#jarmo kekalainen

[stereax]

[adelechka]

Matthew Tkachuk thought he was going to be drafted by the Oilers in 2016 (Cam Lewis, 2020)

On Saturday, Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk appeared on TSN’s OverDrive show to discuss, among other things, the Battle of Alberta. According to Tkachuk, he believed at the draft that he was going to end up on the other side of this battle.

Here’s the story in Tkachuk’s words…

During the draft, on the draft floor, it was kind of a weird moment where some people at the Edmonton table, you could ask them they would probably deny it, but they’re kind of staring me down and kind of giving me some smiles. The only people that saw it were me and my mom so we’re like ‘alright, we’re going to Edmonton.’ Then Pierre-Luc Dubois went third-overall and the phone started to ring like crazy at the Edmonton table and they threw the jersey under the table and it looked like they stripped off a name and gave it to Puljujarvi with the next pick.

Tkachuk’s memory certainly doesn’t seem far-fetched at all.

Coming into the 2016 draft, there seemed to be a very clear top three. Auston Matthews would be the first-overall pick as the Leafs wanted their franchise centre and the two Finns, Patrik Laine and Jesse Puljujarvi, who had been brilliant at the World Juniors, would go second and third.

After that, it was up in the air. But Tkachuk, fresh off of a 107-point season with the London Knights, seemed to be the leader of that everyone else pack after the big three. I remember a mock draft coming out days before the draft suggesting Tkachuk would be Edmonton’s guy at four.

So, as planned, the Leafs took Matthews with the first pick and Winnipeg grabbed Laine right after. Then, it was the Blue Jackets’ turn to pick. When Jarmo Kekalainen went up to the podium and called Dubois’ name, there was an audible gasp in the arena.

The Oilers then took their chance to pounce on Puljujarvi, Tkachuk would slide past Vancouver and end up as a member of the Flames, and the rest is history.

It’s interesting to think what would have happened if Kekalainen had just made the predictable move and gone with Puljujarvi with the third pick. Would Tkachuk had become an Oiler? Would be a beloved pest here rather than our most hated rival? Would Puljujarvi had blossomed elsewhere?

You really can’t fault Edmonton for going with Puljujarvi when he fell into their lap with the fourth pick. He had just put up one of the best World Junior performances of all-time, scoring 17 points in seven games en route to a gold medal victory, and looked like he was going to be a star. But the fact that a Finnish general manager passed him over did seem a little ominous.

[kirillmarchenko]

WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH JARMO KEKALAINEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[sofarsofastmp3]

i’m enjoying taking the game by storm for sid anecdotes and quotes and everything but by kind of a wide margin the most interesting bit in this whole thing so far is joyce talking about a finnish reporter and sens executive critiquing canadian major junior hockey and the ensuing discourse (kekalainen backing his comments to joyce and then him/the sens walking them back HARD after the article dropped with the quotes in english)

the comparison of ken dryden critiquing it in ‘the game’ (also on my bookshelf. soon.) vs jarmo kekalainen, a european employed by a canadian nhl team, doing it.

[x75-productions]

NHL Daily - Devastation

NHL Daily - Devastation In a night of devastation, there would be 12 games with big victories, plus a GM change in Columbus and the final jersey was released by adidas for Tampa. #SeaKraken #TimeToHunt #GoKingsGo #NYR #FlyTogether #GoBolts #LeafsForever

In a night of devastation, there would be 12 games with big victories, plus a GM change in Columbus and the final jersey was released under adidas for Tampa Bay. NHL News and Notes from Thursday, February 15th, 2024 News The Columbus Blue Jackets announced that they have relieved Jarmo Kekalainen of his duties as General Manager. John Davidson, along with the team’s hockey operations team,…

[onlyforalwayswith]

Burning question: Did the Blue Jackets know the extent of Babcock’s interactions with players when this was first revealed? If they did know the extent and tried to bury this story before it got started, that says not-great things about the club’s decision-makers, from president of hockey operations John Davidson to general manager Jarmo Kekalainen and others.

But if they didn’t know the extent of Babcock’s invasion of privacy, that says something that should truly concern the Blue Jackets — all the way up to the ownership level.

That would suggest that Blue Jackets players — veterans and/or young players — feel more comfortable speaking their truth to people like Bissonnette and the NHLPA than they are to the people in charge of the Blue Jackets organization. If that’s the case, the McConnell family — as hands-off as any ownership group in pro sports — might have to demand answers.

[frostbeees]

The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed right wing Mathieu Olivier to a two-year, $2.2 million contract extension through the 2024-25 National Hockey League season, club general manager Jarmo Kekalainen announced today.

"Mathieu's work ethic and dedication are tremendous and he has become a valuable contributor to our organization on and off the ice," said Kekalainen. "He brings size, physicality and character to our lineup and we are excited that he will continue to be part of the Blue Jackets family."

[retire61already]

Proud dad Jarmo Kekalainen brags about his 25 large adult sons.

[boopblip18]

Columbus better have one hell of a playoff run

[hockey-cards]

[stereax]

[thepinerider]

Could David Clarkson Be Vegas Bound?

In his latest "30 Thoughts", Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman said that it sure sounds like Columbus and Vegas are working on something. Friedman goes on and says that there is at least a possibility the two clubs are discussing David Clarkson. Friedman said he can't pin that down 100%, but he...

Via: http://thehockeywriters.com/could-david-clarkson-be-vegas-bound/

[swish-swish-nyoom-nyoom]

In other CBJ news, Lehtonen is on unconditional waivers for failing to report to the AHL team...?

[mydearlaurisdarzins]

ʟᴀᴛ → ᴇɴɢ translation of the latvian media LTV report on matiss kivlenieks:

0:05: today has brought tragic news. at the age of 24, the talented latvian hockey player matiss kivlenieks has lost his life. our goalkeeper’s nhl team, the columbus blue jackets released a statement saying “it was a tragic accident.” in latvia, the news were received with deep sadness. 

0:28: kivi, as his teammates liked to call him, was an excellent young man who greeted everyone with a smile every day. “we are shocked and deeply saddened by the loss of matiss kivlenieks and we extend our deepest sympathies to his family and friends,” said the official statement by the columbus blue jackets.

0:46 the president of the latvian hockey federation aigars kalvitis: “it is a huge loss for latvian hockey, and not just the hockey team but all the hockey fans and the latvian nation as a whole. matiss gave us our first ever win against team canada, playing a fantastic game in the net. i think no one has really recovered from this sudden news, but it’s clear that it was an accident.”

1:11 former goalie and current goalie coach of team latvia edgars masalskis: “i feel very sorry. he was so young, had so much potential, so much talent if we talk about hockey, and there was so much for him to achieve in his life. at the same time, as a person he was so positive, so sincere and so cheerful. it is a huge tragedy both for hockey and all his loved ones.”

1:40: in may, even people who don’t follow hockey closely learned who is matiss kivlenieks. he was the one who shut out team canada helping to achieve a historical win in his debut at the world championships. for him, the team was always the most important.

1:56 matiss kivlenieks’ post-game interview after winning team canada: “the guys played a perfect game today. especially in those moments where it seemed like [team canada] would score, they put their sticks in the right places and blocked all the shots. i’m really happy, really happy for everyone.”

2:11 current u-20 coach of team latvia karlis zirnis: “matiss was a boy with a smile, he always smiled. he was always helpful. he was a fighter, he achieved so much just from his hard work in his hockey career, but most of all he was a guy who was always helpful and if you ever needed anything, you could call him. all these little things made him a truly awesome guy.”

2:43: everyone who knew matiss remembers the smile on his face. guntis balins, who was one of kivlenieks’ first coaches, couldn’t contain his emotions and said to LTV that is it too hard to speak today. in may, when our “sports studio” colleague reinis osenieks met him for an interview, coach balins described matiss as a talented and always forward-thinking goalkeeper.

3:03 guntis balins in may, on the game vs. team canada: “he plays so cool, in a level-headed and peaceful way that looking from the side it seems like isn’t doing anything. of course it’s never like that. he has the ability to choose the right position, he evaluates the situation and finds it before [the shot]. he doesn’t allow rebounds, because if you do, a lot of problems would start.”

3:22: on social media people around the world express their sympathies and mourn. columbus blue jackets’ general manager jarmo kekalainen wrote: “life is so precious and can be so fragile. hug your loved ones today. rip matiss, you will be dearly missed.”

[fromthe-point]

Columbus Blue Jackets General Manager Jarmo Kekalainen announced six roster moves today that place the current training camp roster at 28 players, including 16 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders.

The Blue Jackets placed defenseman Adam Clendening, center Zac Dalpe, left wing Markus Hannikainen and center Ryan MacInnis on waivers for the purpose of assignment to the Cleveland Monsters, the club's American Hockey League affiliate. In addition, Columbus has assigned defenseman Doyle Somerby and goaltender Veini Vehvilainen to Cleveland.

TRAINING CAMP: News, notes, and more

[vladislavgavrikov]

Cam Atkinson kinda failing at dunking Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen at Cam's Carnival