When Scott Howson was hired as General Manger of the Blue Jackets, he knew he wasn't getting a full set of keys to the kingdom. Ken Hitchcock was less than a year into the job as coach and was essentially viewed as the savior of the franchise. Howson came on board knowing that Hitch was here to stay for a while. A "while" turned out to be shorter than most people anticipated, less than three years.

If Hitch and Howson ever did see eye to eye, it was apparent early in the season that such was no longer the case. Hitchcock's handling of Nikita Filatov wasa at odds with Howson's plan for the team.  Hitch seemed motivated by a desire to prove that he, not Howson, was calling the shots. After the way things unfolded, it's easy to imagine that Howson drafted Filatov without Hitch's blessing. And that Hitch never forgave him for it. Hitch won that battle, but it might have ultimately cost him the war.

When Howson traded Jason Chimera, a popular player both in the locker room and in the community, it was a bold move made to shake things up. He did it in part to add much needed depth to the blue line. Milan Jurcina, acquired from the Washington Capitals is a young, sturdy defender with size who will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year. He would immediately bolster a maligned core of defenseman and he would have the remainder of the season to convince the Blue Jackets to sign him to an extension. He would, that is, if he played. But when Hitch made Jurcina a healthy scratch against the Avs on Tuesday night, it was the 5th time in 8 games. More importantly, with Mike Commodore not even making the trip to Colorado due to a leg injury, Hitch opted to go with Mark Methot over Jurcina and stated publicly that Jurcina was having problems changing his game from Washington's brand of defense to Hitchcock's less aggressive style. The problem with that assessment is that Washington is a darn good team and their defense has been exceptional this year. So that reasoning didn't really sell to anyone. Sitting Jurcina on the bench was probably not what Howson had in mind when he acquired him. Clearly, Hitch and Howson were not on the same page. Once again, Hitch seemed intent on proving he was in control.

While there must have been some behind-the-scenes drama between Howson and Hitchcock, one thing tat was front and center for everyone to see was the tragic regression of just about every young player on the roster as the season unfolded.  The core of young assets that had many observers picking the Blue Jackets to return to the playoffs this year had, in the space of three months, become liabilities and the frequent focus of blame at Hitchcock's post-game press conferences. Meanwhile, young teams in Colorado and Phoenix were prospering while implementing on-the-job training. Give credit to Howson and Blue Jackets ownership for finally realizing that long term damage could be done to these young assets if Hitch was allowed to continue his ruination of them. The Blue Jackets are in no position to recover from such malpractice. Firing Hitchcock will probably not save the season. But there is much more at stake than this season.

With Hitchcock now out of the way, the Blue Jackets are for the first time truly Scott Howson's team. The key will now be for Howson to find a coach that will compliment his moves, rather than boycott them. It will be a lot easier for him to conduct his search out in the open, rather than behind Hitchcock's back. And while he considers his options, Claude Noel, who was rumored to be a finalist for the Penguins gig last year, gets a much deserved audition for the job.