Lyle Odelein, the Blue Jackets’ first captain in Columbus, has died at 58. Reports from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said the longtime NHL defenseman suffered a heart attack overnight.
Odelein arrived in Columbus as a seasoned pro with a hard-earned reputation. He was taken in the 1986 NHL Draft in the seventh round, 141st overall, and made his NHL debut with the Montreal Canadiens in the 1989-90 season. Montreal had him for seven seasons before he moved on to the New Jersey Devils, where he spent most of four seasons.
The Devils traded him at the 1999-00 deadline to the Arizona Coyotes, and Arizona left him exposed for the 2000 expansion draft. Columbus grabbed him there, and with 721 NHL games already on his resume, the Blue Jackets made him their captain for their inaugural season.
That choice fit the moment. Odelein was the kind of defenseman who played a physical, stay-at-home game and backed up teammates whenever the situation called for it. The Blue Jackets’ roots were tied to "blood, sweat, and tears", and "Odie" matched that identity perfectly.
He wore the "C" in all 146 games he played for Columbus over two seasons. During that stretch, he scored 5 goals and 33 points and piled up 180 penalty minutes. The Blue Jackets later traded him to Jaroslav Spacek at the 2002 trade deadline.
His NHL career kept going after Columbus. Odelein played parts of four more seasons and finished with 1,056 regular-season games and 2,316 penalty minutes, which ranked 30th in NHL history.
He left a strong impression in a short time in Columbus, both on the ice and away from it. Fans who remember him from those first Blue Jackets teams knew him as a tough, no-nonsense presence, and others remembered him just as warmly as a person.
In Other News...
Blue Jackets Have A Problem Game 2 Exposed Fast
Game 2 gave Columbus an early reminder that the margin for error in this series is thin. Utah rolled to a 4-1 win, leaned on a sharp transition game and stayed ahead in shots and expected goals from start to finish, leaving the Blue Jackets chasing a pace they never really controlled. Columbus managed its lone goal in the second period, but the overall flow of the game kept tilting the other way.
The special teams gap only made the night harder to absorb for Columbus. Utah cashed in on its power play and kept applying pressure late, outshooting the Blue Jackets in the third period and turning a manageable night into a more lopsided result. For a team that needs cleaner execution and better answers when the game opens up, the issues exposed here came quickly and in more than one phase. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Let One Problem Sink Kent Johnsons Bright Spot
Kent Johnson finally gave the Blue Jackets a flash of offense, scoring the lone goal in Columbus 4-1 loss to the Utah Mammoth. Jet Greaves did what he could to keep the game from getting out of hand, turning aside 27 of 31 shots and surviving a busy night in which Utah generated eight shots during four power plays.
Still, the Jackets could not overcome the special-teams gap, and the result fit an odd pattern in a series that has gone the visitors way every time. The loss also marked the first regulation finish in the matchups history, leaving Columbus with one bright individual moment and plenty to clean up after a night when the game got away from them. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Already Face An Early Test They Couldn't Afford
A win over Buffalo and a loss to Utah gave Columbus an early read on where this group stands after a summer of change. Matthew Knies has already been folded into the mix and provided some offense, while Adam Fantillis extension gave the franchise another important piece of long-term stability. Even so, the first week has reminded the Blue Jackets that progress is going to be tested quickly, especially on the back end where the lineup has already been stretched.
The defense has had to absorb more than its share of turbulence, forcing other skaters into bigger minutes and tougher matchups sooner than planned. With a lighter week ahead against Pittsburgh and St. Louis, Columbus has a chance to steady itself, but the bigger question is how long the rotation can hold up if the injury situation keeps taxing the blue line. For a team trying to build momentum early, this is the kind of problem it would much rather avoid. [Read more 🡒]