Insider Connects 2 Teams To Blue Jackets' Adam Boqvist

As the Columbus Blue Jackets find themselves at the bottom of the standings, there is likely going to be a number of moves to trade players away. One area in particular, the defense, is very crowded. This group has a lot of talent that could very well be sold off this season or the offseason. A name that has heated up recently is Adam Boqvist.

The Blue Jackets have three defensemen who are injured, one of them being Boqvist, but still have seven very capable NHL defensemen on the roster. Boqvist is expected back any day now, so that's not something to worry about for a team acquiring him. He has only gotten into 13 games this season. The lack of games isn't just because of his injury either. The young defenseman has been forced out of the lineup for others either more experienced or with more potential.

Boqvist was a big piece coming back in the Seth Jones deal, so the Blue Jackets have to make use of this asset. If they aren't going to play him, they should trade him. With Damon Severson, Erik Gudbranson, David Jiricek, Andrew Peeke, and possibly Nick Blankenburg also lining up on the right side, there really is not room. If the Blue Jackets thought highly of Boqvist, he would be in the lineup.

David Pagnotta included Boqvist on his recent 25 trade bait players list and noted the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames as teams who have been connected to the young Blue Jackets defenseman. Pagnotta also notes that the two teams should continue to have interest as well. I would like to counter that for the Oilers as they have been playing great with their three pairings exactly how they are. There's less competition on the right side in Edmonton, but no cap space and room in the lineup without an injury. As for the Flames, this makes a lot of sense. Nikita Zadorov was already traded this season and Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev are well on their way. The Flames will need to re-tool/rebuild and Boqvist would have a great opportunity.