The Blue Jackets got a loud reception for Kirill Marchenko’s return to Nationwide Arena on Tuesday, and not the warm kind.
From the moment the starters were announced, Columbus fans let Marchenko hear it. The boos followed him each time he touched the puck, and they didn’t disappear even after he was credited with a goal in a 6-2 loss. The noise never turned into chants or anything more than that - just boos, steady and plain.
That was enough to set off plenty of reaction online.
A very different scene played out in Ottawa last night when Brady Tkachuk returned after asking out. Senators fans didn’t just boo him. They were openly egged on to do it, and the building came with a whole list of chants aimed his way:
Traitor
Overrated
Brady sucks
Little brother
You can't read
F**k you Brady
Timmy's better
You're a sellout
Brady's balding
You eat crayons
Matthew's better
F**k your podcast
We don't need you
Who's your daddy?
Matthew's bridesmaid
If you were watching, it felt like the chants were ready before puck drop. Tkachuk scored, but the building stayed on him anyway. Even during his tribute video, the boos kept rolling while he skated around, smiled, and waved.
So what’s the problem when Columbus does it?
That was the question hanging over the backlash to Marchenko’s return. Leafs fans, among others, were quick to call out Blue Jackets fans for booing him.
At the same time, plenty of those same voices were applauding Ottawa fans for doing the exact same thing to Tkachuk. One market gets called petty, the other gets praised.
There’s a difference between the two situations, sure. But at the end of the day, both were examples of fans booing a player who came back under tense circumstances. Columbus fans have done it plenty of times before, and Tuesday wasn’t anything unusual in that sense.
As the old saying goes, “Don't tell fans who spend their hard-earned money how to fan!”
The Blue Jackets are back at home Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights.
In Other News...
Blue Jackets Suddenly Face A Real Dmitri Voronkov Trade Decision
Dmitri Voronkov has suddenly become one of the more intriguing names on the Blue Jackets radar as trade chatter starts to pick up around the young forward. Columbus has apparently drawn interest from other teams, and the timing is notable because Voronkov is expected to be out of the lineup for Saturdays game, which only adds to the sense that something could be shifting behind the scenes.
One floated scenario has the Blue Jackets sending Voronkov to Calgary, a move that would bring back Connor Zary and a draft pick in return. For Columbus, a deal like that would be about balancing present value with future flexibility, while the Flames would be betting on Voronkovs size and upside. For now, it remains the kind of possibility that can reshape a roster conversation before the front office has made anything public. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets May Need A Roster Jolt Sooner Than Expected
The Blue Jackets have been searching for more consistent offense this season, and outside of one reliable line, the scoring has been too uneven for comfort. With the club already juggling healthy scratches and trying to squeeze more competition out of the lineup, the picture in Columbus is starting to look like one that may need a roster jolt sooner rather than later.
There are options building in Cleveland if the front office decides the answer is below the NHL level. Steven Lorentz has been productive there, and Jack Williams, Luca Pinelli, and Mikael Pyyhtia are also pushing for consideration with strong play of their own, giving the Blue Jackets a few different ways to stir things up while they look for better results up top. [Read more 🡒]
Rick Bowness Is Already Testing Blue Jackets Buy-In
Eight games into the season, the Blue Jackets are already searching for traction after opening 3-5-0 and sitting with the fewest points in the Eastern Conference. Rick Bowness has not exactly softened the message, either. The veteran coach has been publicly critical of the groups early play, a continuation of the blunt tone he carried after last seasons failure to reach the playoffs.
That kind of early-season pressure can cut both ways in a young locker room, and it is why the discussion around Bowness has already turned toward buy-in. Analysts Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton recently weighed whether the approach is pushing the right buttons or risking more damage than motivation, leaving the bigger question hanging over Columbus: how long can the message land if the results do not? [Read more 🡒]