COLUMBUS, Ohio \u2014 A collection of notes, insights, ruminations and did-you-knows gathered throughout the week that was for the Columbus Blue Jackets:<\/p>\n
Item No. 1: Rating the No. 1s<\/p>\n
Rebuilds are no sure things in the NHL. The only near-certainty is that the GM who starts the rebuild won\u2019t be around to enjoy the fruits of his suffering.<\/p>\n
Not only does a franchise have to bottom out at the right time and get some NHL lottery luck \u2014 did the San Jose Sharks strike gold with Macklin Celebrini or what? \u2014 they have to nail their first-round picks, develop them correctly, build around them, etc.<\/p>\n
There are so many aspects of the Blue Jackets that could be dissected right now, and nobody should be spared. A five-game losing streak has landed them in last place in the Metro Division and 15th out of 16 teams in the Eastern Conference. But it is striking to look at all those first-round picks they accumulated beginning in 2021 and how those players are currently making their presence felt with the Blue Jackets.<\/p>\n
Ideally, those six players \u2014 five of them drafted among the top 12 \u2014 should be driving play for Columbus. But with one exception, that\u2019s not happening.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s likely to come into focus this week when the Blue Jackets host the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday in Nationwide Arena. The Ducks, on a similar rebuild timeline as the Jackets, are one of the best stories in the NHL this season, challenging Vegas for first place in the Pacific Division and leaning hard on recent first-round picks Leo Carlsson (17-23-40, plus-11), Beckett Sennecke (10-16-26, plus-4) and Mason McTavish (7-13-20, plus-1), among others.<\/p>\n
When you look at how the Blue Jackets\u2019 blue chips are producing, it makes sense why the Jackets aren\u2019t exactly thriving this season. Yes, of course, the veterans aren\u2019t blameless. But these are the players who represent the picks that justified the losing.<\/p>\n
2021<\/p>\n
No. 5 Kent Johnson: This makes zero sense. Johnson played a big role in breathing some skill into the top six last season (24-33-57 in 68 games), but he\u2019s been missing in action so far this season with only 3-5-8 in 31 games. The 23-year-old played on the fourth line in Saturday\u2019s 3-2 loss to Vegas, which tells you how bad this is going.<\/p>\n
Johnson can be one of the NHL\u2019s most electrifying players, but it\u2019s really hard to understand how this is going so poorly. Or, frankly, where this relationship might be headed.<\/p>\n
No. 12 Cole Sillinger: In his fifth NHL season, Sillinger has defined himself as a third-line player, one who is good for 12-15 goals and 30-plus points a season. He\u2019s also a glue guy and popular in the dressing room, which is why teammates love him.<\/p>\n
Having said that, you\u2019re left wanting more from a No. 12 overall pick.<\/p>\n
No. 25 Corson Ceulemans: The way Ceulemans started last season before a rib injury, and the way he returned this season, has given many in the organization confidence that Ceulemans is on track to play in the NHL, possibly soon. But the reality is he hasn\u2019t played in the NHL yet and is no longer viewed as a top prospect.<\/p>\n
2022<\/p>\n
No. 6 David Jiricek: Remarkably, Jiricek\u2019s skating seemed to get worse during his three-plus seasons in the Columbus organization, and GM Don Waddell traded him early last season when he got a trade offer that included a first-round pick.<\/p>\n
Jiricek is currently playing for AHL Iowa in the Minnesota Wild system.<\/p>\n
No. 12 Denton Mateychuk: Since he debuted in the NHL about this time last season, Mateychuk has held down a top-four job with the Blue Jackets. That\u2019s a commentary on both his composure and the Jackets\u2019 blue-line situation.<\/p>\n
Mateychuk is a keeper. He\u2019s not a straight-line showstopper with his speed, but his maneuverability in tight spaces and turns is impressive.<\/p>\n
FIRST NHL GOAL ALERT! \ud83d\udea8<\/p>\n
Congratulations, Denton Mateychuk! pic.twitter.com\/hpb8c1lWvC<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NHL (@NHL) January 10, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n 2023<\/p>\n No. 3 Adam Fantilli:\u00a0The Blue Jackets were delighted Fantilli fell to them at No. 3, although it\u2019s clear Chicago (Connor Bedard) and Anaheim (Carlsson) did well with the first two picks. Fantilli is a two-way demon who is just learning how he can maximize his impact on games.<\/p>\n If there\u2019s one complaint, it\u2019s for Evason: Fantilli wasn\u2019t on the power play at the start of the season, and he\u2019s not always out quickly in OT. Ridiculous. Play him. Heck, overplay him.<\/p>\n 2024<\/p>\n No. 4 Cayden Lindstrom: This is not going well, folks. Lindstrom missed almost all of last year following back surgery, and his rookie season at Michigan State has been a struggle. In 11 games, he has 1-2-3 and 22 penalty minutes.<\/p>\n Unless something changes drastically, it\u2019s hard to imagine him stepping into the NHL next season. Frankly, there should be a lot of concern here, with the injury history, the struggle to adapt and so on.<\/p>\n Item No. 2: Two trades<\/p>\n The NHL was rocked by two big trades on Friday.<\/p>\n First came a trade between Edmonton and Pittsburgh, with the Penguins trading goalie Tristan Jarry<\/a> and forward Samuel Poulin to Edmonton for goalie Stuart Skinner, defenseman Brett Kulak and a second-round pick in 2029.<\/p>\n Just a few hours later, that trade was pushed off the front page when the Vancouver Canucks traded all-world defenseman Quinn Hughes<\/a> to the Minnesota Wild for forwards Marco Rossi and Liam Ohgren, defenseman Zeev Buium and a first-round pick next summer.<\/p>\n Blue Jackets fans were probably wondering if Waddell could \u2014 or should \u2014have been involved in those talks, given how beneficial it could be to shake up the dressing room right now.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s deal first with the Hughes trade. The asking price, if you look at the Blue Jackets\u2019 roster and apply what Minnesota paid, would have been Fantilli, Mateychuk and a first-round draft pick. That\u2019s a steep price to pay for Hughes, especially since he isn\u2019t currently signed beyond the 2026-27 season.<\/p>\n As for the goaltender trade, if the Oilers were ever interested in Merzlikins \u2014 which seems unlikely \u2014 it probably faded sharply over the last month of the season when Merzlikins returned to the struggles he\u2019s dealt with over the past three or four seasons. There\u2019s no trade market for Merzlikins. If the Blue Jackets want to make a change, they\u2019d likely have to put Merzlikins on waivers and send him to AHL Cleveland. In that scenario, Ivan Fedotov would come up from Cleveland to be Jet Greaves\u2019 backup.<\/p>\n Item No. 3: \u2018Z\u2019 in Italy<\/p>\n It\u2019s widely expected that Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski will get the call officially inviting him to play for Team USA at the Olympics in Milan this coming February.<\/p>\n Werenski has become a major player for the Americans, especially with his performance last winter at the Four Nations Face-Off. Like many in the hockey world, he\u2019s paying attention to what\u2019s going on in Milan ahead of the Games as they race to get the arena finished in time<\/a>. The men\u2019s hockey tournament runs Feb. 11-22, so it\u2019s going to be a close call.<\/p>\n Quick peek at the main arena in Milan. Obviously, a lot of work needs to get done. The NHL sounded positive earlier this week at BOG meetings the work will get done in time for the Olympics. pic.twitter.com\/58UXkwmDFd<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) December 12, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sure they\u2019ll figure it out,\u201d Werenski said. \u201cHopefully, it\u2019ll be ready. Somebody said it\u2019s Feb. 2 now (for an official opening). That\u2019s cutting it close. That\u2019s the biggest issue for me, I feel like, going into a building that\u2019s really never been used before. There\u2019s a lot of stuff they\u2019ll have to work out there.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s out of our control as players. I\u2019m hoping I\u2019ll get to go over there to experience it. I guess we\u2019ll find out in the next couple of weeks, so cross that bridge when we come to it.\u201d<\/p>\n It was revealed earlier this month that the ice sheet, expected to be NHL-size, is actually three feet shorter than the typical 200 x 85. Those three feet will be taken out of the neutral zone so neither of the attack zones will be affected.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ll notice it, maybe a little bit, getting to the red line,\u201d Werenski said. \u201cGetting to the red line might be harder. But in terms of the actual game, I don\u2019t think it means much, to be honest. I don\u2019t think, as players, we\u2019ll really notice, and I don\u2019t think fans will, either.\u201d<\/p>\n Item No. 4: Snacks<\/p>\n \u2022 Tough guy \/ right winger Mathieu Olivier has been out of the lineup since suffering an upper-body injury on Nov. 24 in Washington, but he joined a few other players for an optional morning skate on Saturday. He\u2019d skated once on his own previously, and is now in queue to build his way back into the lineup. The next step will be joining the group for a full practice, then taking full contact before he\u2019s cleared to return. There\u2019s no timetable yet, the club has said, but it\u2019s moving in the right direction.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re just trying to go through the stages here and make sure that when I do come back it\u2019s 100 percent, and that I\u2019m not thinking twice about what I do out there and I can play the way I play,\u201d Olivier said.<\/p>\n \u2022 Olivier was asked to set the scene as he was watching the Blue Jackets and New Jersey during their fight-filled game on Dec. 1.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m watching the game in my basement and my kids are sleeping on the second floor,\u201d Olivier said. \u201cMy wife came down (to the basement) to tell me to calm down. So, that\u2019s pretty much all I can say, really. The guys did a really good job standing up for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n Good to see Mathieu Olivier back on the ice with #CBJ<\/a> today. Not a full practice, but progress nonetheless. pic.twitter.com\/Ye6ePdpig2<\/a><\/p>\n