It was just 10 days ago that Blue Jackets center Mark Letestu was on a first place team. A few phone calls involving Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson changed that.
On paper, Letestu joined one of the most talented groups in the NHL after he was traded from Pittsburgh last week. The pickups of Jeff Carter, James Wisniewski, Radek Martinek, and Vinny Prospal were supposed to bolster an underachieving group over the top. It turns out; the newcomers have fared no better than team veterans.
The Blue Jackets are 3-13-1 for the season and have yet to win back-to-back games. Columbus had a golden opportunity to put together its first two-game winning streak of the year Tuesday, but the Blue Jackets squandered a two goal lead by allowing the Minnesota Wild to score four unanswered goals.
“I feel like I am a part of this team,” Letestu said. “What this organization has endured over the past is just a memory. I am in the same boat with a lot of these guys. The losses, the way we’re losing, it is frustrating.”
Letestu has benefited from increased playing time going from a stacked Pittsburgh Penguins squad to a Columbus team who is struggling down the middle of the ice. Centers Derick Brassard and Antoine Vermette have had epic struggles to begin the season.
“(Letestu) wasn’t playing and he obviously had some pretty good players in front of him in Pittsburgh,” Blue Jackets coach Scott Arniel said. “He is looking for an opportunity. We talked on his first day how he wants to play and helps us in some way. He wasn’t here for the stuff that went on in the past.”
Though the current culture in the Penguins’ locker room is nearly the opposite of the Blue Jackets’ room, it hasn’t always been that way. Letestu knows that things can turnaround quickly, but time is already starting to run out on this season.
“Where I came from wasn’t always winning,” Letestu said. “There were some dark days there. It is just something you have to work through. There is more frustration in this room. Guys have pride, they want to win. It has not come easy at all.”
“I don’t think he thinking about Pittsburgh and Columbus,” Arniel said. “He is just trying to play in this league for 10 years.”
Letestu’s addition has helped sparked some offense as he has notched two points in three games. Prospal is the team’s leading point scorer with 14 points.
On the other hand, Carter was injured for 10 games and has not been much of a factor all year. Martinek has been out the last 10 games with a concussion and his return any time soon is in question. Wisniewski was suspended at the beginning of the season for the first eight games. Wisniewski is a minus-10 in nine games played
“I am very fortunate to have a family, because when I go home, I try to forget about hockey,” Prospal said. “We have three kids so there is always stuff to worry about at home. That kind of helps me in the tough times to keep my mind away from the game. The mood in the locker room is not as great as if the record was a lot better than what it is right now.”
Notable
Former Blue Jackets coach and current St. Louis head coach Ken Hitchcock has turned around the Blues nearly overnight. In just four games, he has racked up seven points with the club’s only loss coming against Toronto in a shootout. Hitchcock has as many points in four games as Arniel’s Blue Jackets have in the first 17 games of the season.
Blue Jackets forward Cody Bass was placed on waivers on Thursday. If he clears waivers, he will stay with the team said Arniel. The move gives the club flexibility with the Blue Jackets currently holding the maximum 23 players on the roster.
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