Blue Jackets - Ladies and Gentlemen from Skraut on Vimeo.

Every time I watch this, I get major chills.

Puck drops at 7 PM tonight and the push for the playoffs begin.

CARRY THE FLAG.

I liiiiiive.

If I'd been blogging about this season so far, it would have involved a lot of keyboard smashes, a lot of tears, and a lot of love for Steve Mason. And I've tried not to get my hopes too high. Because this season, there's a lot to hope for. For this season, and for seasons to come.

All season the Jackets have been looking for traction. This is where the rubber has to meet the road.

The first four games bring Detroit, Ottawa, Dallas and St. Louis. That needs to be at least six points (3-1).

Among the three road games – Pittsburgh (Feb. 6), Carolina (Feb. 14) and Toronto (Feb. 19) – all are in the Eastern Conference and two are very winnable. That should be at least four more points (2-1).

It leaves six remaining home games with the Sharks (Feb. 7), Avalanche (Feb. 10), Red Wings (Feb. 13), then the Stars (Feb. 16) and Blues (Feb. 18) and finally the Ducks (Feb. 21). The Jackets need nine points here (4-1-1).

That would be a 9-3-1 stretch good for 19 points. It would almost certainly get the Jackets above the eighth-place bar and pushing hard toward fifth or sixth.

I look at this, taken from Puck-Rakers, and I just stare at that record. 9-3-1. Against those teams. Is it possible? 19 points.

Part of me says no, it's not, because I look at the teams we play in that time span. But then, the more I think about it, the more I realize that the majority of those teams, are teams we should be able to beat. Should be. Whether we will or not, remains to be seen.

I think what it all comes down to, is those last six games listed. Can we pull 9 points out of games against those teams? We'll face Detroit and San Jose in that time span. Can we beat them both, or take one of them to overtime, or both? Can we beat three other teams that, if we play good solid hockey, like we all know they can, we should win?

We're just going to have to wait and see. When I step into Nationwide Arena in April, for the season finale, will I be seeing a team going to their first post season? Or will it be another mantra of "There's always next year." for the boys in blue?

RIP Alexei Cherepanov

I don't even really know what to say. A young man, a year younger than myself, died of a heart attack, playing the sport he loved.

I didn't know much about him, as a player or as a person, I just remember watching him get drafted in 2007, watching as team after team passed him by, until finally, the team with his idol, Jaromir Jagr, drafted him 17th. The irony that it was Jagr with him is not lost on me.

I've cried, I threw up, and I think it's finally out of my system. Is this going to be the end of the tragedies for hockey for now? I guess we can only pray that it is. Three promising young lives taken in the short course of a year are three too many.

RIP Alexei.

...Two months?

Really? Has it been two months? Um. That crashing sound you just heard? That's the sound of epic failure on Skye's part.

Last I posted, Nikky had been traded, and since then, it's just been a really, really, really long off season. I watched the Celtics win the NBA championship, the amazing spectacle that was the 2008 Summer Olympiad, and the horrific debacle that was OSU vs USC.

And now, training camp is four days away, and I've already bought tickets to three of the games I'm going to for sure this season down here in the big ATL.

10.1.08 - Detroit vs. Atlanta (Preseason)
10.10.08 - Washington vs. Atlanta (Season Opener)
11.22.08 - Columbus (!!!) vs. Atlanta (I will be there rocking the Nikolai jersey like you wouldn't believe.)

I'm also planning to go to the Detroit vs. Atlanta regular season game, but seeing as that one isn't until March, I still have a while.

So my hopes for the season are:
- Kris Russell and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen cracking the line-up, even though we have approximately 238947329847 defensemen.
- Jared Boll smashing and bashing his way to 1st in PIM in the league.
- Rick Nash stepping up and fulfilling his role of captain in the way I think we all know he can.
- Winning the season series over Detroit (HAHA yes I know. I can dream.).
- Finishing the season with a franchise high in points.
- Finishing 7th in the West...And ultimately...
- Reaching the playoffs for the first time, where I don't care if they get swept, for the love of God, just make it.

And as it's now a quarter to six in the morning... I'm out!

Well, free agency was fun and happy and hilarious, until I got a text today about Nikolai.

The Rangers. The Rangers. All I have to say is they better take damn good care of him.

I know, I know.

It's been a while. And I should blog about the Jackets picks (all I know about at this exact moment is Filatov, I haven't been able to check others, and I'm already eeeeeee! over Filatov still.)

But I just wanted to take a second and post about this.

Lightning give David Carle a gift.

I think, in my now three years of hockey watching, this is the classiest thing I've seen a team do. David Carle won't make it to the NHL, and he knows it, and he even took his name out of the Draft. But they still drafted him; he's associated with the NHL. He won't get to play, but it's still one of the sweetest and classiest things I've seen in a long time, in any sport.

Way to go Bolts.

Boo?

I'm alive, I'm rooting for the Wings (one more!!!), and I have to be up in four hours for work. Joy.

In actual Jackets news, we acquired Jonathan Sigalet from Boston. Nash is going to be on the cover of 2K9. Vyborny's not coming back.

And I'm terrified for the offseason.

Avalanche advance! (I feel dirty.)

I love José Nicholas Theodore. (There are four links in that, for the record.)

They made me cry tonight. He made me cry tonight, with how happy he looks, and how proud of him they all are. Your contract may be up this year José, but damn if you aren't giving them a reason to want you back. And if the Avalanche don't want you, someone is sure to grab you. You're looking better and better each game, and things can only go up from here. You've hit the lowest before, José, now let's hit the highest. Don't give them a reason to doubt ever again.

And the best part about it? You'll still be as humble and sweet as ever, and you'll pass the praise off to your teammates...But we'll both know that you're back. And the media can shove it for all they ever said about you, and are now singing your praises. They didn't believe in you then, they have no right to now. But those of us who love you and always believed in you, even when you were letting in five and six goals a game... We know. We know that you're back. And we'll laugh at the media together.

Keep driving. Keep making me cry. When it's you, a few tears are a price I am more than willing to pay to see you smile like you did tonight.

I fail as a blogger, plain and simple. Playoff brackets and minor explanations.

BUT that doesn't mean I'm not going to keep trying!

Here, have a bracket.

In explanation of my Western (because yes I know it's visually screwed up) Detroit is not playing San Jose in my bracket until the THIRD round. For the second round, in the West, at least, GO BY SEEDING NUMBERS. High seed plays low seed. So I have Detroit matched up against Colorado, and San Jose against Dallas. ...If that confused anyone, let me know, and I'll try to explain further. XD

I was going to do writeups for each matchup...But then I got lazy and bored. So...Have at the bracket. Ninety percent of it is personal bias. I may have Detroit going all the way, but that's becuase i have money riding on them. I'm really actually pulling for the Caps. Who would have thought little old Western Conference me would pull for an Eastern Conference team?

CHI @ CBJ: 4-0 SHUTOUT

Dear Blue Jackets,

I love you. If only we could combine Steady Freddy's two shutouts with Pazzy's nine. That's still an amazing stat, and holy God, I love you guys. ♥

So Much Love,
Skye