Columbus Blue Jackets Left With Hole to Fill
By Ryan Ritchie
Columbus Blue Jackets Left With Hole to Fill Following Ryan Johansen Trade
Columbus Blue Jackets shocked the hockey world Wednesday, shipping center Ryan Johansen to Nashville in exchange for defenseman Seth Jones. Give GM Jarmo Kekalainen credit, the Blue Jackets had a glaring issue on the blueline, and he addressed it.
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Columbus wasn’t in a position of strength when it comes to elite offensive talent. So jeopardizing their arguably best forward wouldn’t have been easy. It was a tough position for the Columbus Blue Jackets GM, because they do have a pair of talented defenders on their way in the next year or two (Zach Werenski and Gabriel Carlsson).
They could have kept Johansen, rolled the dice for the next couple seasons, calling 2015-16 a wash, and start fresh in 2016-17. Instead, the Blue Jackets are left with a crop of second line forwards to fill their top six. Luckily, Columbus is loaded with depth on the big club roster, and in the AHL. One thing still remains though; the need for top-line offensive talent.
There’s three clear options to fix the void left by Ryan Johansen:
1) Wait for Draft Lottery
Auston Matthews would solve the issue pretty quickly. There’s a lot of risk in putting your hopes into the Draft Lottery though. There’s certainly no rush to fill the void with the 2015-16 season lost already. The Columbus Blue Jackets might wait before exploring the next two options. If they lose out on Matthews, they can explore other options in the offseason.
2) In-House Prospect Pool
The only prospect with top-line elite talent is Oliver Bjorkstrand. He’s playing his first year of pro hockey in 2015-16, and it’s been an adjustment thus far. Sometimes we have to take AHL stats with a grain of salt. Don’t believe me? Check out Andrew Hammond‘s stats prior to his unbelievable stretch to finish 2014-15.
At this point, there’s little harm in promoting Oliver Bjorkstrand to give him quality NHL experience. He scored 63 goals in 59 games for WHL’s Portland Winterhawks in 2014-15, totaling 118 points (two points per game). A pure sniper, Bjorkstrand is a thrilling player to watch in the offensive zone. He creates scoring opportunities with ease. Best of all, he’s a complete player in all three zones. There are questions about his size and physicality, but if you watch him play, he looks somewhat similar to NHL newcomer Artemi Panarin.
We actually wrote a piece on him a little while back, which can be found here.
3) Trade Route/or Free Agency
Trades are becoming increasingly difficult nowadays in the new salary cap era. Difficult, but not impossible, as proven Wednesday with a rare straight-up hockey deal. The last thing a team wants is being forced to fill a hole in the middle up-front. Quality center’s are few and far between, just ask the Toronto Maple Leafs. Finding that big center in the draft is difficult enough, although not as difficult as convincing another NHL team to trade one. Call this route unlikely, but it’s worth exploring the potential options the Columbus Blue Jackets could pursue in the offseason.
Potential Targets:
Ryan Kesler ANA, Jordan Staal CAR, Matt Duchene COL, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins EDM, Mikael Granlund MIN, Sean Couturier PHI, Paul Stastny STL, Nazem Kadri TOR
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Kesler only becomes available if Anaheim continues to tread along, struggling to score goals. He’s not exactly a number one center anyways.
If Carolina ever decides to flush out their vets and rebuild, Staal would be an attractive target. More of a 1A type center, better suited for second line duties.
Colorado’s core doesn’t seem to be generating enough chemistry, making a Duchene trade highly possible.
RNH is slowly becoming expendable the longer Leon Draisaitl continues to tear up the scoresheet. Once McDavid returns, someone is either forced out, or to the wing. Don’t be surprised if RNH finds himself on the trade block, garnering interest from 29 other teams.
If Minnesota falters once again this postseason, changes are expected to follow with the Wild. Granlund is talented enough to be a top-line center, he just needs to shoot the puck more.
Philly made cap space on Wednesday, and it’s likely one of their top six forwards is traded. The Flyers might need convincing to pry Sean Couturier away though.
St.Louis is another team in a similar scenario as Minnesota. Another early exit from the playoffs may yield significant changes. Stastny hasn’t lived up to his lucrative contract thus far, but the change of scenery as an exclusive number one center might be all he needs to flourish.
Toronto is more likely to keep Kadri as part of their long-term plan, but there’s always the chance he could be had for the right offer.
Next: Montreal Canadiens Trade Dustin Tokarski to Anaheim Ducks
Perhaps the most difficult way to address major needs is via free agency. However, the summer of 2016 is shaping up to be the most exciting free agency period in recent history.
Pending Free Agents that may be available:
Eric Staal, Anze Kopitar, David Backes, Steven Stamkos
There’s a good chance Eric Staal explores the marketplace on July 1st. He’s had a good tenure in Carolina, but it’s time for both sides to move on. He’s in the back-half of his career, but could still be a productive player for any NHL team.
Little chance Anze Kopitar reaches free agency, unless a major snafu is reached in contract negotiations.
David Backes has a decent chance of reaching free agency on July 1st, but St.Louis may still extend him. He’s not a number one center anyways, so it would be similar to adding another Brandon Dubinsky.
What are the chances Steven Stamkos would even consider Columbus if he reaches free agency? Not likely. There’s no guarantee Columbus would even be willing to offer $11 million/year to any player. Let’s just be fair and say no chance to this one. Sorry Columbus fans.