Defenseman Fedor Tyutin made a nifty move to elude the first forechecker behind the Blue Jackets' net Thursday.

Trouble seemingly averted, Tyutin inexplicably attempted a short pass with the stick of Toronto's Lee Stempniak in the flight path. The Maple Leafs forward intercepted the puck and scored an unassisted goal to give Toronto a 2-0 first-period lead on the way to a 6-3 win.

It was a stunning error and yet a familiar one for Tyutin. Considered the Blue Jackets' best all-around defenseman, Tyutin has been unable to shake his penchant for giveaways.

He heads into a game tonight against the Colorado Avalanche with a minus-8 rating, second worst among the team's defensemen.

Tyutin's problem "is a microcosm of our team," coach Ken Hitchcock said. "It's puck management. It's sniffing out danger."

Tyutin has had slow starts each of his first two seasons with the Blue Jackets, but he has been a bit more erratic this fall. He's piling up assists (13) and miscues.

"Fedor plays a game where he has the ability to elude people with his agility and movement," general manager Scott Howson said. "Sometimes, when you have to make difficult plays it can lead to mistakes. He played a great game (Tuesday) in Chicago, and he wasn't the only one of our players who struggled the other night."

Fatigue is a possible issue. Tyutin is the only one of four Jackets defensemen, including Jan Hejda, Rostislav Klesla and Mike Commodore, not to miss significant time because of injury.

Tyutin is logging huge minutes in a season condensed because of the Olympic break. He leads the Jackets in average ice time (23 minutes, 7 seconds).

Tyutin, who did not participate in an optional skate yesterday, has refused to use fatigue as an excuse.

With the return of defenseman Marc Methot (lower body injury) to the lineup, the Jackets might pair him with Tyutin. That combination was a fruitful one last season when Klesla was out because of various injuries.

"Fedor has had a lot of success and he's a very important player for us," Howson said.

Healing begins

Klesla underwent surgery yesterday to have a stomach tear repaired. Howson said Dr. William Meyers also "cleaned up" other problems but wasn't sure whether he repaired a torn groin. Klesla suffered both tears Monday in a 5-2 win over St. Louis. He's expected to miss at least six weeks.

Quotebook

Hitchcock was asked if he's surprised that the Blue Jackets have not played the tight-checking style that was so successful a season ago. He responded yes and added:

"I think it's a really good lesson that every year you start anew. You start fresh from a chemistry standpoint, from a continuity standpoint. As much as the players are the same, things change. People want more responsibility. Players have a different attitude toward themselves as players."

treed@dispatch.com