Blue Jackets Rumors: Team Shopping For Defenseman

The Columbus Blue Jackets aren't okay with sitting at the bottom of the league and rebuilding any longer. They would've been more competitive this season if it weren't for the many serious injuries their team suffered. They are a young team with a couple of already established stars and the turnaround is imminent.

To do that they are going to have to make some moves and stop looking so hard towards the future. By that I mean using their picks and/or prospects to shape their current team and compete with the strong Eastern Conference. Pierre LeBrun noted that the Blue Jackets would consider moving the Los Angeles Kings' first round pick that they got in return for Vladislav Gavrikov and Joonas Korpisalo for a defenceman.

Breaking down the Blue Jackets heading into the summer, they have six NHL-calibre defencemen signed on top of top pick David Jiricek. On the right side, Andrew Peeke, Erik Gudbranson, and Adam Boqvist should be the top three options, while Nick Blankenburg, the fourth right-shot defenceman, can play both sides of the ice. He would likely join Zach Werenski and Jake Bean on the left. So where is the room to upgrade?

The left side with either Bean or Blankenburg is where the Blue Jackets would likely be looking to bolster with a top-four defenceman. Defending wasn't their strong suit this season and they even lost Gavrikov who was in that role. Using a first round pick and Bean/Blankenburg could fetch the Blue Jackets a pretty serious upgrade.