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Blue Jackets Sign Mike Brown to a PTO: Bobrovsky Shines in WCOH Loss

September 15, 2016, 11:31 AM ET [1 Comments]
Paul Berthelot
Columbus Blue Jackets Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Blue Jackets added another veteran to their training camp roster signing NHL veteran Mike Brown to a pro-tryout contract.




Brown has played 407 NHL games and scored just 36 points. He is much more renowned for his fighting ability, amassing 106 fights and 778 penalty minutes in his career. Just like Jarret Stoll and Marc-Andre Bergeron, Brown is a camp body and unlikely to be signed.

What makes Brown an interesting case here is his status as a grinder/fighter. These are not the players you expect to see sign PTO’s. You what Brown brings to the table and if even if he has a good camp he’s not worth a contract. Fighters are slowly being removed from the league, as teams are realizing the value of having speed and skill in your bottom six. Players similar to Stoll and Bergeron are worth PTO’s because even though they may not be the best players, they could potentially provide some value to an NHL franchise.

The concerning thing giving a Brown a PTO is there is a non-zero chance he gets a contract from the Jackets. This is the same management group who gave Jared Boll a three deal at $1.6M per. They did end up buying out that last year of Boll’s deal, but that was more because the team needed salary cap space and not because they didn’t like the player. Brown is essentially the same player as Boll and will come at a fraction of the cost. It would not be surprising if this management group felt more toughness was needed in the bottom six. This is a player who works hard and someone who John Tortorella probably loves.

***

Sergei Bobrovsky’s World Cup of Hockey started off a little slow. In the first pre-tournament game against the Czech Republic he allowed three goals on 29 shots. He did get the win but a .906 save percentage is nothing to get excited about. Well he got Russian and Blue Jackets fans very excited for the tournament/season with his play against Canada. Canada controlled the play right from the get go pumping 14 shots on Bob in the first period, and didn’t let up the whole game. In total Canada finished with 48 shots vs. just 26 for Russia. Bobrovsky had to be sharp and he was the main reason this game was even close. He stopped 42 of 44 shots in regulation, but unfortunately was beat on a breakaway by Ryan Getzlaf in overtime, as Canada won 3-2.

This was a vintage Bob performance and one Blue Jacket fans haven’t seen in a while. From the two games Bob’s played in he’s looked really good and over the injuries that plagued him last season. Hopefully his strong play can continue though the tournament and he can carry that over to the NHL once the season starts. If the Blue Jackets are going to contend for a playoff spot they need Bobrovsky to playing as the top goalie everyone knows he can be.

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