Another week, another edition of the Union Junction podcast, which is your home at The Hockey Writers for everything Columbus Blue Jackets related. The Jackets have been playing well as of late with a 4-3-3 record securing 11 of a possible 20 points. While it’s a far cry from a playoff-level record, it is most certainly an improvement over times earlier in this season. In the last week, they’ve had a big win against the Toronto Maple Leafs and made their way to overtime in losses to the New Jersey Devils and the Buffalo Sabres.
On this week’s show, Nicholas Arnold and Mark Scheig get into a lot of different topics surrounding the Blue Jackets over the last week, including some players on the upswing, a strong showing from the team’s prospects at the 2024 World Junior Hockey Championship, the team’s expiring contract situation, and much more. Here’s a breakdown of the topics.
Blue Jackets’ Players On The Upswing
After a tough start to the season, the Blue Jackets are starting to see signs of life from Johnny Gaudreau. While he’s only on pace for 15 goals and 54 points on the season, he’s been on the upswing over the last little bit. He’s been a point-per-game player over his last ten games, and had a five-game point streak, and two three-point nights since Dec. 19.
The team’s young players have been the engine driving the team, though. Three of the team’s top-six scorers are guys under 24 who were not on the Blue Jackets’ roster two seasons ago. The two Russians, Kirill Marchenko and Dmitri Voronkov have been lightning in a bottle at fourth and sixth in scoring, respectively.
Third in scoring is the third overall pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, Adam Fantilli, who is already coming into his own as a 19-year-old. As of right now, he is on pace for 24 goals and 50 points, which are both Blue Jackets rookie records. He had a heck of a December, which Mark posits could warrant him a nod as the NHL’s rookie of the month, scoring seven goals and 13 points in 14 games. He played a season-high 20:10 of ice time on Dec. 21 and has hovered around 15-17 minutes a night since. He’s already proving why the mantle will be passed to him one day.
Blue Jackets at the World Juniors
The Blue Jackets have four prospects representing their various nations at the World Juniors in Gothenburg, Sweden, this year. Three who you might expect and another who has kind of flown under the radar.
Team USA’s Gavin Brindley, drafted in the second round of the 2023 NHL Draft, has been a firecracker. As of publication, he’s the leading goal scorer in the tournament with six goals and tied for second in points with eight. He’s been a massive piece for the Stars and Stripes, which were favorites to win the tournament.
Team Canada’s Denton Mateychuk, drafted 12th overall in 2022, and Jordan Dumais, drafted in the third round in 2022, have also stood out. Dumais has been a little slower to score with only one point through his first three games. However, Mateychuk has been leaned on heavily as a top-pairing defender put in all situations and appearing regularly on the scoresheet. He’s also shown some personality, which has been a nice touch.
And flying under the radar is Finnish forward Oiva Keskinen, who was drafted in the seventh round of the 2023 Draft. The Blue Jackets selected him in his second year of draft eligibility. The center has had a solid start in Finland’s SM-Liiga and was rewarded with a roster spot in the tournament. He’s been exemplary in the faceoff dot and could be another seventh-round gem mined by the Blue Jackets.
Blue Jackets’ Expiring Contract Situation
As Mark says, there is a CVS Pharmacy receipt-sized list of players who have contracts expiring after 2023-24. Eleven players will need a new contract and eight of those are under team control as restricted free agents. It includes Marchenko, Kent Johnson, Yegor Chinakhov, and Cole Sillinger among others.
Related: Blue Jackets Should Prioritize Contract Extensions for Young Core
The guys break down which players should be at the top of the Blue Jackets list for signing extensions and who could receive a longer-term commitment.
Other topics discussed on the show include:
- Chinakhov’s continued development
- The Blue Jackets’ goaltending depth and Sergei Ivanov waiting in the wings
- Some sneaky trade pieces
- Mark’s year-end mailbag “Sunday Long Read”
Union Junction will be back with more coverage in the coming weeks. Ahead, the Blue Jackets have a tough schedule facing a couple of playoff-positioned teams, with the Boston Bruins on Jan. 2 and the Philadelphia Flyers on Jan. 4. They close out the week against the hardworking Minnesota Wild on Jan. 6. You can find the podcast on Spotify and Apple Music. Be sure to subscribe so you never miss a new episode.