Afternoon Scrum 10/20/09

Some puck headlines to feed your fix. Look for a pre-game breakdown later in the day.

• The Calgary Herald takes a look at Rick Nash and his sterling 3-zone play thus far this season. As fellow JR poster Pepper Brooks noted in his most recent entry, Nash's name is bound to come up in the Selke discussion if he keeps playing like he has thus far.
• More from the good folks up in Alberta. This time its their game preview of tonight's tilt between the CBJ and the Flames. Predictions seem to boil down to Kiprusoff vs Mason in the nets. I can't disagree. There is, however, some discord on which Flame will ultimately square off against Jared Boll. My prediction there: Flames better watch out for Derek Dorsett.
• We here at Jackets Required are new to the blogging scene, so we've yet to encounter either the warm-fuzzies of being welcomed by our teams' media relations department, or the shame of being denied access to the free pretzels and water in the press box. But Puck Daddy can testify to both. He recently took part in a symposium on the current and future relationships between leagues/teams and the bloggers. Did I mention it took place in Vegas? Enjoy.
  
• Tom Reed over at the Dispatch reports that the Jackets have traded away Stefan Legein to Philadelphia for Michael Ratchuk. Last season Ratchuk had 5-12-17 and a -7 in 77 games for the Philadelphia Phantoms of the AHL. Ratchuck is a lefty. Check out his player profile here.
  
• In yesterday's Afternoon Scrum, I included a story about a topic I find fascinating: the current state of the NHLPA. Ken Campbell of The Hockey News has a slightly different take than I. Is he really advocating for another lockout?
  
  

Finally, don't forget to tune into the game tonight to see YOUR Columbus Blue Jackets take on the Calgary Flames. Game time is 9:30 pm. FSN-O has the tv coverage with their crappy low-def cameras. Good God that network drives me crazy. Carry the Flag!