Odelein visit comes at a Crossroads for Blue Jackets
By Greg Dew,  Columbus Wired (11/02/02)

Going into Monday night’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Blue Jackets had played 6 games with Doug McLean as the interim head coach.

The first three games resulted in wins and hopes that the Jackets would be able to push for a playoff spot. The subsequent three game losing streak had to have fans wondering if they would have to wait until next year to dream of the playoffs. 

A reminder of what happens when you do have to wait until next year arrived with the Blackhawks in the form of former Jacket, Lyle Odelein. The loss of the former captain and fan favorite may have hurt, but the fruits of the trade, the younger, more offensively talented defenseman Jaroslav Spacek is a building block the Blue Jackets may be leaning on for years to come.

So the game against Chicago stood as a crossroads for this young franchise.  Should they play well and win, a playoff push would not be out of the question. However, if they lost in a manner of the last three games, it wouldn’t be inconceivable to watch McLean trade the commodities considered valuable to Stanley Cup contenders in exchange for more blocks for the future.

From the first drop of the puck to David Ling’s final check of the 5-1 victory over Chicago, the Blue Jackets sent a message to the Blackhawks and the rest of the Western Conference that they would not be going away without a fight. 

They are also in position to make dramatic move in the standings. At the end of the day on Monday, the Jackets stood 7 points behind the Colorado Avalanche for the 8th and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

In the next week, the two teams will face off twice. Thursday night they meet in Colorado and face each other next Tuesday at Nationwide Arena.

The trick now is to keep the intensity high for every game, especially in the tight Western Conference. If they do, the Blue Jackets will reward Columbus fans with the first meaningful hockey beyond the All-Star break in the brief history of this young franchise. You just may not want to blink.

“At this point in the season, they’re all must wins,” reminded goaltender Marc Denis after the victory Monday night.