2008-09 Top Ten: #1 - The Columbus Blue Jackets

When I decided to do this top ten countdown, there were a few items that I knew would be on the list, and some more that I had to dig for. Not only that, but it also took some time to finalize the order of the countdown. The one spot that was never in doubt, though, was at the top.


Since entering the NHL in 2000, the Columbus Blue Jackets have been my favorite team in my favorite sport. Before their existance I went through periods of time throughout my life rooting for different hockey teams, from the Pittsburgh Penguins to the San Jose Sharks to the Florida Panthers and some others in between. Despite hockey being my favorite sport, I never developed a really strong attachment to a team until one was founded in my backyard.

During their first seven seasons in the NHL, the Blue Jackets were irrelevant. Sure, they occasionally went on a winning streak and did draft one of the game's best young forwards in Rick Nash, but during those first seven years Columbus never even threatened to make the postseason and consistently finished near the bottom of the standings.

The 2008-09 season finally changed that trend. Head coach Ken Hitchcock had been in Columbus for a couple of years and was getting his players to buy-in to his system that won a Stanley Cup in Dallas. At the same time, the Blue Jackets finally had a decent mix of young talent and veteran leadership. The one thing they needed was a consistent number one goalie.

Pascal Leclaire was the Columbus's second first-round draft pick in its history and expected to develop into the Jackets' franchise goaltender. While anyone who watched Leclaire play could see he clearly has NHL talent, the first few years of his pro career were riddled with injuries. One of those injuries occured in November, early in the 08-09. This would completely change the complexion of the Blue Jackets' season, as Steve Mason made his first start between the pipes on November 5.

He never looked back.


Mason became the Blue Jackets' starting goalie, playing in 61 games as a rookie. He led the NHL with 10 shutouts and finished the year with a .916 save percentage and a goals-against average of 2.29(for those of you who don't know, that's impressive for anyone, much less a rookie). After the season Mason won the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie, but more importantly he served as the top goalie Columbus needed.

Without Mason, the Blue Jackets would not have made the run they did last season. While they were still deeper than years past, the Jackets still had stretches of ineptitude on offense, and when they needed to win a game 1-0 or 2-1, Mason almost always gave them that opportunity.

Thanks to Hitchcock's defensive system, the play of Mason and the leadership of Nash, when March rolled around the Blue Jackets were firmly entrenched in the NHL playoff discussion. As the season wound down, the Jackets remained in the Western Conference's top eight and, on April 8 travelled to Chicago needing just one point to clinch a spot in the playoffs.

The game went back and forth and the Blue Jackets trailed 3-2 midway through the third period. Truthfully, I wasn't sure if they would be able to tie the game against a good Blackhawks team in a hostile environment. Thankfully, I was wrong. With 5:30 to play, Nash drove to the net and stuffed the puck past Nikolai Khabibulin to tie the game at 3. When regulation ended with a 3-3 score, it was the happiest I'd ever been to see the Blue Jackets go to overtime. The guaranteed point meant the Blue Jackets would play more than 82 games in a year for the first time in franchise history.


Not only was it a huge moment for the franchise, but I always thought it shouldn't have been anyone else other than Nash to score that goal. Since being drafted first overall in 2002, Nash came to Columbus and almost immediately became the face of the franchise. He's the team's most well-known player, its captain and has had a big impact on the Columbus community on and off the ice. I wouldn't have cared if Jared Boll scored that goal, but for how big of a role Nash has played in building up the Blue Jackets and making the franchise relevant and respected, he deserved that goal.

Now that the Jackets were in, the next question asked who they would play in the first round of their first Stanley Cup Playoffs. The answer: the Detroit Red Wings. The Wings finished second in the Western Conference, but I would have much rather had the Blue Jackets face the top-seeded Sharks than Detroit. The upside was that Columbus played Detroit tougher than they ever had during the 08-09 season, including an 8-2 win in Hockeytown. Unfortunately, that win may have been a wake-up call for the Red Wings, who jumped out to a 3-0 series lead over the Jackets without breaking a sweat(Detroit outscored Columbus 12-2 in games 1-3). Game four marked the second playoff game at Nationwide Arena, and the first NHL postseason game I ever attended.

It did not disappoint.

The Jackets trailed 3-1 after the first and it looked like we could be in for another cruise control Detroit win. But then, something wonderful happened: the Blue Jackets fought back. With two goals in the first six minutes of the second period, Columbus was back in the game. Just over a minute after they tied the game, though, Marian Hossa got the lead back for Detroit. He scored again midway through the period to make the lead 5-3.

Then, with just over four minutes left in the period, Columbus got another surge. Defenseman Kris Russell showed the impact he can have, taking the puck coast to coast and beating Chris Osgood to cut the lead to one. The Jackets amped up the pressure and Fredrik Modin finished off a scrum in front of Osgood to knot the game back up at 5.

The highs and lows of this game made it easily the most intense experience of my life. If you read my last post about Ohio's visit to the Horseshoe, this trumped the feeling I had on that day(if you didn't read it, check it out).

After a six-goal second period, the third was a defensive battle. Both teams had chances but neither capitalized until the Blue Jackets were called for too many men on the ice in the period's final two minutes. I don't feel like revisiting this too much, but Detroit scored on the ensuing powerplay to win the game and the series.

Was it disappointing that the Blue Jackets didn't win one game during their first postseason action? Absolutely. But after following this team through years of futility, seeing them make the postseason and get the opportunity to play for the Stanley Cup was one of the greatest feelings I've ever had as a hockey fan.

As cliche as it may sound, words literally cannot express how I felt watching game four against Detroit and the emotional roller coaster it was. I was at the first game this team ever played(October 7, 2000 if you're curious) and have watched them ever since. Being in the arena to see the Blue Jackets play a postseason game, to see them never quit and to see and hear how much Columbus fans have embraced this team was amazing.

Now I just hope they get back there this year.

For those of you who followed this countdown, thank you. It may have taken longer than I expected to finish, but I enjoyed writing about these sports moments/players/achievements, as I hope you enjoyed reading about my thoughts and experiences.

Who knows what I'll write about now...