Meet the Blue Jackets
The Columbus Blue Jackets is a professional United States ice hockey team. The team plays in the Central Division of the Western Conference and is based out of Columbus Ohio.
They qualified for the Stanley cup playoffs for the first time 2009, the highlight of the 9 year old team performances since they joined the NHL as an expansion team in the year 2000. When the Cleveland Barons left Ohio in 1978, no one knew that it would take 22 years before the state would host another NHL team. On June 25, 1997, the NHL announced that Columbus would receive a new franchise; a decision prompted by the May 31 announcement from Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company that they would foot the bill for a new $150-million arena in Columbus.
The name of the team was choosen to reflect the rich civil war history in the state of Ohio, the name and logo is also meant to stand for pride and patriotism. When President Abraham Lincoln asked Ohio to raise ten regiments at the outbreak of the Civil War, the Ohio residents responded by forming no less than 23 volunteer infantry regiments.
The logo depicts the flag of Ohio swirled around a start, The sweaters sport crossed hockey sticks over a civil war cap. The official team mascot is a 6 foot 9 inch bright green bug named Stinger that can be seen walking among the spectators during the games and skating around on the ice between periods wearing a team jersey.
At the request of the fans, the Blue Jackets organization purchased a hand-made replica of an 1867 Napoleon cannon and placed it in the Nationwide Arena as the 2007-08 season begun. The replica cannon is used to start of each hockey game and fired at the start of all home games. The cannon will also salute each time the Blue Jackets score a home goal and when the home team wins a game. During its inaugural season, it was fired no less than 164 times.
The cannon is beloved by fans and has earned a central role in the fan culture which as an example is reflected in tha fact that one Blue Jackets Forum is for instance named FireTheCannon.com. The loud boom when the cannon is fired comes from .75oz concussion explossives places above the rink while the actual firing of the gun only is a smoke flash charge. When the cannon is fired, the accompanying music “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) by AC/DC can be heard throughout the arena.
The Blue Jackets did as I mentioned earlier secure their first Stanley cup playoff in 2009 and they did so by defeating the Blackhawks. The team had made several advantageous trades during the 2008 off season, including getting Raffi Torres in exchange for Gilbert Brule and trading Nikolai Zherdey and Dan Fritsche to the New York Rangers in exchange for Fedor Tyutin and Christian Backman. During the 2008-09 NHL season Jason Williams was received in exchange for Clay Wilson and a sixth-round draft pick. The team also became a part of the first major deal of the 2009 NHL Trade Deadline by receiving Antoine Vermette from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Pascal Leclaire and a second-round draft pick.