| Blue Jackets fire general manager Jarmo Kekalainen [message #829754] |
Thu, 15 February 2024 09:18  |
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 CrusaderPi
Messages: 7803
Registered: December 2003
Location: AB Highway 100
6 Cups
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It's too bad. I though Jarmo did some really good things to make the Blue Jackets almost relevant for a brief period of time.
Please do not feed the bears. Feeding the bears creates a dependent population unable to survive on their own. Bears.
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Adam
Messages: 7174
Registered: August 2005
Location: Edmonton, AB
6 Cups
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| CrusaderPi wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 09:31 |
It's too bad. I though Jarmo did some really good things to make the Blue Jackets almost relevant for a brief period of time.
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I was always just impressed by his clairvoyance related to Finnish players. He just somehow knew everything about how their careers would turn out, and was able to just masterfully navigate the Blue Jackets to all their success as a result.
He did really manage to last a very long time, considering how little success he actually brought the team. 10 full seasons, plus the end of the 2012-13 year and the first 60% of this season. Five playoff appearances, one real series win, plus a play-in series win in 2020 Covid playoffs (when they were beneath the playoff cut line but for Covid).
I do wonder how much the Babcock stuff put the final nails in his coffin this year. Team can't have been stoked to hire a coach not even to have him make it to the first exhibition game.
"Thinking that a bad team's best players are the reason the team is bad is the "Tambellini re-signing Lennart Petrell" of sports opinions." @Woodguy55
#FireBobbyNicks
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oilfan94
Messages: 408
Registered: June 2006
Location: USA
No Cups
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| Adam wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 11:39 |
| CrusaderPi wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 09:31 |
It's too bad. I though Jarmo did some really good things to make the Blue Jackets almost relevant for a brief period of time.
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I was always just impressed by his clairvoyance related to Finnish players. He just somehow knew everything about how their careers would turn out, and was able to just masterfully navigate the Blue Jackets to all their success as a result.
He did really manage to last a very long time, considering how little success he actually brought the team. 10 full seasons, plus the end of the 2012-13 year and the first 60% of this season. Five playoff appearances, one real series win, plus a play-in series win in 2020 Covid playoffs.
I do wonder how much the Babcock stuff put the final nails in his coffin this year. Team can't have been stoked to hire a coach not even to have him make it to the first exhibition game.
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I think he was on the verge of being fired for a while. I think Babcock and the resulting failures this season is probably what did it, but previous trades and signings not panning out has been contributing to this for a while. Johnny Gaudreau and Patrick Laine are supposed to be the offensive leaders, but both have taken steps back in Columbus. The coaching there has been terrible outside of Tortorella's years. I hope they actually get something decent going, I always hate hearing people say that Columbus should move when fans would flock to the team if they could have even an ounce of success.
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Adam
Messages: 7174
Registered: August 2005
Location: Edmonton, AB
6 Cups
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| oilfan94 wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 09:44 |
| Adam wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 11:39 |
| CrusaderPi wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 09:31 |
It's too bad. I though Jarmo did some really good things to make the Blue Jackets almost relevant for a brief period of time.
|
I was always just impressed by his clairvoyance related to Finnish players. He just somehow knew everything about how their careers would turn out, and was able to just masterfully navigate the Blue Jackets to all their success as a result.
He did really manage to last a very long time, considering how little success he actually brought the team. 10 full seasons, plus the end of the 2012-13 year and the first 60% of this season. Five playoff appearances, one real series win, plus a play-in series win in 2020 Covid playoffs.
I do wonder how much the Babcock stuff put the final nails in his coffin this year. Team can't have been stoked to hire a coach not even to have him make it to the first exhibition game.
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I think he was on the verge of being fired for a while. I think Babcock and the resulting failures this season is probably what did it, but previous trades and signings not panning out has been contributing to this for a while. Johnny Gaudreau and Patrick Laine are supposed to be the offensive leaders, but both have taken steps back in Columbus. The coaching there has been terrible outside of Tortorella's years. I hope they actually get something decent going, I always hate hearing people say that Columbus should move when fans would flock to the team if they could have even an ounce of success.
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Good market, but not a well-run team ever. They basically always go for old-school hockey guy hirings at both GM and Head Coach and it never ever works out. Also outside of a couple years of Bobrovsky, they've almost never had a decent goalie. They're a lot like Arizona and Buffalo as teams that just never, ever get it right. (Edmonton would be on that list too if we weren't lucky enough to have McDavid & Draisaitl...)
"Thinking that a bad team's best players are the reason the team is bad is the "Tambellini re-signing Lennart Petrell" of sports opinions." @Woodguy55
#FireBobbyNicks
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Adam
Messages: 7174
Registered: August 2005
Location: Edmonton, AB
6 Cups
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General managers of the Columbus Blue Jackets
1 Doug MacLean February 11, 1998 – April 19, 2007 No playoff appearances
– Jim Clark (Interim) April 19, 2007 – June 15, 2007
2 Scott Howson June 15, 2007 – February 12, 2013 1 playoff appearance
3 Jarmo Kekäläinen February 13, 2013 – February 15, 2024 5 playoff appearances
So by this, Kekalainen is a major step forward from his predecessors...but he still sucked at his job. I wonder who'll be the next hire there.
I do think the timing is interesting - trade deadline is right away and you'd think they should be sellers. Jack Roslovic is the only UFA-to-be though I suppose.
Tough situation for the next GM though with most of that team locked in place for a while.
"Thinking that a bad team's best players are the reason the team is bad is the "Tambellini re-signing Lennart Petrell" of sports opinions." @Woodguy55
#FireBobbyNicks
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CrusaderPi
Messages: 7803
Registered: December 2003
Location: AB Highway 100
6 Cups
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| Adam wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 09:58 |
I do think the timing is interesting - trade deadline is right away and you'd think they should be sellers. Jack Roslovic is the only UFA-to-be though I suppose.
Tough situation for the next GM though with most of that team locked in place for a while.
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Columbus has believed they were poised for good seasons for the last three years and that just didn't materialize. Jarmo gets a pass for the defensive injuries they've had the last couple of season but Gaudreau being a disappointment (not a Huberdeau level disappointment) and Laine apparently just not liking hockey have brought this era to an end.
The draft and FA season is more important that the deadline if they've decided this team is broken enough for a new GM.
Please do not feed the bears. Feeding the bears creates a dependent population unable to survive on their own. Bears.
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Kr55
Messages: 10769
Registered: May 2002
Location: Edmonton
6 Cups
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Obviously passing on Puljujarvi was when the wheels started to fall off for Jarmo.
"We need to get better immediately. That starts today"
- Lowe, 2013
"Next year I would forecast as another developmental year"
- MacT, 2015
5 x $5,000,000
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Suomalainen
Messages: 900
Registered: May 2002
Location: Boulder, CO
No Cups
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Timing of this says they didn't want him around for the deadline, no?
How about that line of thinking?
97.
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RDOilerfan
Messages: 3908
Registered: January 2016
3 Cups
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| Suomalainen wrote on Thu, 15 February 2024 13:28 |
Timing of this says they didn't want him around for the deadline, no?
How about that line of thinking?
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That and the trade deadline.
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