Columbus Blue Jackets

Boom!  The NHLPA has rebuffed the NHL's realignment plan. Yes, your read that correctly. 

At the beginning of every season, fans of the Columbus Blue Jackets believe their team will be a playoff threat. And every year they are severely let down.  

The difference this season is that their eternal optimism is finally justified. It's no secret that for years the Blue Jackets needed talent to pair up front with Rick Nash, as well as a player to quarterback the power play.  

This season has not gotten off to the start that the Columbus Blue Jackets were hoping for. After 10 games, the Jackets are a league worst 1-8-1. Columbus has only won two of their last 20 games dating back to last season.

The expectations were so high for the Blue Jackets in the offseason with the signings of All-Star Jeff Carter and defenseman James Wisniewski.

The Calgary Flames are on the brink of going into a transition phase for the franchise. The Columbus Blue Jackets are in a win-now mode after trading for Jeff Carter this offseason. Could the Blue Jackets and Flames pull off a deal that would send Miikka Kiprusoff to Columbus? It would make sense to try.

Columbus Blue Jackets opened their 2011-2012 season last night in the sold-out Nationwide Arena against their divisional rival, the Nashville Predators.

The hapless Columbus Blue Jackets have largely been basement-dwellers in their brief existence in the NHL. They have made it to the playoffs only once in 10 seasons, in 2008-2009.  And that was nothing to write home about, as they were swept by perennial Western Conference kingpins, the Detroit Red Wings. 

However, things are about to change in a big way for Columbus in the 2011-2012 season.

This offseason has clearly been one of the most aggressive offseasons in the Columbus Blue Jackets short 10-year franchise history.

As soon as the most recent season was put to rest, general manager Scott Howson made it clear that changes were going to made and the Jackets would have a new look come next October.

Last week, the Columbus Blue Jackets hit their first bump in the road in their path back to the playoffs when winger Kristian Huselius suffered a torn pectoral muscle.

Huselius required surgery and will be out of the lineup until November at the earliest, most likely January.

The Columbus Blue Jackets attempted to improve this off-season.

While they most certainly upgraded on paper, the on-ice product has yet to be seen.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are a few weeks into the busiest offseason in their short history, and with the recent injury to left winger Kristian Huselius, they aren't done yet.

The team (finally) addressed two needs that have plagued them since inception.