Archive for Jeff Little

A native of the SF Bay Area, my first exposure to hockey was the SF/Oakland/California Golden Seals, including Charlie Finley and the white skates. Fast forward to the late 1980's when Gretzky and the Kings came up to the Bay Area for an exhibition game at the Oakland Coliseum Arena, for which we had glass seats. I was at the first San Jose Sharks game in the Cow Palace, and followed them for their first few pathetic years, before moving to Columbus in 1994. I attended the first pro-NHL rally downtown, and have been a season ticket holder since Day 1, wife & I are active in the Jacket Backers, and son is an avid fan as well. I cover the Jackets for Inside Hockey, and contribute regularly to a variety of hockey sites. I maintain contact with the Jackets organization, and like to dig into stories, bringing a fresh, and sometimes irreverent perspective to hockey.

The Frozen Water Torture . . .

Somebody needs to ask Scott Howson if the player contracts have incentive clauses that kick in if we can delay clinching the playoffs as long as possible. Tonight’s 1 – 0 OT loss to the Chicago Blackhawks was a playoff caliber affair, a defensive struggle highlighted by the goaltending of Steve Mason and Nikolai Khabibulin. [...]

April 6th, 2009 | Jeff Little | 0 comments | Continued

Sunday Morning Sanity Check

With 8 days left in the regular season, time to take stock of where things stand in this insane playoff race. The Tracker at the right has been updated through the games of last night, so you can view some of this there. But to summarize: CBJ hold 6th place with 89 points. We have [...]

April 5th, 2009 | Jeff Little | 2 comments | Continued

What A Battle!

Who did not know that this one was going to be a war?? With Nashville having its back very much against the wall after a loss last night in Chicago, they were in a “must win” situation to keep their playoff hopes realistically alive. Every write-up leading up to this game focused on the first [...]

April 5th, 2009 | Jeff Little | 1 comment | Continued

Thanks, Blackhawks!!!

Thanks go out to the Chicago Blackhawks, who bested Nashville tonight, 3 – 1, clinching a playoff spot for Chicago, who moves up to 4th in the West with 95 points. Calgary and Vancouver are battling for the Northwest Division title, but the loser of that battle now sits in 5th, and would lose the [...]

April 4th, 2009 | Jeff Little | 2 comments | Continued

A Welcome Break . . .

The current 3 day break in the schedule comes at a great time, both for the club and the fans. After an exhausting stretch of games, the club gets a chance to catch a breath, give Mason a breather, and decompress from the daily pressure of the playoff chase. Not only that, but the fans [...]

April 3rd, 2009 | Jeff Little | 3 comments | Continued

Filatov Coming

According to a Bluejackets Press Release, and Puck-Rakers, Nikita Filatov has been recalled from the Syracuse Crunch. GM Scott Howson indicates that the club wants Filatov to experience the big club training and atmosphere during the playoff push. The extent to which he might play is uncertain right now.

April 1st, 2009 | Jeff Little | 0 comments | Continued

The Force Is Strong With This One . . .

After a disappointing home and home with St. Louis, and the ensuing panic among the more squeamish CBJ fans, the last name many wanted to see on the schedule was Nashville. Darth Vader. Death Star. Doom. Well, not so much actually . . . Our own version of Luke Skywalker, Raffi Torres, slammed home the [...]

April 1st, 2009 | Jeff Little | 0 comments | Continued

Calm The Nerves!

OK, think of the following as a bit of calming medication to keep you from going berserk as we head into the final half of the Dirty Dozen games to end the season. The good news is that we are in a playoff race as April begins! The bad news is that we are in [...]

March 31st, 2009 | Jeff Little | 5 comments | Continued

Sunday Night Check In

Wife and I were victimized by the rather freakish snowstorm that hit certain parts of the midwest last night and early today. So, our rather simple 7:50 AM flight from St. Louis to Chicago, then Chicago to Columbus, turned into an 11:45 flight from St. Louis to Chicago, followed by a flight from Chicago to [...]

March 30th, 2009 | Jeff Little | 3 comments | Continued

A Bizarre Road Point

There was quite a debate a few nights ago, when the Jackets came away with an OTL vs. Tampa Bay. Many were concerned that the Jackets seemed satisfied with the point, and that they did not display the requisite angst over the OTL. Tonight, same result, but I submit a very different attitude. Every one [...]

March 29th, 2009 | Jeff Little | 0 comments | Continued

Missouri Musings

Getting ready to suit up and head out for pre-game festivities, and thought I would share some miscellaneous rambling, some hockey related, some not: St. Louis Transit: With the weather being less than optimal, we have been using the Metro Link system to get around St. Louis, and it has been fantastic. Station right across [...]

March 28th, 2009 | Jeff Little | 0 comments | Continued

Game Day!

37 degrees and raining in St. Louis as Game Day dawns. Snow moves in late tonight. Put hot water bottles under that blue hair! Playoff spreadsheet has been updated here, and now includes the Magic Numbers for each contender. We are going to head across the street to the Scottrade Center to see if we [...]