Offseason Review: Columbus Blue Jackets

Now that the dust has settled on a wild NHL offseason, let's take a look at how each team did in regards to drafting and free-agent signings. Today, we'll look at the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Columbus has a long history of struggling to bring in top free agents, along with an equal amount of difficulty keeping their own high-skill players in town. A number of NHL stars, including Artemi Panarin, Matt Duchene, and Sergei Bobrovsky, have passed through Columbus in their careers, only to go on and make their money and fame elsewhere. This year, Columbus saw captain Nick Foligno and stalwart defenceman David Savard both depart at the trade deadline. It's a difficult trend for Jackets fans to watch happen over and over, yet despite this Jackets' GM Jarmo Kekäläinen continues to make smart, low-risk moves to keep a number of high-end prospects and exciting young players in Ohio. Let's see how he did this summer.

Free Agency:

The Jackets went into free agency already having made three significant deals to reshape the team. They sent a 2nd round pick to Carolina for Jake Bean, then followed it up by sending Seth Jones to Chicago in exchange for star defensive prospect Adam Boqvist, two of the Hawks' first-round picks (2021 and 2022), and a second-round pick, also in 2021. A day later, Cam Atkinson was sent to Philadelphia in exchange for Jakub Voracek. Before the free-agent market even opened, the Jackets looked very different from the team they iced last season.

On the day of free agency, the Jackets picked up hometown forward Sean Kuraly for four years. They re-signed RFA Alexandre Texier for two more years, and got Patrik Laine to sign his qualifying offer, keeping him with the team for one more season. They also extended Boone Jenner and Eric Robinson for two years and signed Tyler Sikura and Gavin Bayreuther to two-way deals. A day later, Jake Bean was signed for three years, and Zack Werenski was signed to a massive six-year extension, which rivaled the seven-year contract Seth Jones had already signed with Chicago. The Jackets also signed defenceman Mikko Lehtonen for one year.

Grade: B; It's hard to imagine exactly what this Jackets team will look like on the ice, but there's plenty of reason to think they will improve upon their record from 2021. Their goaltending tandem remains intact, they still have their #1 defenceman, and their forwards, while featuring some unfamiliar faces, look to bring a lot more speed and skill than their squad from last season.

Draft:

Columbus had three first-round picks to play with this year. They kept their own, good for 5th overall, added one from the Maple Leafs in exchange for Nick Foglino, and another from Tampa Bay for David Savard, which was then flipped in the Jones deal for Chicago's first-rounder at 12th overall. A lot of talent was poured into the Jackets pipeline through those deals. First was Kent Johnson at 5th overall, a gifted playmaker with fantastic hands and hockey IQ. Considered one of the most skilled players in the draft, Johnson may end up being the most exciting Jackets player in a long time. Next up was Cole Sillinger at 12th overall, a 6' centreman with a fantastic shot and an elite-level positioning game that has him constantly finding open ice to receive a pass and fire off a one-timer. At 25th overall, the Jackets took Corson Ceulemans, a startlingly adept 6'2" defensive defenceman with a powerful point shot and adept gap control. They followed that up with another defenceman at 69th overall in Stanislav Svozil, another defensive-minded player with less offensive upside but a much higher physical presence on the ice. This was a great draft for Columbus.

Grade: A; The Blue Jackets brought in a fantastic group of young players this year. As long as the team doesn't rush them into the lineup, they all project to be significant contributors to Columbus' roster in the near future.

Overall grade: B+; The Jackets did what they could in free agency, but didn't sell the farm just to bring in a big name. Then they took control of their future in the draft, adding four players who will help build this team back into a playoff contender in the years to come.

What do you think of the Blue Jackets' offseason so far?

Photo credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports