And now we wait.

It's the slowest time of the year for Jacket fans. Other teams are enjoying the playoffs and our team is out on the golf course. The draft is still two months away, and the front office won't start signing free agents until the summer, and certainly not without our new GM. We've probably got a while on the GM signing too.

Aaron Portzline's article in the Dispatch explains that the Jackets' GM search is just in the preliminary stages. This is partly due to the fact that several of the candidates currently work for Cup-contending teams and therefore won't be immediately available for interviewing. In the mean time, Mike Priest, the new CBJ President, will be granting interviews to two front office employees already in the organization. While these candidates are worth examining, I have faith that Priest will focus more of his attention elsewhere. Promoting a MacLean crony to the top spot in the organization isn't a good way of "moving in a new direction." Regardless of their selection for the new GM, the Jackets will see a lot of changes in coming months. Even though the waiting is rough, it's a short wait compared to the last six seasons.

But hey, we've got playoff hockey to watch... and this: