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Notebook: Olympics hurt Jackets
Jurcina’s injury cost team at trade deadline
Thursday, March 4, 2010 2:54 AM
The Columbus Dispatch
Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson sees positives in allowing NHL players to participate in the Winter Olympics. He's also dealing with the fallout from one of the negatives. While Blue Jackets captain Rick Nash (Canada) returned from Vancouver with a gold medal, defenseman Milan Jurcina (Slovakia) came back with a sports hernia. The injury, Howson said, diminished Jurcina's trade value. The club received only a conditional sixth-round draft pick from Washington yesterday. "This is one of the downsides to (Olympic participation) and this is one of the reasons why there is concern among the NHL teams," Howson said. The league has not committed to sending its players to the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Unlike the NBA, which sends players to the Summer Olympics during its offseason, there is virtually no recovery time for NHL players. Jurcina is expected to miss about a month. He was exhibiting symptoms before the Olympics but thought he could play the rest of the season without surgery. "He played every game for Slovakia, as he should because he wants to get through it, and it's a great tournament and great experience," Howson said. "But now he's not available to us." Paetsch wants chance to playNewly acquired defenseman Nathan Paetsch drove from Buffalo to Columbus last night. He probably would have run just for the opportunity to play again. Paetsch, 26, has been buried at the bottom of the Sabres' depth chart the past two seasons, playing in just 34 NHL games. He was not sent to the minors because of a glut of Sabres prospects, leaving him in limbo. The team waived Paetsch in January but received no claims partly because of his $1million contract, which expires after this season. "I'm extremely excited to play again," Paetsch said. "It becomes stressful when you are out of the lineup so long." The Blue Jackets are expected to play Paetsch during a three-game trip to California, which starts Saturday in San Jose. He has appeared in just 11 games this season. Brassard questionableCenter Derick Brassard could miss his second straight game Saturday with what is believed to be a hand injury. The original injury occurred Feb.14 against Chicago, the last game before the Olympic break. He took part in pregame warm-ups Tuesday against Vancouver but did not play. Roy's contract brought tradeHowson said he didn't want to trade defenseman Mathieu Roy, but his expiring contract made him expendable. Roy, 26, will qualify as a Group 6 free agent because of his age and his three-plus pro seasons without accumulating 80 NHL games (he has appeared in 61). Roy played a career-high 31 games for the Jackets this season, with 10 assists.
Ups and downs
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