I'm gonna pass on doing a recap from tonight's loss against Tampa. It's nothing we haven't already heard. Instead, let's focus our attention on something much more important - the long term future of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Are you sick and tired of the suits down at Nationwide tuning you out? Are you absolutely beside yourself over the thought of both Mike Priest and Scott Howson keeping their jobs after what is yet another lost season? Perhaps the worst in the 11 year on ice history of the franchise?
In a season where there hasn't been much to shout about, now is the time to scream and let your voice be heard. More specifically, this Saturday, January 28th at 2:00 PM EST @ Nationwide Arena is that time.
Some folks over on HF are organizing a CBJ fan protest started by a poster named CapnCornelius. Since then a Facebook page has started, a Twitter hashtag (#cbjfanprotest) and a whole lot of discussion and support.
The goal is simple. A complete house cleaning starting at the tippy top, where the cherry meets the whip cream, with Mike Priest and Scott Howson.
The fans have had enough and you bet your ass I'm one of them and will be participating.
Personally I'm not convinced, despite what Portzline wrote on Sunday, that Priest and Howson's jobs are safe. These owners may not know a blue line from a clothes line (tip of the hat to Al Michaels) but they do know the difference between cents and sense. These guys didn't get to where they are because they are complete idiots.
That said, when it comes to the Blue Jackets, we must leave NOTHING to chance. These people have got to know that this chronic losing cannot continue without significant consequences. We WANT to support this team. We WANT to buy tickets. We WANT to buy merchandise. Some of us even WANT to buy $9 beers. We LOVE the Jackets. We wouldn't resort to these measures if we didn't.
What we don't WANT. We we are SICK and TIRED of supporting... is the indefensible lack of accountability that this franchise continues to allow itself to operate under. Under NO circumstances should Priest and Howson be allowed to continue in their positions and set this franchise back even further.
NONE!
Enough of the excuses. Injuries. Suspensions. Travel. They had 5 years. FIVE YEARS! They had 62 million dollar payroll this year. 62 MILLION! What do we get? 1 playoff year, 0 playoff wins and currently a league worst 13-30-8 record. You don't get another year with that performance. It's time to give someone else a try.
Let me leave you with two things.
The first is a blog post from former NHLer Bobby Holik that was pointed out to me by @CPFro3:
Most people expected the Columbus Blue Jackets to make the coaching change much earlier this season. What they did not realize, is the suspension to James Wisniewski, injuries to Jeff Carter and others delayed the decision to realistically evaluate their club.
The problem in Columbus is there is a culture of losing strongly embedded. Anyone looking at the Jackets could see it, and the front office’s reaction was to continue to ignore the facts. This team wasn't going anywhere realistically, but no one did anything about it. I will not look for excuses for the players like captain Rick Nash, but if you “grow” as a professional in this kind of environment, you will not learn the winning ways.
It is why it’s so important to always bring along young players no matter how successful you are with veteran players (Red Wings, Devils at one time). The next step for Columbus is to completely revamp the front office. It will take a great hockey mind to right this franchise in reasonable time. Once you have better leadership at the top you can start assessing who you need to trade or keep. It’s always easier said than done.
Good luck. The NHL needs stronger, better Columbus Blue Jackets.
This second is part of an email I received from a Day 1 PSL holder. His name is Carl Bennett:
It is UTTERLY UNACCEPTABLE & UNBELIEVEABLE that Priest and Howson are even being considered to remain in place. No one champions mediocrity at the level these guys have, and yet they seem impervious to accountability. We should, as fans, organize somehow and DEMAND accountability from this ownership/management group.
If you should elect to propose such on your blog, you can count me in.
I’m prepared to boycott this team if necessary. Sad state of affairs for an inaugural PSL holder.
I certainly did not propose it, but like Carl, you can also count me in. I encourage you to join us and wear your CBJ gear so there is absolutely no confusion on the message being sent:
We LOVE our Jackets, HATE the direction.
Let's let all of our voices be heard!
HFBOARDS: Thread Discussion
FACEBOOK: Event Link
TWITTER: #CBJFANPROTEST
-LTL
