What they're saying about Rick Nash
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Puck Rakers
A blog about the Blue Jackets and the NHL
One Signed, Two Set Free
The Blue Jackets have agreed to terms with defenseman Austin Madaisky on a three-year, entry-level contract, and the official deal should be announced shortly. Madaisky was a fifth-round pick (No. 124 overall) in the 2010 NHL entry draft.
Two other picks - right winger Petr Straka (2nd round, No. 55) and defenseman Brandon Archibald (4th round, No. 94) - have been informed by the Blue Jackets that they won't be signed, sending them back in the pool of draftable players for next month's draft in Pittsburgh.
Of those two, Straka is the mild surprise.
He had 28-36-64 in 62 games with Rimouski (QMJHL) during his draft year, but tailed off badly the last two seasons. In 2010-11, he had 10-15-25 in 41 games. This season, he had 18-19-37 in 54 games. That's fewer points the last two seasons -- 62 in 95 games -- than he scored as a 17-year-old.
However, Straka made a pretty good last-best argument for a deal with his performance in the QMJHL playoffs. He had 10-12-22 in 21 games, becoming a point-a-game player once again. The bet here is that he gets drafted his June, but certainly on Saturday (2nd through 7th rounds) and probably later in the day.
The Blue Jackets acquired the pick used on Straka with the 2010 trade deadline deal that sent winger Raffi Torres to Buffalo.
Madaisky, meanwhile, blossomed this season in his fourth year of juniors, the last three spent with Kamloops (WHL). He had 13 goals, 37 assists, 50 points and a plus-20 rating, all career highs. He also had 87 penalty minutes. He could play a fifth year of junior next season, or begin his pro career, likely with AHL Springfield.
Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson and the hockey operations department face one last difficult decision as it pertains to the 2010 draft class. Goaltender Mathieu Corbeil remains unsigned, and the Jackets still aren't sure if they want to keep him in the fold.
"We'll evaluate him in the Memorial Cup and make a decision," Howson said. "Not sure right now."
Corbeil is 50-11-2 in the last two seasons with Saint John of the QMJHL, which won the Memorial Cup last season and is a favorite to repeat. Corbeil, named the QMJHL's goalie of the year, is 16-0-1 in this year's playoffs, with a 2.18 goals-against average and .917 save percentage.
Those numbers will cause many readers to scratch their temples and wonder: "How could they possibly not want this guy?" What the Blue Jackets are trying to determine is if Corbeil is a product of a powerhouse hockey club or a goaltender with legitimiate NHL potential. These are the questions that keep scouts up late at night.
Two weeks ago, the Blue Jackets seemed to be leaning away from signing Corbeil. These days it seems to be leaning back the other direction, though no decision has been made.
-- Aaron Portzline
twitter: @aportzline
What people had to say about the news of a potential trade of Blue Jackets captain Rick Nash during an unscientific sampling of fans in and around Nationwide Arena before last night’s game against the St. Louis Blues:
“I couldn’t focus on work today, I was so upset. He’s been the face of this franchise, and I just can’t imagine him playing in someplace like New York. He’s not a big-city kind of guy. I would be really upset if he left, as a lot of fans would.” — Nancy Shepperd, 50, Dublin
“My first thought is that I am open to it, but who are the guys making that decision? I hear (owner John P. McConnell) say he has confidence in the leadership, but I don’t agree. They’ve tried to build around Nash before and it hasn’t worked. It’s hard to tell if he’s part of the problem or part of the solution.” — Mark Ferguson, 48, New Albany
“If they do trade him and get some better players here, the team might be better off. They might lose some Nash fans, but the team has a good fan base here.” — Ryan Rawlings, 22, Steubenville
“It depends on what they get. He’s a hell of a player, so they need to get some talent for now and some talent for the future in return. He’s been a good soldier, but if they can get fair value, then they should pull the trigger.” — John Hoover, 47, Delaware
“It makes my teeth hurt and my left eye twitch. I think he is the heart, soul and fire of this team. I think it would deplete the fan base if he left. He had the faith to sign an eight-year contract. You see how well he has played for (Team Canada), how good he really is. That says a lot about his loyalty, that he’s been willing to stay here.” — Holly Rosenzweig, 47, Columbus
“He’s got to go. Team morale is down. It’s not working for him here, and it’s time for a change.” — Carla Cassady, 49, Utica
“I just want to win. If that means they have to give up Nash, so be it. It’s like a relationship — maybe it’s better for both if you go ahead and break it off. It’s not really Rick’s fault if it happens. They waited too long to get him some help. So cut the cord and clear the slate. But if he goes to Pittsburgh or Detroit, I’ll have to start calling my son by his middle name.” (one of his 4-year-old twins is named Nash). — Tom Brammer, 40, Pataskala
“Everywhere Nash goes, he produces. He’s the leading scorer every year. How can you get rid of him?” — Charles Earles, 61, Galloway
“He’s one of the best players on one of the worst teams. It would be good for him but not for the team, although a lot of it depends on what they get for him.” — Jason Good, 29, Columbus
“I’m old school. I like the loyalty and allegiance, but I guess a trade would just be the way sports is these days. I’m not really in favor of it. This would have to be the biggest deal hockey has seen in a while to make it work.” — John Heer, 50, Reynoldsburg
“I feel like it will be sad for Columbus. I wish there was a way we could (rebuild) the team with Nash, but I also feel like we really need a change to get out of the funk we’ve been in. Clearly, changing the coach did not make a difference. I kind of feel like it will be good for the team, but really hard for a lot of people here. It’s going to be really hard to watch him score and win and make a difference with a different logo on his chest.” — Lisa Johnston, 30, Worthington
“If they trade him, I hope they get a good deal for him, that it’s not just trading him for the sake of making a change. And I hope they trade him to the East so we don’t have to go up against him a bunch of times in a season. He’s a classy kid, from everything I can tell. He deserves to hoist the Stanley Cup in his career. Just too bad it won’t be here.” — Dave Smith, 51, Lancaster
