For the Blue Jackets, there is frustration, there is disappointment but there’s not panic.
The team gathered for a morning skate in advance of tonight’s tilt against Ottawa and showed some new forward lines they will use as they go out in search of their first win of the season.
Here’s how the offense looked on the ice:
Jenner – Johnasen – Saad
Calvert – Dubinsky – Atkinson
Hartnell – Karlsson – Foligno
Bourque – Campbell – Boll
The defensive pairings remain unchanged, Sergei Bobrovsky will start his fourth straight game in goal.
As for what precipitated the line shake up, by all accounts, the Buffalo game was not the kind of performance this team wants to put out on the ice. Head coach Todd Richards said that the line changes are about “trying to get some results” after what was a very “disappointing” game in Buffalo.
Scott Hartnell, who has one goal in three games, owned that his previous line wasn’t creating much. And as much as the assembled media wanted to talk about what had and will happen, Hartnell was ready to get to the proving what can happen.
“You can’t say you’re going to work hard tonight and then go out there and have a poor effort and embarrass yourself in front of your teammates and in front of the fans and in front of the city,” Hartnell said. “I’m going to come out with a big effort, and that’s got to feed through everybody.”
Forward Matt Calvert is reunited on a line that has seen a lot of playing time in Columbus with center Brandon Dubinsky and right wing Cam Atkinson. Last season, according to Dobber Hockey, Calvert spent just under a quarter (24.08%) of his total playing time with the two, he says he’s comfortable with both players and is looking forward to “picking up right where they left off.”
As far as the attitude towards the game, Calvert says the team is confident, and not hitting the panic button but they aren’t forgetting what’s gone on so far. Richards doesn’t want this team to sweep the last three games under the rug, especially Monday, which is said has to be “unacceptable to everybody.” The players seem to have gotten the message.
“We have to turn that frustration (from the first three games) into hunger,” Calvert said. “We’re three games under .500, we need to climb our way back to .500 and move on from there.”
And while the Jackets are one of nine NHL teams yet to find their first win of the season, and one of seven (that list includes Los Angeles and Pittsburgh) waiting to earn their first standings point, they believe trusting the systems they’ve built and “sticking with the game plan” as Hartnell said.
“We’re a good team, we know we’re a good team,” Hartnell said. “We’ll be in every game every night if we do the things we’re supposed to be doing and not getting off our program. We need to dial that in tonight. Not be too cute, not try to do things by yourself but use each other.”
LINEUP
Jenner – Johnasen – Saad
Calvert – Dubinsky – Atkinson
Hartnell – Karlsson – Foligno
Bourque – Campbell – Boll
Murray – Savard
Tyutin – Johnson
Connauton – Prout
Bobrovsky
Scratches: Clarkson, Wennberg, Goloubef
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