Q. King Kong vs. Bam Bam – If you had to pick one to keep, which fighter would it be?
DJ King or Cam Janssen?
BlueNoteZone Recap:
We are welcoming a new Member to the BNZ crew as Stephanie Phillips comes on board. She is hard at work on her first piece. Give her some love and encourage her along.
Worst. Fighting Camp. Ever. Not like I'd ever say it to Derek Boogaard's face, but . . . just sayin'. Image via meltyourfaceoff.com
It seems the Blues wanted to DOMINATE the Blue Jackets in Columbus on Saturday . . . while there were many spouts of violence toward the end of the game, no official fights were recorded. This leaves the Blues at 5th with 57 fights and a record of 23-18-16.
The last time we saw the Minnesota Wild, they had thrown the gloves down 22 times on the season. That was on January 14th, and they’ve only gone at it seven times since then. At that, they’ve only fought once since the Olympic Break, and it was grizzled veteran, old nemesis and Ulster native Owen Nolan who fought. He’s old, but us Irish folk never shy away from fisticuffs (at least, that’s what the boosters at Notre Dame would have you believe). The Wild have fought 29 times this season – good for a tie for 24th place on the season in total – and their fight record of 12-11-6 suggests that they pick their fights well. Good luck with that on this one. The Wild and the Blues have scrapped once, and that fight was chronicled here.
Derek Boogaard (6′8″, 275lbs, 5-0-3) is one of the biggest and baddest fighters in the NHL. But 1) he doesn’t play much since fighting is the main skill he has, and 2) if you’re not playing, you’re not fighting. Also ready to fight for the Wild is defenseman John Scott (6′8″, 258lbs, 4-0-1). Defensemen Clayton Stoner (6′4″, 212lbs, 1-0-1, on IR with a groin injury – hopefully his own) and Shane Hnidy (6′2″, 204lbs, 0-2-2, doubtful with a groin injury – again, hopefully his own) would have no problem joining the fray if they weren’t injured.
DJ King played last night against the Blue Jackets. Whether Davis Payne wants the same physicality to continue against the Wild will be key not only to the score sheet, but to the violence he would like to bring to this game. With that in mind, if King plays, expect him to want to battle Boogaard. Otherwise, an intermidate fight between someone like BJ Crombeen and someone like Stoner (if he’s ready) is the best you can expect in this game.
Three in a row? Why, that would be pleasant. DO IT!
Apparently, Derek Dorsett wanted to give this guy an elbow noogie. Image via bluejacketsxtra.com
This will be a brief Throwdown Lowdown, because we’ve already covered the Columbus Blue Jackets three times (!) since the report began in January. Division rivalries make my job easy, but add nothing to the product sometimes. Plus, as anticipated, there were no fights between the Blues or the New York Islanders on Thursday night. This leaves The Note at 57 fights on the season, still good for 5th place in the NHL. Their fight record still stands at 23-18-16.
As mentioned, Throwdown Lowdown reports were filed for Columbus games on January 12th at St. Louis, January 18th at Columbus and January 30th at St. Louis. There was one fight in the January 30th game – a declared draw between Brad Winchester and Jared Boll. Add seven more fights since that game, and it brings the Jackets to 43 total fights this season. That’s good for an 11th place tie with the New York Rangers – and oddly enough, the two teams were tied for 11th back on January 30th. Go figure! The Jackets’ fight record since the last report is 2-4-2, bringing their overall fight record to an uninspiring 9-19-15.
Rugged winger Boll (6′2″, 210lbs, 5-6-9) has fought in nearly half of Columbus’s fights this season, and it’s not hard to see why. The dude can, and will, throw bombs. Plus, when you grow up with a last name like Boll, it’s easy to get type-cast as a brawler. Other fighters to look for may be winger Derek Dorsett (5′11″, 187lbs, 1-2-2), veteran winger Chris Clark (6′0″, 198lbs, 0-1-0 w/CBJ and 0-3-1 overall), winger and team superstar Rick Nash (6′4″, 218lbs, 2-0-0) and veteran defenseman Mike Commodore (6′5″, 228lbs, 0-0-2). You’ll notice that, other than Boll and Nash, these fight records are all-too-uninspiring. If the Blues get into a fight with this team, they OUGHT to win said fight.
I would LOVE to see a rematch of Nash against David Backes. Maybe they can swap stories about their Olympic medals or something, or if Nash says something about a silver medal, Backes will imbed his into Nash’s head. That would be awesome! Also, with Cam Janssen still in the press box seat for another couple games, and this being a division rival, I fully expect DJ King to suit up and go at it with Boll. I anticipate blood in this game, what with the Blues being fully into the spirit of the playoff chase and the Jackets still fighting to stay in the hunt.
Just like Thursday, it’s a must-win game for the Blues . . . and it’s a lot more fun when the other team is a division rival. Get it done!
Looks like Tim Jackman is Mike Ricci's cousin. Image via sharkspage.com, and avert your eyes before clicking the photo for the full-size version
Off-Topic to start: if you don’t know (chances are likely that you don’t), my favorite music band is 311. Today, March 11th, is a national holiday for us 311-heads. Yes, it’s 311 Day! They’re playing a huge live show in Las Vegas, which is being webcast worldwide. Since I know just about all of their tunes by heart and there will be hockey on the tube, I won’t watch. But I’m sure it’ll be fun. And if you listen to any alternative radio stations today, you’ll probably hear a few 311 tracks today, as traditionally today is the day a whole bunch of fellow 311-heads are calling to hear their favorite 311 tunes. Happy 311 Day, y’all!
The Blues are coming off a disappointing effort on Saturday against the Colorado Chris Stewarts Avalanche. There was one early scrap involving BJ Crombeen and Cody McLeod, which ended in a draw after Crombeen fell on top of McLeod. The draw brings the Blues to 57 fights on the season, still staying strong at 5th league-wide. Their ‘09-’10 fight record now stands at 23-18-16.
The New York Islanders have one of the younger, more exciting rebuilding teams in the league. I won’t compare them to the Pittsburgh Penguins circa 2005, since that would be unfair to both squads. However, they have high-end young stars in John Tavares and Kyle Okposo, among others. But with this youth comes an unwillingness to throw down the gloves. They have done so only 24 times this season, good for 26th in the NHL. Their fight record is a God-awful 4-9-11. Among the seven players that have contested these fights, only two are currently in Uniondale, representing 11 of those 24 fights. When the Blues and Islanders matched up on November 21st in The ‘Lou, the two teams predictably did not throw down the gloves.
There is only one current Islander that is a threat to get into a fracas, winger Tim Jackman (6′4″, 210lbs, 2-4-4), pictured above. Jackman, who is of no relation to our own Barret Jackman, brings size and a nasty mean streak about him. He is not a threat to score, but he is the kind of guy that does the dirty things to help young teams along a rebuilding process. The only other fighter still with the Islanders is defenseman Bruno Gervais (6′1″, 205lbs, 0-1-0). The other five fighters that are not currently with the Islanders are center Nate Thompson (6′0″, 207lbs, 1-1-3 with the Isles and 1-1-4 overall, waived to Tampa Bay on January 21st), defenseman and noted Philadelphia SUV-defeater Brendan Witt (6′2″, 223lbs, 0-1-2, in the AHL since February 5th), defenseman Andy Sutton (6′6″, 245lbs, 0-1-1, traded to Ottawa on March 2nd), winger Matt Martin (6′2″, 192lbs, 1-0-1, in the AHL since February 11th) and winger Joel Rechlicz (6′4″, 220lbs, 0-1-0, in the AHL since October 21st).
My dream fight matchup this evening involves a couple of heavyweights, but it is all dependent on how Blues coach Davis Payne wants to play his hand. Assuredly, you would think Tim Jackman would play, but will the Blues ride with DJ King? King did not suit up on Saturday. If he’s not in the owner’s box tonight, I want him to face off against Jackman. They’re both big, strong, tough and ornery. This is about the only fight I would want to see between these two teams, but admittedly, the chances of a fight in this one are slim even if King DOES play.
If you want to be a playoff team, this is a game the Blues MUST have. Go get it!
"Hey dude, wanna have a beer after the game?" Image via UPI (but you probably won't be seeing David Koci tonight)
The Blues aren’t just beating people on the scoreboard, they’re punching people too. There were two fights on Thursday between the Blues and Dallas Stars – one featuring expected contestants and one featuring not-so-expected contestants. First, we had the long-awaited rematch between DJ King and Krys Barch. King broke his hand on Barch’s helmet in their last fight back in November (a fight that King won). King won the rematch handily. Next, it was the second fight of Erik Johnson’s career. He squared off against Jamie Benn, who was in the first fight in a regular season NHL game in his career. Johnson controlled Benn early but Benn charged late and won the battle. Despite the two fights, the Blues sunk back into 5th place in the league with 56 fights on the season and now sport a fight record of 23-18-15 in ‘09-’10.
Now the Blues are in Denver to face the Colorado Avalanche. Four weeks ago, the Blues squared off in Denver, and the Throwdown Lowdown was on the case. Since then, not including the two fights in their previous matchup with the Blues, the Avs have only fought twice. They have no problems throwing down the gloves when they feel the need to, as evidenced by their 9th place standing with 47 fights. Their fight record on the season is an underwhelming 9-14-24; however, two of those wins were against the Blues. Both came in Denver on February 28th; David Koci edged King (and in a bit of irony, Koci injured his hand in the process) and Chris Stewart took down BJ Crombeen.
The only changes from the previous meeting are in the records of multiple fighters for the Avs: Koci is now 2-4-5, Stewart is now 3-0-2, Cody McLeod is now 2-3-9 and Matt Hendricks is now 1-3-3. Otherwise, the information from the previous report is still accurate, except that Koci is on injured reserve
Despite Koci’s absence, I anticipate multiple fights in this game. The Avs have played in three games since the Olympic Break (including one with mutual bitter rival, the Detroit Red Wings), but their only fight was on Wednesday with the Anaheim Ducks. The Blues bring physicality, which seems to bring out the best in the big, tough Avs. Assuming King suits up, look for him to fight someone like Stewart amidst the absence of Koci. Also don’t be surprised if McLeod goes at it with someone like Crombeen or Brad Winchester.
The Blues haven’t lost since losing to Colorado, in Denver, back on February 8th. Can the Blues avenge that loss, take down this almost-certain playoff club and continue this hot streak? I SAY YES!
Krys Barch likes to punch people. Image via hockeyfights.50webs.com
A glorious two points earned by the Blues in the desert brings our squad back toward the pack fighting for the 8th spot in the playoffs. Unfortunately, no official fights occurred (the scrum at the end of the 2nd period notwithstanding), so the Blues drop to 5th place while remaining at 54 fights on the season. The season fight record stands at 22-17-15.
The Dallas Stars – former Norris Divison rivals, don’tchaknow – sometimes have problems dropping the gloves. But I won’t hold it against them . . . they’re mediocre at best when it comes to WINNING fights. The Stars have registered 35 fights on the season – good for a tie for 16th in the league with the Florida Panthers. Their fight record on the season is 11-12-12. The Blues have fought with the Stars four times thus far this season, and the Note is 4-0-0, according to the good folks at Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights. On October 24th in St. Louis, DJ King defeated Krys Barch in a battle that cost King some time with a broken finger . . . also, Brad Winchester defeated Brian Sutherby and BJ Crombeen dispatched of Steve Ott after a questionable hit. In the November 25th game in Dallas, our own Captain Roboto, Eric Brewer, beat the living crap out of Ott in a performance that may have solidified Brewer’s captaincy for the rest of this season.
Winger Barch (6′2″, 220lbs, 3-8-4) is the lead goon on this Dallas squad – and with his size and fighting ability, it’s not hard to see WHY he’s their enforcer. Other multiple fighters for the Stars include center and general league pest Ott (6′0″, 193lbs, 4-2-2, day-to-day with an appendectomy and yes, both losses to the Blues), winger Sutherby (6′3″, 209lbs, 2-1-1, day-to-day with a shoulder issue) and defenseman Mark Fistric (6′2″, 232lbs, 1-0-2). On the season, nine Stars have fought this season, including old friend and defenseman Jeff Woywitka (6′2″, 217lbs, 0-1-0).
It’s Cam Janssen’s 2nd suspension game of five, but with the addition of Matt D’Agostini and the subsequent send-out of Derek Armstrong, it’s still no guarantee that King will get playing time on this squad. If King suits up, look for him and Barch to set a rematch. Otherwise, Crombeen or Winchester may be your best bet to fight Barch . . . but I don’t like their chances against him.
Can the Blues continue their Olympic-extended hot streak? Lord I hope so.
Obviously Matt Greene whizzed in Paul Bissonnette's Cheerios that morning. Image via mlive.com
Well . . . welcome back. It was a long, exhausting Winter Olympic break, but we’ve all finally made it through the horror that is the NHL break. Congratulations to David Backes and Erik Johnson in doing your mightiest to help the United States defend Her honor in Vancouver and for helping give us a hell of a show on Sunday. Sure, silver is disappointing to you guys, but thrilling to most of us. Also, big props to Roman Polak, who played well despite his Czech Republic team falling short of the medal round.
The end of the Olympic break means two things: 1) St. Louis Blues hockey is back, and 2) THE THROWDOWN LOWDOWN IS BACK! YYYYYYYYYES! So let’s get to it.
The final game before the break was an upset of shocking proportions over the Washington Capitals that included suspension-actionable activity followed by a tail-whipping of a fight. Cam Janssen – brainiac he is never known to be – pummeled Matt Bradley to the ice a full three seconds after Bradley released a pass toward the net. To Janssen’s credit, Bradley DID stand there and admire it for a while. That doesn’t excuse what he did; however, five games may have been a bit much for a suspension. Anyway, the questionable hit was followed by an absolute hammering by Janssen over Quintin Laing, who was in trying to defend his teammate. Admirable, but futile. Janssen is now 9-3-3 in fights this season and gets to sit next to Larry Pleau and Company for a short while. The Blues move into a tie with the Philadelphia Flyers for 4th in the league with 54 fights and a record of 22-17-15.
The Phoenix Coyotes have been quite the story in the 2009-10 season. Mired in bankruptcy hell in the offseason and nearly sold (and moved to Hamilton) to the Blackberry Blabbermouth, the club let go of Wayne Gretzky after his ownership responsibilities were properly relieved and picked up a solid coach in Dave Tippett. They’ve been on an absolute steamroll since. The only problem is that they’re not much of a fighting team – only posting 27 fights this season (spread amongst seven fighters), which is good for a tie for 23rd in the league with the lowly Carolina Hurricanes. Not good to be in the same position as THEM this year. In two games against each other, there has not been any fighting.
The conversation about the team’s enforcer role starts and ends with winger Paul Bissonnette (6′2″, 211lbs, 7-4-7). Count ‘em up . . . he’s been involved in 18 of the Coyotes’ 27 fights this season. That is a staggering percentage (for those of you scoring at home – it’s 67%). The other six fighters for the ‘Yotes this year are centers Martin Hanzal (6′5″, 218lbs, 0-1-2) and Vernon Fiddler (5′11″, 201lbs, 1-0-1), defensemen James Vandermeer (6′1″, 211lbs, 1-0-0) and Keith Yandle (6′2″, 195lbs, 0-1-0), winger Petr Prucha (6′0″, 175lbs, 0-1-0, day-to-day because of this obscenely illegal hit by James Neal) and winger/captain/face-of-the-franchise Shane Doan (6′2″, 224lbs, 0-0-1).
Since Janssen can’t be part of the dream matchup for the next five games, we’ll have to pick another. Well, why not DJ King and Bissonnette? Sure, let’s dream that one. If team stars going toe-to-toe is more your thing, why not Backes and Doan? Doan was eligible for Team Canada, after all. Fact is, though, that Backes may be a bit banged up from playing his cojones off in Vancouver. An even size matchup may be Hanzal against Brad Winchester. The possibilities are endless, but to predict a fight against a team that doesn’t fight is sometimes futile.
It’s Game 1 back from the Winter Olympics bizarro world, and it’s time for the playoff push. GET IT DONE, BOYS!
Woah…5 Games?! Not fair!
Ridiculous. Pure BS.
This is hockey, its rough.
This is the type of response I’ve seen from Blues fans today.
I’ve got to be honest, I have to say I totally disagree. This suspension has really progressed my belief that Cam Janssen shouldn’t be on this roster.
Let’s review the hit.
In the video we can see Bradley make a play and is marked by a Blues player. As Bradley moves the puck he is looking at the play infront of him. That is to Boyes (marking him, it looks like) and back to the slot area of the ice where the pass went. Cam Janssen is coming in from his blindside (around the blue line), totally outside of the play. Janssen clearly leads with an elbow to the head of Bradley.
To recap, this is what we have.
- The offender is a repeat offender. (ask Kaberle what he thinks of Janssen)
- The offender was not in the play being made.
- The victim was blindsided.
- The victim was hit in the head directly by the elbow.
I’m sorry folks, I don’t know what part of the world that type of play is allowed. Sadly, Cam thinks it should be. The St. Louis Post Dispatch quoted Janssen as saying “He had his head down and I was doing my job.”…”The bottom line is, I’m going to play the same way.” News flash Cam, if you watch the replay his head isn’t down. Bradley’s head is turned to the play in front of him.
Cam Janssen - Image via blues.nhl.com
Cam Janssen came in with zero attempt to play the puck and hit Bradley in the head. Dare I say that a player skating out of his way to hit another player in the head is similar to what Patrice Cormier did to Mikael Tam? The outcome was different, Matt Bradley wasn’t on the ice in convulsions. However, I would argue that the play was similar. The offender came in to the play and made a path straight to the puck carrier and elbowed him in the head.
This is the play that scares me. Anytime you hit someone in the head, you are not only threatening their career, but also their way of life. There is no need for that type of physical play in the game of hockey. Players like Janssen are out on the ice for one purpose, stir the pot. Sometimes its a fight, sometimes its a big hit. These types of players walk a very fine line. The line between defensible and reckless. Some hits you can justify, this one can’t be. Can we justify this hit in hockey, can we defend it? I can’t.
The Blues are currently evaluating their roster going in to the deadline and for their off season plans. Both Janssen and DJ King are up for new contracts this summer. Both fill a similar role, Tough Guy / Enforcer. Can the Blues afford to pay two of these players when they are trying to raise the skill level of the NHL roster? Many fans may have forogtten King Kong and his brutal punches. This fan has not. I remember seeing him work hard and not look out of place on his shift. King can skate and play a game that is above average for the run of the mill “goon”. Janssen worked hard this past off season and looked to be a new improved Cam at Camp. However, that still doesn’t put him above a healthy King. Cam was brought in as a player to add “toughness” to the roster while not losing longtime Blue Bryce Salvador for nothing come unrestricted free agency in spring/summer 2008. When DJ King went down with injury to open the 08-09 Campaign, Cam became the full time #13 Forward. When DJ re-injured his hand this season, Cam’s spot was solidified again. Now DJ is healthy and playing again. Cam’s roster spot is now called in to question.
I know that he is a local boy. I know he has a big smile, big personality and seems to be a nice face to market for the Blues. Sorry, TJ Oshie and David Backes to a better job of marketing this team. They help this team win nightly without the antics. If Cam is here and his only benefit is PR, why is he on the roster? This suspension has to be the giant red flag that warns Blues fans to question Cam’s spot here. If DJ is back and Cam can’t match his play (or plays so poorly its a negative impact), is he worth keeping around?
My answer is no and has been since King returned. This is just my icing on the cake to hammer my thought home.
Colton Orr is often seen doing this. Image via thetelegram.com
The Detroit Red Wings DID relent and fight in their game against the Blues on Tuesday. Yes, it was the shards of Brad May’s career that fought our own Brad Winchester. It was scored a draw, and rightfully so as no one really landed anything solid. The fight pushes Winchester Cathedral up to 3-1-4 on the season. That is now 51 total fights by Blues players this season, still 5th in the league. Their fight record is now 21-16-14 on the season.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are one of the most violent teams in the Eastern Conference. GM Brian Burke has worked to assemble his squad with players that largely assume his own persona – grit, toughness and strength, namely. He had success with this in Anaheim and he may well gain success with this type of maneuvering in Toronto, but as of yet it has not resulted in a lot of victories. No less, you can pretty much peg the Leafs for at least one, if not several, fights per game. They are 9th in the NHL with 44 fights on the season and they sport a solid-if-not-spectacular 16-16-12 fight record according to the good folks at Fried Chicken’s Hockey Fights. 13 Leafs have fought this season, but only eight of those players are currently with the club.
You see the visage of winger Colton Orr (6′3″, 222lbs, 4-4-7) and you see what I’m talking about with Burke and the type of player he likes. Orr was signed basically to fill the same role as Dave Semenko did for many years with the Edmonton Oilers dynasty of the mid to late 1980’s – keep opponents away from his team’s stars (Gretzky, Messier, Kurri, Fuhr, Coffey, etc.) by blasting the other team’s goons out of the way. In that, Orr leads the team in fights. The man who was second, winger and my former Favorite Current Blue Jamal Mayers (6′1″, 214lbs, 5-1-2 with the Leafs and 6-2-3 overall), was recently traded to the Calgary Flames as part of a monster trade you may have heard about. Defenseman Jay Rosehill (6′3″, 195lbs, 3-2-0) is third, but he is currently with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL. Other Leafs with multiple fights include injured Team USA defenseman Mike Komisarek (6′4″, 243lbs, 0-1-1, done for the season with a shoulder issue) and defensemen Garnet Exelby (6′1″, 215lbs, 1-2-0), Leafs blog favorite Luke Schenn (6′2″, 216lbs, 0-3-0) and Leafs blog least-favorite Jeff Finger (6′1″, 205lbs, 0-2-0). Also, recently-acquired defenseman Dion Phaneuf (6′3″, 214lbs, 1-0-0) fought twice while still with Calgary. He is 1-0-2 overall.
Orr will go with just about anyone. The trend lately has been for coach Davis (Earl of) Payne to only play one of either DJ King or Cam Janssen. Expect Orr to fight with whichever one of those two Payne decides to suit up. I would also not be opposed to Winchester getting involved with Orr or any secondary Leafs fighters that may play. I say this only because other than Phaneuf, the other secondary fighters have been consistently shuffled in-and-out of the Leafs lineup as of late.
Two more games until the Olympic break, and this one appears to be the more winnable of the two. Go get two tonight, boys.
