Confirmed with Link: CBJ Fire Scott Howson, name Jarmo Kekalainen replacement

[db2011]

I like Kek. Keka. Kekal. Kekal. That's it. Kekal.

The Jakel?

A day late, I was pretty surprised by this at the moment. I'm one who believed Howson was hamstrung by the organization. He made some move that have benefitted the team and will continue to. Won't often cheer for someone losing their job, and I won't now.

Like someone else said though I'm a fan of the team over any individual... won't say I know who Jarmo K. was before tonight, but reading through here has me excited. I've liked these Jackets better without Rick Nash, and now it feels like an even newer team. Kind of prefer this move to come after a big win, so it doesn't feel like a reaction to a blowout loss.

 

[Needles]

I hope it's Kekäläinen. Finnish hockey fans will go bananas!

 

[BonkTastic]

Hey guys,

So if rumors are true that you're about to hire Kekäläinen, I just want to offer you guys a pre-emptive high-five, and wish you all the best, as your best days are clearly ahead of you.

Kekäläinen should have had a GM job 5 years ago, the only thing keeping him out was the hesitancy of the "old guard" in management circles to hire a European.

I have no doubt that the Blue Jackets are going nowhere but up under his tutelage. One of the best hockey minds & talent evaluators on the planet.

Congratz!

 

[Zarathustra]

i really look forward for what is to come next ...

but i really think GMSH done a solid job of bringing in good players

but i think a few too many of his bullets ( draft picks ) went astray
Voracek
Filatov


jury is still out on Moore and Johansen ... Murray over Galchenyuk

I think I like the Moore pick. The Murray over Galchenyuk was pretty much my last straw with Howson. With all the backend talent, and the absolute nothing up front, just... why??? It still freaking baffles me. Not to mention he allegedly would've passed up Yakupov if we had the first overall.

 

[DaAnimal]

Hoping you guys get Jarmo. He's probably the best choice out of the others (imo).

 

[Mayor Bee]

Now, who do you think it was?

http://bluejacketsxtra.dispatch.com/content/blogs/puck-rakers/2011/10/changes-afoot.html

Funny thing is I wasn't being facetious; I seriously couldn't remember.

That truly is crazy talk

Not really.

Consider coaches for a second. Out of every coach in pro sports history, how many do you think finished with a career winning record? Logically, it would be around 50%. In reality, it's somewhere between 29-34%, depending on the sport.

The reasons are simple. A losing coach will be fired, and if he's especially poor, he won't get another chance. And if he does, it's most likely in a desperate situation where the chances of success are minimal. If a coach wins but doesn't perform up to expectations, he'll be canned, but get another job. In fact, he'll get several more jobs, each one of them offering more chances to drive down his own career record. And if a coach wins and meets/exceeds expectations, he'll be given enough slack to be around when the team inevitably starts sinking. Now think about how many of those there are.

In NHL history, there have been 345 coaches who have at least 1 game behind the bench. Of those, only 136 have a career record of over .500 (39.4%). But you also have to account for the OT/SO loss, which didn't exist for most of NHL history. This artificially inflates the record of 23 coaches to over .500. Adjust for that, and you're back to 32.7%.

This means that if you're looking at coaches over .500, guys like Terry Murray and Bob Berry and Brian Sutter automatically are in the top 1/3 in all of NHL history. Intuitively, you know that's wrong as much as I do. But if all we're going on is wins and losses without consideration for everything else, that's what we're kind of stuck with.

 

[CapnCornelius]

I hope it's Kekäläinen. Finnish hockey fans will go bananas!

I have always loved Finnish hockey fans, so if this gets us a bunch of Finns rooting for our team, I'm in favor.

In fact, I'd be willing to put the Jokerit logo on the sleeve if it helps.

 

[Hello Johnny]

I think I like the Moore pick. The Murray over Galchenyuk was pretty much my last straw with Howson. With all the backend talent, and the absolute nothing up front, just... why??? It still freaking baffles me. Not to mention he allegedly would've passed up Yakupov if we had the first overall.

I think you need to give that pick some time. I was basically 50-50 on who to take, but was happy with the Murray selection. Apart from Jones, Murray is better than any defensive prospect out there this draft, and given the amount of injuries we always see at the D position in particular, Murray will be an extremely welcome addition next year. On the flip side, I think there are ~4-5 forwards who could be as good or better than Galchenyuk in this draft. I think if we come away with one (or more, who knows where LA and us will end up) of them plus Ryan Murray in the fold, it rounds our team out more. And I love Alex Galchenyuk.

 

[Mayor Bee]

I think I like the Moore pick. The Murray over Galchenyuk was pretty much my last straw with Howson. With all the backend talent, and the absolute nothing up front, just... why??? It still freaking baffles me. Not to mention he allegedly would've passed up Yakupov if we had the first overall.

What if Galchenyuk's knee was slower to fully heal than expected, or if Murray's shoulder wasn't injured, or if Yakupov decided he'd rather finish the year in the KHL? All of these were plausible outcomes.

 

[mt-svk]

IMHO stupidity and we will see it later.... our defense is Howsons work and not he but owner wanted PO every year and didnt allow to build our team from basic. I would change our owner or president but not GM.

 

[Pavel Datsjuk]

I hope they don´t select Jarmo because he is THE BEST GM we (Jokerit) ever had, and we dont wanna lose him.

 

[Pavel Datsjuk]

It´s going to be official, our team will have a press conference today 16.30. Congrats on getting Jarmo as your GM.

 

[Needles]

NHL correspondent for Finnish tabloid: twitter.com/jhiitela/status/301577012085133313

Jokerit will hold a press conference today. 9.30am ET.

Must be about Jarmo's depature.

 

[Pavel Datsjuk]

NHL correspondent for Finnish tabloid: twitter.com/jhiitela/status/301577012085133313



That exactly one hour from now.

No press conference is in 7 hours from now.

 

[Socks]

It´s going to be official, our team will have a press conference today 16.30. Congrats on getting Jarmo as your GM.

Saw Bobby Mac tweet that too.

*ahem* EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As you were.

 

[XX]

IMHO stupidity and we will see it later.... our defense is Howsons work and not he but owner wanted PO every year and didnt allow to build our team from basic. I would change our owner or president but not GM.

You guys have Stockholm syndrome if you think Howson did a good job or should be allowed to steer the team through a very important draft. Jarmo is pretty much the best option out there, given the circumstances.

 

[Socks]

SonofamotherstupidphoneandIneddtogotosleepnightnight.

 

[Finnpin]

Jarmo Kekäläinen completely rebuilt Jokerit organization and results started to show this season. Sad to see him leave but I'm glad that he will get this job as being the GM of NHL team as it's what he really wants.

Jarmo will rebuild your drafting department. He was elite of drafting in Ottawa and in St. Louis.

 

[MattTheMask]

Priest is no longer running hockey ops, which is what we all wanted, and I couldn't disagree more with you about embarrassing the fanbase.

Since that protest we have hired John Davidson, who appears to be of sound hockey mind to lead us into a new chapter, and now have fired Howson. Am I egotistical enough to believe the FANS protest was a major proponent in any of this? Of course not. But we showed we cared, and now, by the team's actions, they've shown us that we weren't wrong.

Very well said. Nicely done

 

[Viqsi]

Just three things before I go to bed.

Firstly... apologies for exploding. The F.A.N.S. and related incidents have unfortunately robbed me of my ability to give the benefit of the doubt with many things around here, but that doesn't excuse me taking that out on this board as a whole.

Secondly... despite the above, I continue to stand by my assertion that suggesting that Howson didn't actually recommend Davidson is a despicable notion. That represents an accusation not of incompetence, but of active malice and malfeasance. It assumes the worst of him personally and professionally, and whatever your opinion of his competence as a GM may be, that is absolutely undeserved.


Thirdly... if it really is Jarmo Kekalainen taking over (sounding more and more certain), I think it's a good move.

I think of it this way. We have a garden we're trying to create. MacLean picked a great plot of land, fenced it perfectly, got plenty of folks over to get the garden up and running... and then he planted broken seeds and gravel and watered with toxic waste.

Howson came in as the head of a clean-up crew, dug up and got the toxins out and got us back to having a decent plot of land, and picked up actual seeds for once... but when he tried to plant the garden himself he failed to water anything at all.

Hopefully now we'll have someone who can make this garden grow.

 

[Hello Johnny]

I wonder how Kekalainen rates Korpisalo.

 

[jamwires]

It's Jarmo.

 

[Mayor Bee]

Thirdly... if it really is Jarmo Kekalainen taking over (sounding more and more certain), I think it's a good move.

I think of it this way. We have a garden we're trying to create. MacLean picked a great plot of land, fenced it perfectly, got plenty of folks over to get the garden up and running... and then he planted broken seeds and gravel and watered with toxic waste.

Howson came in as the head of a clean-up crew, dug up and got the toxins out and got us back to having a decent plot of land, and picked up actual seeds for once... but when he tried to plant the garden himself he failed to water anything at all.

Hopefully now we'll have someone who can make this garden grow.

It's funny, because I was thinking earlier that the team can be compared to a farm. MacLean kept looking to plant further and further out while neglecting the equipment and ignoring what (if anything) was actually growing where he'd already planted.

In a standard harvest season, I think we're around early June. The soil's been replenished and fertilized, the crops are growing, but only time will tell. (We had a growing season like this a couple years ago...corn was 9' tall by July 1. Then the droughts came, and we ended up with a bunch of mangled corn that couldn't be used for anything. The total yield was less than 30% of what was projected)

 

[Mayor Bee]

I wonder how Kekalainen rates Korpisalo.

Or Zoltan Hetenyi, who came over this year into the Nashville organization (and got buried into the ECHL due to the lockout).

 

[Handyy]

I have always loved Finnish hockey fans, so if this gets us a bunch of Finns rooting for our team, I'm in favor.

Hello Capn! Well well, now this is interesting turn of events for Columbus

Congratulations for you guys if it happens, I was actually pretty surprised at the time he took the GM job in Finland, leaving the Blues organization. I remember the Blues GM saying that Kekalainen will definitely be a GM for a NHL team soon, seems that he was pretty spot on with that prediction.

I know that it's again another guy without previous NHL GM experience, but he has great connections and he was really important piece for the Blues, especially with draft and prospects.

You guys really deserve to start winning sooner than later, hope this brings new boost for the organization!