice upside (wouldn't surprise me to see him get up in the 40-50 point range one day). I don't think Frk will be elite either, but with his tool set and size I could see him being a very dangerous 3rd line winger/PP specialist. Someone along the lines of a Michael Ryder type, putting up 15-20 goals in a limited role. That would be huge from a guy nobody thought would even be in the NHL.

Hey, what do you know? Putting Larkin and AA at center led to more offense? Who would have thought?

We have got to be one of the worst passing teams in the NHL. Ugly passing is our hallmark.

Since we're throwing around the names of coaches we're interested in, I'll play too. Top of my list is Todd Richards. He did a lot with a little in Columbus and got fired when he shouldn't have (the Gallant treatment, if you will). His teams play relentless, aggressive, and fast paced. And he did very well developing several young centers (Johansen and Jenner), which appeals to me with Larkin and AA needing to take over in that regard. I'd also be interested in Ralph Kruger, though admittedly I only know him from the World Cup and would need to do more digging before finally endorsing him.

It's a good thing our coach doesn't believe that shots on goal mean anything. I mean he's stated himself that the team doesn't care about shots, just scoring chances. So by that metric we're playing pretty well. Ugh.

ONE TIME THE ******* PUCK!!!

Why can nobody on our team one-time a puck?

Wouldn't it be nice if we had a monster right handed shot on the powerplay point? Too bad I have no idea where to find one of those...ugh.

How can our powerplay be this terrible? I don't get it.

Well I've liked the Nyquist-AA-Vanek line at least.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are 5th in the Eastern Conference, and having played only 26 games have the best win percentage in the league right now. Given that this is true, I have a pretty hard time believing that the Wings are as bad as they are because of a mediocre roster. We also trail Ottawa and New Jersey as well. We may not be a Cup contender, but this roster is capable of more than it's giving right now. You cannot convince me that Columbus, New Jersey, and Ottawa have much (if at all) better rosters than we do.

I mean, we're not a very good team WITHOUT them at center, so what's the downside of playing them there? Both Larkin and AA have played center their whole careers. They've been top centers in every respective league they've played in so far. There's no reason to assume they'd be better on the wing in the NHL without ever giving them significant time down the middle. Also, we're likely going to miss the playoffs anyway (with Z, Neilsen, Glen, Sheahan, Helm) as regular centers. So why not see what the kids can do at their natural positions, get them some experience, and at best improve on what we're doing now? Or at WORST miss the playoffs like we're probably going to do anyway, gain the aforementioned experience for Larkin and AA, and get a better draft pick? Edit: Also, in tonight's game we're dressing Ott and Sheahan at center. Surely Larkin and AA are better options? And given that center is the more important position I think the relative gain there outweighs the relative loss of either guy on the wing.

AA has hardly played any center in the NHL, less than a couple full games, so he's obviously been better on the wing. But that doesn't mean that's where he should be playing. He AND Larkin are our most offensively dynamic players. AA is probably even better than Larkin is (offensively) but Blash won't give him the same opportunity for some reason. It's extremely important that both turn into top 1 and 2 centers over the coming years and they aren't going to do that by never playing center (for the record I'd have Svech playing center too in GR). At the end of the day I want the puck on the stick of the guys most able to make something happen with it. Put them both in the middle, let them get their reps, and if we miss the playoffs then so be it. At least they'll grow as players. Neilsen, Helm, Z, Sheahan, Glendening aren't the future of this organization down the middle, AA and Larkin are, and we're retarding that future by not allowing it to develop. I'd do something like this with all healthy. Nyquist-Larkin-Vanek Z-AA-Mantha Tatar-Neilsen-Abby Glen-Helm-Sheahan/Jurco

Lol. Ok.

I wish Blashill would get his head out of his ass and get AA (and Larkin) at center where they belong. His two dynamic players are playing on the wing on depth lines. It's unreal.

Jesus Christ I want to punch Jeff Blashill every time I see his lineups. Just got back from a long work trip and turned the game on, don't even know why I bothered.

I'm not opposed to relieving Blashill if this team continues to under perform, but not for Gallant lol. He's an old school, conservative, coach whose only NHL coaching success came after he walked on to a team that Dale Tallon had already STACKED for him. So what if he was a Jack Adams nominee, Bob Hartley actually won the Jack Adams and nobody confuses him with a good coach (same with John Tortorella). Gallant's done jack s*** in 5 seasons as an NHL head coach. This is just more "grass is greener" stuff from our (legitimately) pissed of fans. Gallant is no answer. We should be trying to find the next Jon Cooper or Mike Sullivan. Not some Canadian dinosaur.

He reminds me a little bit of Abby. He's a rough, physical, guy and he can step over the line on occasion, but I've never considered him "dirty" per se. I realize it's an arbitrary distinction, but I've never seen him look to injure guys the way some do.

I've actually always really liked Emelin and watched him throughout his career. I thought he was one of the better clean hitters in the game. He definitely doesn't have a history of playing dirty though he was very reckless last night.