Moncton's Brandon Gormley is one of three blue chip defenseman in this year's draft.

On Friday, the Columbus Blue Jackets will participate in the franchise’s eleventh NHL Entry Draft. Of those 11 first round picks, ten have been in the top eight selections, with 2009 first rounder John Moore (21st overall) being the exception. Yet, for the most part the Blue Jackets have received a relatively disappointing return on a plethora of “blue chip” prospects. The CBJ’s first round futility has been well documented.

This year, the Blue Jackets are sitting relatively comfortably at number four overall. I say “relatively” because although they will have their pick of three to four second tier prospects behind the perceived top two, Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin, the pressure is building on general manager Scott Howson.

Over the past week, Howson saw two of his club’s Central Division rivals, St. Louis and Nashville, make moves that have radically reshaped their rosters. St. Louis traded a pair prospects, Lars Eller and Ian Schultz, to acquire the rights to Montreal’s playoff savant, Jaroslav Halak, and sure up their goaltending situation.

Nashville on the other hand, cleared house sending the rights of pending UFA Dan Hamhius to Philadelphia to reacquire young defender Ryan Parent. Just a few hours later, the Preds reunited their captain, Jason Arnott, with his old club, when they shipped him to New Jersey for right wing prospect Matt Halischuck and a second round pick.

While St. Louis’ move automatically makes them tougher competition in the Central Division – many, including myself, picked them to make the playoffs last season – it would be unwise to assume Nashville is waving the white flag on the 2010-2011 season. Nashville GM David Poile rarely makes poor personnel decisions and head coach Barry Trotz gets more out of his players than anyone in the league. I wouldn’t be surprised to if Nashville makes a couple of moves, if not draft day than July 1.

That’s all fine and dandy, but what does that have to do with the Blue Jackets?

Well, the consensus seems to be that the Blue Jackets, for better or for worse, have adopted a win-now mentality. With a win-now mentality and a division that boasts the last three Western Conference representatives in the Stanley Cup Finals – two of the last three winners at that – along with an improved St. Louis team, a GM might get a bit flustered. Maybe he starts to feel the pressure to make a reactionary move? A little bit of an itchy trigger-finger?

Fortunately for Columbus, Howson’s veins check in at around absolute zero. The only reactionary moves he will be making are in reactions to two of the franchise’s perennial needs: a no. 1 center and defenseman.

That no. 1 center is not likely to come through the draft. Seguin is sure to go in the top two and the drop off at the pivot is substantial enough that the CBJ would be unlikely to use the fourth overall selection on one, unless it’s part of a deal to acquire a proven one.

But a no. 1 defenseman you say? Well there are three potential blue line cornerstones available in this year’s draft, and at fourth overall, the Blue Jackets will have a choice of at least two of them. Those defenseman are Cam Fowler, Erik Gudbranson and Brandon Gormley.

Cam Fowler

Fowler spent the past season playing for the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League. The Farmington Hills, MI native put up some incredible offensive numbers to the tune of 8-47-55 over 55 games. He played a pivotal role on both the USA team that won the 2010 World Junior Championship, and the Spitfires, who took home their second consecutive Memorial Cup this past season. Director of NHL Central Scouting E.J McGuire described Fowler as the “prototypical offensive defenseman,” drawing comparisons to the likes of Brian Leech, Phil Housley and Tomas Kaberle.

“He’s your power play quarterback for years to come. He sees the ice – has the ability to control the tempo of the game from the blue line,” McGuire said. “His outstanding puck-handling and puck possession game sets him apart from almost every other defenseman eligible in this years draft.”

While Fowler has plenty of offensive upside, the knock on him is that he needs to bulk up to handle NHL forwards. No surprises there, as the 6-2 190 pound blue liner plays with little physical edge. And while I don’t want to take anything away from Fowler’s accomplishments, he certainly benefited from playing with veritable OHL All-Star team. Along with Hall, Fowler also benefited from playing with likes of Ryan Ellis, Zack Kassian and Greg Nemisz. And those are just the ones who were already selected in the first round over the past two seasons. It was Windsor’s Cup to lose, with or without Fowler.

Erik Gudbranson

If Fowler brings the flash, than Gubranson certainly brings the thunder. No player in this draft has seen his stock rise as much in the past few months as the hulking 6-4 195 pound defender from the Kingston Frontenacs. Gudbranson admittedly loves “playing with an edge” and “throwing big hits.” Despite playing an abbreviated season thanks to a knee injury and a bout with mono, Gudbranson managed 2-21-23 in 41 games. He’s surprisingly mobile for a defenseman, especially one of his stature. He also owns a right-handed cannon from the blue line that the CBJ would covet.

“Gudbranson to me is a guaranteed long-term NHLer. In my opinion, Gudbranson is another Chris Pronger-type,” McGuire said. “He is some kind of tough. Chris Pronger is mean and will hit you; Gudbranson will hit you and fight you.”

Gudbranson’s most underrated quality, and one that also draws Pronger comparisons, is his leadership. The native of Orleans, ON was an alternate captain on Kingston last season and spent time with the “C” as a 16-year-old OHL rookie. In addition he captained the Canadian U-17 and U-18 teams. Gubranson may have the highest ceiling of a defenseman in this year’s draft, but he’s likely the least NHL-ready of the big three, He would benefit from another year in juniors as well as time in AHL.

Brandon Gormley

Gormley may be the most intriguing defensive prospect for the Blue Jackets. He doesn’t fill up the stat sheet with points galore. He doesn’t knock opposing players through the glass. What the 6-2 190 Moncton Wildcats defenseman does is play the game with the poise of a 10-year NHL veteran. Gormley does not make bad decisions, with or without the puck. He can play the point on the power play – he teamed up with Columbus prospect David Savard on the Moncton PP blue line – and he can kill penalties. He makes crisp breakout passes and herds the puck while it’s on opponents’ sticks. His positioning is top-notch. Gormley’s game has been compared to the likes of Nicklas Lidstrom, Duncan Keith and Shea Weber.

“Gormley might be the best puck-controlling defenseman in the entire draft this year,” McGuire said.

NHL Central Scouting’s Chris Bordeleau echoes McGuire.

“Gormley has got the whole package. He’s got a good shot from the point, an accurate shot, low and can be deflected.”

Gormley helped lead Wildcats to the Memorial Cup round robin, despite the fact that the team was missing one of its top scorers, Kirill Kabanov: this draft’s enigmatic Russian winger. He also took home the Mike Bossy award as the QJMHL’s top professional prospect. The Murray River, PEI native has a very impressive pedigree. Prior to becoming the first overall pick in the “Q” entry draft, Gormley played at Notre Dame College in Saskatchewan, a program that has churned out it’s fair share of NHL stars. Gormley looks to be next in line.

Frankly, the Blue Jackets cannot go wrong with any of the three, at least not based upon current information. The consensus among the league seems to be that Florida will select Gudbranson with the third overall pick. While most see the Blue Jackets selecting Fowler in that case, I would argue for Gormley. While Fowler’s game is certainly conducive to the “new” NHL, it’s also similar to Moore’s, although there’s no denying Fowler is the better prospect. Gormley may not have the flash or the thunder, but he may be the best fit for a Blue Jackets team that desperately lacks stability on the back end.

-Bart Logan

bartftc@gmail.com

Twitter: @bart_logan

Many mock drafts had CBJ taking Josefson or Moore at 16, they both slid slightly in the draft and went 20th and 21st respectively. I was surprised to see Ellis go to Nashville at 11, the depth they have on the blue line is incredible. When you think of Weber, Hamhuis, Suter and Franson/Ellis on the way, that does not bode well for opposing Western Conference teams.

A week prior to the draft we reported that the Blue Jackets were talking to the Islanders about trading down in the draft.

“Columbus will choose at slot 16 but are hoping to get an additional pick to move back in the first and are hoping that the Islanders will turn over the number 26 in the first round, and 37th overall in the second round for a ten slot bump up for the Isles. They may want to give 26th and 56th overall, the last of their three seconds.Who knows? Maybe the Bluejackets will not want to drop back that far to reclaim a second…”

We are in no way competing with top rumors sites such as Hockeybuzz, but we broke this trade well in advance. We will continue to post any rumors that we view as legit, we will also continue to squash any rumors that simply do not make any sense for our franchise.

We have all heard Dany Heatley, the Sedins and Joe Thornton names appear in rumors coming to Columbus. Yes adding any of those players would be a great addition, but they come at a price. A price that we are simply not willing to pay at this time. No one wants to see Nash leave and you can not justify trading a young player in Filatov, Russell, Brassard or Voracek. That is what other teams are going to want and in a salary cap era, these players are our future and you cannot justify trading them.

So we will have to look towards free agency and what Howson will target. We have to think of players so are sort of second tier. This does not mean we are getting a bad player however, some names that believe Howson will look into will be

Forwards

• Chad Larose (CAR)
• Samuel Pahlsson (CHI)
• Tomas Kopecky (DET)
• Mikael Samuelsson (DET)
• Dominic Moore (BUF)
• Erik Cole (CAR)
• Nik Antropov (NYR) *may get pricey
• Manny Malhotra (CLB)

Defensemen

• Francois Beauchemin (ANA)
• Dennis Seidenberg (CAR)
• Marc-Andre Bergeron (MIN)
• Cory Murphy (TB)
• Nick Boynton (FLA)
• Johnny Oduya (NJ)

Goalies

• Andrew Raycrof (COL)
• Brian Boucher (SAN)
• Craig Anderson (FLA)
• Marc Denis (MTL)
• Scott Clemmensen (NJ)
• Kevin Weekes (NJ)
• Mathieu Garon (LA)

Now I just started looking through all the avialable unrestricted free agency lists and started selecting players who would make sense in Columbus. There are other players that are possiblities come July 1st and free agency always starts at a rapid pace, meaning you need a plan a,b,c and d. Once one player signs it triggers a domino effect and you see many other teams jumping in and spend carelessly. This is when you have to be smart and aviod overpaying on a player.

Another option to consider is Restricted free agency. Looking forward to next years draft(assuming we are in the playoffs) we will be picking anywhere from 15-24 let’s say. That gets you thinking, there are a few intriguing restricted free agents that are worth looking at.  The only down fall is that if you have to pay compensation in draft choices or the opposing team has 7 days to match contract offered.

Offer sheet = Compensation
$660,000 or below = None
>$660,000 – $1mil = 3rd rounder
>$1 mil – $ 2 mil = 2nd rounder
>$2 mil – $ 3 mil = 1st & 3rd rounder
>$3 mil – $ 4 mil = 1st, 2nd, & 3rd rounder
>$4 mil – $ 5 mil = 2-1st, 2nd, & 3rd rounder
>$5 mil = 4-1st rounders

The one good thing about RFA’s are that they tend to be younger then the UFA class.  Opposing General Managers tend to frown when RFA’s are offered contracts. But you know what? You are allowed to do it and it is a way you improve your team. So it is an option you must be willing to explore. Here are the type of players avialable on restricted free agency.

Anton Babchuk, Staffan Kronvall,  Shaonne Morrisonn, Shane O’Brien

David Booth, Chris Higgins, Brandon Dubinsky,  Jiri Hudler, Gilbert Brule, Rob Schremp, Scottie Upshall, Ryane Clowe, Colby Armstrong & Phil Kessel.

With the draft in the books we can now look forward to free agency. It all starts up again in 2 days and 18 hours…

It was quite a busy evening for Howson but it was well deserved.  ”We are very excited to add John Moore to the organization. He is an outstanding skater that moves the puck well and he will add to the skill level on our back end.”

Eric Smith also reported that NHL Tweetup at the Draft party was also a great success. Blue Jacket officials were only expecting a mere 500 fans to show up. Well we proved them wrong, over 2000 strong showed up to watch Howson maneuver his way up and down the draft board.

Now this is what people have to say about our 21st selection.

NHL Central Scouting’s Jack Barzee
“I watched John Moore as an underage player and I knew he was a must see player for this year; he hasn’t disappointed me one bit. His first two strides are like Paul Coffey and he has been labeled as a world-class skater. He is poised with the puck, he gets his shots through to the net and he has gotten a lot stronger this season. He resembles (Calgary Flames) defenseman Jordan Leopold and similar to Leopold at the same age he needs to get a little bit better at playing more aggressive and more physical, but John is going to be a one-two defenseman in the NHL.”

Bob McKenzie from TSN
“He’s an offensive defenceman whit lots of speed and has been compared to Mike Green. He’s 50-50 to join Colorado College or go to the OHL next season.”

Eric Smith from Hockeybuzz/FTC
“John Moore is the first American born player drafted in the 1st round by the Blue Jackets”

It’s not hard to find a rumor on draft weekend, 30 teams together in one city. WOAH field day for the media! All it takes is someone seeing two GM’s talking and maybe Joe Thornton will be a Blue Jacket.

Here is a direct quote from a major rumor site

“*The Blue Jackets are talking a SERIOUS trade with San Jose, possibly for Joe Thornton (who has been called untouchable.”

With it being draft weekend, I think all talk going on at this point between teams can be deemed as serious. Many decisions will be made this weekend that can drastically affect your franchise. Now I know Howson has gone on record stating that the Blue Jackets organizational depth down the middle is need of improvement, but a rumored deal of this magnitude I would just shrug it off. Yes Thornton would be nice, but most likely not going to happen.

And no for the hundredth time Rick Nash is not going to be traded to Toronto. Just because a player is from the Toronto area does not mean he is in dire need to play for the Leafs. If this were the case the Leafs would be employing the 100 plus players from the Toronto area.

Kaberle in Toronto may soon find himself on a new team; would he look good in Columbus? Yes. Do we have what Burke is after at this point in time? Nope. Unless Howson has Tavares or a top pick, we may have to scratch Kaberle off our list until after the draft and hope he is not traded this weekend.

Another player finding his way into the rumor mill is Ryane Clowe in San Jose. At 1.6 million and the need for a new contract he may of priced himself out of town.  This is a guy that plays with the grit but can’t stay healthy. Hmm I’d give him around 2 to 2.2 million. He is only 26 years old and has 25 goal potential.

One player I would love to see in Columbus come July 1st is Chad Larose.

And everyone, I fully believe Howson is thinking Jacob Josefson at 16. If we do not land Josefson then Ellis or Moore are plans 1a 1b.

What ever happen to Jamie Pushor? Don’t forget about our message boards either, tone of great talk going on in there.

Follow us on Twitter the whole draft weekend as we watch the Blue Jackets.

Now that we are clear on that, I, being a writer on the Blue Jackets and also getting credentials from the team, I feel that it is my duty from time to time to help the Blue Jackets out with some information and education that due to the relationship with their customers they are not always able to deliver in a clear fashion.

So here it goes! The player selected on Friday in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft will not play for the Columbus Blue Jackets next year! There, I said it.

Oh, so some of you think you are pretty smart and already knew this! Then why do I see over and over that the Blue Jackets biggest need is to pick a power play specialist to cure the team’s 30th ranked power play? If the CBJ select a defenseman in the first round, it will be at least 2 years before he will be a contributing factor for the big club. Anybody want to wait that long on the team’s power play?

That is another reason that the rumor of Kris Russell for Alex Auld is completely ridiculous! How bad would the Blue Jackets want their already pathetic power play to get? When you have Mike Commodore on the power play, that should let you know how thin you are when it comes to having a blue line offensive presence.

Am I completely against the Blue Jackets taking a defenseman with offensive skills? Heavens no, but this Service Announcement is to let you know that it won’t cure the ills of the present on the big club.

What my preference and based off of what Scott Howson has said, the Jackets want a center. They have Derick Brassard and Antoine Vermette for the next year. Nikita Filatov is a great prospect and he was drafted as a center but everyone has seen that he is best suited as a winger where he can be less restricted on defensive duties and let his offensive skill shine. The Union Blue don’t even have a warm body in Syracuse to bring up or is just seasoning. The top rated center in the organization, based off of Hockey Futures, is Sean Collins who just finished his freshman year at Cornell! Then there is no one and I mean no one. Kirill Starkov who was another has bolted for the KHL and thus the cupboard is bare.

What I am trying to educate Blue Jacket fans are, when it comes to the draft, don’t look at the Blue Jackets; instead look at Syracuse to find where the needs are for the organization.

The Blue Jackets still have some hope for Andrei Plekhanov who has offensive skill and also possesses a right handed shot that the Blue Jackets are in short supply of on the power play. Also,Cody Goloubef just finished his sophomore year at Wisconsin. Will the Jackets tap him on the shoulder and suggest that he come play for pay? Goloubef is the Jackets top defensive prospect and is offensive also and he too has a right handed shot. As you can see, the cupboard is not bare when it comes to defense. Could it use more prospects, what team couldn’t?

Columbus NHLTweetup Specifics

I am reallly getting fired up for the NHL Draft and the Columbus NHLTweetup. Based off of the Twitter traffic and other things, I can tell you guys and gals are too! I also know that you have some questions about the NHLTweetup and now I hope to clear some of them up.

1. How do I get to the Columbus NHLTweetup – Come to Nationwide Arena like the normal draft party that is being put on by the Blue Jackets. Then look for tables that will have reserved signs on them. I am going to try to get more specifics on where the tables are exactly and let you know on that as soon as I know. I don’t think it will be hard.

2. Will there be WiFi at the NHLTweetup – Come on! Do you think I would let you guys tweet during the draft? Thanks again to the Blue Jackets staff, we will have Wifi. I even have the user name and passwords already!

Username: DraftParty
Password: nhldraft

3. What time does it start? – 5pm on Friday is when the NHLTweetup will start. The NHL Draft won’t start until 7pm. That’s why if you can’t or don’t want to get there right at 5pm to get a good seat, getting your seat reserved for the NHLTweetup is the only way to go.

4. What will be going on during the party? – The best part is that there will be a collection of knowledgeable and passionate Blue Jacket fans all sitting together to talk, debate and brag a little when they guess a pick right. I will also have some contests that I will give out some prizes that I got from the great people at Crimson Cup and 97.1 The Fan. Also, people will be invited to watch live television coverage of the NHL Draft on VERSUS while George Matthews and Bill Davidge, alongside Sports Radio 97.1 The Fan’s Milan Jordan, will anchor the radio broadcast in addition, Jeff Rimer will contribute analysis and interviews direct from Montreal. The Festivities are headlined by player appearances by 2009 Calder Trophy winner Steve Mason, R.J. Umberger (who was also selected in the 16 spot in the first round) and Jared Boll, who will be on hand to sign autographs and participate in the select-a-seat Open House where fans may learn about opportunities regarding full and partial season ticket plans for the 2009-2010 season. A wide range of activities offered during the party include the following: tours of the Blue Jackets and visiting NHL locker rooms, photo opportunities in the penalty boxes, and alongside the cannon and Zambonis, sstreet hockey for kids, merchandise and game-used equipment sale, silent auction of sports memorabilia benefiting the Blue Jackets Foundation and draft party food and beverage specials.

5. Where can I reserve my seat? – go to the NHLTweetup website at NHLTweetup.com and you can make your reservation if you have a Twitter account. If you don’t have a twitter account and don’t want to create one, just email me at JacketsBuzz@yahoo.com and I will get you signed up. Spots are limited and are running out quickly, so don’t wait.

See everyone at the Draft! If you are there but don’t sign up for the NHLTweetup, don’t be shy and come by and say “Hi!” Would love to meet you.

Fire The Cannon!

Eric Smith
JacketsBuzz@Yahoo.com

“The Isles 2nd first round selection, 26th overall and their surplus second rounders are DEFINITELY going somewhere in a move up, and it will depend upon when they think that 2nd targeted draftee is about to go off the board, and they will act swiftly to jump in front of others. Snow has said as much.

The Phoenix Coyotes are ADVERTISING that pick six is in play if they can just drop a wee bit lower in that top seven group (to the Toronto pick if the the guy Burke targets is there) they would be most happy, but probably would be fine in the top 15 and WILL fine takers.

Columbus will choose at slot 16 but are hoping to get an additional pick to move back in the first and are hoping that the Islanders will turn over the number 26 in the first round, and 37th overall in the second round for a ten slot bump up for the Isles. They may want to give 26th and 56th overall, the last of their three seconds.
Who knows? Maybe the Bluejackets will not want to drop back that far to reclaim a second…”

Very interesting to say the least, this is ramping up to be a very busy draft weekend.

More to come…

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As you can see, the #16 selection has not been kind for the last 20 years. Marcus Naslund is by far the best of the bunch with R.J. Umberger and Martin Biron being the other players that have made impact in the NHL. It’s early for some like Colborne, Gillies and Wishart but what history has shown, Blue Jacket fans shouldn’t expect a difference maker at 16. Now this draft is very deep with the influx of Swedes that are very good, so CBJ fans can cross their collective fingers that history will take a break this year or that the 16th selection is due.

Fire The Cannon!

Eric Smith

JacketsBuzz@yahoo.com

At first glance, this appears to be a very deep draft. Guys that would go in the top ten in a normal year may fall to the second half of the first round because of the plethora of talent. This bodes well for the Jackets since they will be picking outside the top ten for the first time ever.

Here are the Jackets previous first round picks
2000 – 4th, Rusty Klesla, D
2001 – 8th, Pascal Leclaire, G *
2002 – 1st, Rick Nash, W (traded up)
2003 – 4th, Nikolai Zherdev, W *
2004 – 8th, Alexandre Picard, W (traded down)
2005 – 6th, Gilbert Brule, C *
2006 – 6th, Derek Brassard, C
2007 – 7th, Jakub Voracek, W
2008 – 6th, Nkita Filatov, C/W

* No longer with the club.

Now looking ahead to this year, here is The Hockey News’ list of prospects 10-18:

10 – David Runblad (CAN), C
“He sees the ice well both offensively and defensively and he moves the puck well”

11 – Dmitri Kukikov (RUS), D
“Kukilov has proved to be a dynamic offensive defensemen. He scored more than a point per game during the season and was averaging two per game early on in the playoffs”. Also there is no worry about him wanting to return to Russia.

12 – Simon Despres (CAN), D
“On the positive side of the ledger, Despres is a good skater for a big man and plays a steady game. And while he leaves scouts wanting more, he may deliver on his promise.”

13 – O. Ekman-Larsson (SWE), D
“His skating and his offensive instincts are just out of this world.”

14 – Scott Glennie (CAN), C
“He has great hockey sense. He competes hard and has good offensive instincts.”

15 – Jacob Josefson (SWE), C
“He didn’t get a chance to show too much at the WJC, but he has made strides. He’s a smart offensive Swedish player and pretty good at both ends of the ice.”

16 – Zack Kassian (CAN), RW
“A lot of observers are throwing Milan Lucic’s name around when they speak of Zach Kassian, right down to the fact Kassian’s point and penalty minute totals this season are almost identical to Lucic’s in his draft year.”

17 – Ryan Ellis (CAN), D
“He looks like he’d be able to play the game sitting in a rocking chair. He’s so calm that he almost looks bored out there. He always has the puck and nobody is able to get it away from him.”

18 – John Moore (USA), D
“His skill level is off the charts in the USHL, but it’s his skating ability that will give him the best chance to play in the NHL.”

Three big areas the CBJ will need to address this offseason include the power play, the center position, and finding a scoring defenseman.

The Jackets power play ranked dead last in the league last year so that will obviously be an area of need going into next season. Expect the team to look for a proven forward who has the ability to create chances and throw the puck at the net on the pp. Some possible UFAs (unrestricted free agents) the Jackets could be interested in include Francois Beauchemin, Jaroslav Spacek, Jordan Leopold, Sergei Zubov, Johnny Oduya, or Mattias Ohlund.

Another concern heading into next season is the center position. With only Vermette and Brassard guaranteed back next year, the Jackets will most likely need to find a reliable centerman to run the 3rd or 4th line. The team will likely look to re-sign Malhotra but don’t be surprised to see them part ways with Peca and or Williams.

Also on the wish list is a scoring defenseman who can get pucks to the net and create opportunities from the point, especially on the pp.

Expect most of these areas to be addressed through UFAs but it is possible we could see some draft day trades again like we did last year in attempt to fill the holes.