The longtime hockey fans decided to start squirreling away spare change during the Blue Jackets' 2000-01 inaugural season so they would have money for NHL playoff tickets once the franchise qualified.

The Girouxs, of Grove City, attended many home games even as the coin boxes and losing seasons accumulated. Another quarter here, another 4-2 loss to Detroit there, and suddenly the Girouxs were running out of storage space in their split-level home.

But as the Jackets prepare to host the Boston Bruins tonight in Nationwide Arena, the Girouxs think they finally will cash in on their emotional investment.

"We're rolling coins," said Jo Ann, 67, who, with her husband, has been a season-ticket holder since the first season. "This is going to be the year."

Many fans seem cautiously optimistic that the Jackets can hold onto a playoff spot with 16 regular-season games remaining. Entering games last night, the Jackets were in sixth place in the Western Conference, two points ahead of ninth-place Dallas. The top eight teams qualify.

"I've been trying to imagine the scene of walking up Front Street for that first Jackets home playoff game and feeling the excitement of walking into the arena's east entrance," said Richard, 63, a native of Hull, Quebec, who plays in a 40-or-older recreational league. "I just try to keep picturing it in my mind."

The Jackets will make history regardless of their finish. They will either become the last of the current 30 NHL teams to reach the postseason or join the 1981-82 Washington Capitals as the only expansion franchises that haven't made the playoffs in their first eight seasons.

Scott Robinson, 51, of the Worthington Hills neighborhood, likes the direction the Jackets are heading but is unconvinced that playoff hockey is coming to Nationwide Arena in April.

He worries about the club's inconsistency, as evidenced by its past two games: an uninspiring 4-2 loss in Nashville followed by an unexpected 8-2 win in Detroit, which established franchise records for goals and margin of victory.

"This team is on such a roller-coaster ride, I can't get a finger on their pulse," Robinson said. "They drive me absolutely nuts, but they are fun to watch and at least they are in the hunt."

Robinson is a lifelong hockey fan who grew up in Hartford, Conn., and used to make a 655-mile drive from Columbus to Hartford on weekends to watch his beloved Whalers play. He took his entire family to the Whalers' final home game before the franchise relocated to Raleigh, N.C., in 1997.

A Jackets season-ticket holder, Robinson is part of a passionate fan base that is re-energizing Nationwide Arena. Driven away by years of Jackets losses, large, enthusiastic crowds are returning to watch budding young talents such as 20-year-old goaltender Steve Mason and 19-year-old winger Jake Voracek.

Jackets attendance is up by nearly 300 fans per game from last season, a figure that would bulge if the team makes the playoffs. At the moment, playoff ticket options are available to current and prospective season-ticket holders.

The team's television ratings are soaring as well. Eight of the franchise's top-10-rated games on Fox Sports Ohio have occurred since Dec. 23, 2008.

Some fans credit coach Ken Hitchcock and general manager Scott Howson for giving the team an identity: big, competitive and hard to play against.

"We can now walk out of the arena and say we won or lost because we did or did not play 'Jackets hockey,'  " said Aaron Holtz, 27, of Wapakoneta, south of Lima.

"I really didn't know what 'Jackets hockey' was until a few years ago."

The Jackets are not only rewarding original fans but also generating new ones.

Matt Garrett, 26, of Columbus, was thrilled when his hometown received an NHL franchise in 2000, but his military obligation didn't allow him to follow the team closely. The Marine served two tours in Iraq before coming home in 2006.

Garrett attends as many Jackets games as possible and might be the arena's second-most-popular masked man, behind Mason. On Feb. 13, he arrived for the Red Wings game donning a "Jason" mask fromFriday the 13th fame. The Jackets won 3-2, and a tradition was born.

On Saturday night, Garrett drove to Detroit and celebrated captain Rick Nash's hat trick in style. Garrett tossed his hat onto the ice and, after holding up the mask to taunting Red Wing fans, threw it onto the rink, as well.

He was escorted from the building by ushers but was pleased to get revenge for Jackets fans.

"We have seen Detroit fans come into our arena and throw octopi (a Red Wings' playoff tradition) on our ice," Garrett said. "I told the usher, 'This isn't a dead animal, it's just a mask.' As they led me out, I turned to them and said, 'We'll see you in the first round of the playoffs.'  "

The Girouxs, at home rolling quarters, are banking on it.

treed@dispatch.com