There has been no shortage of news for the Columbus Blue Jackets lately. There is plenty to discuss between the draft, free agency, and the search for a new head coach. Some players have been re-signed this past week and some have signed with new teams.
The most recent signing by the Blue Jackets is Jake Christiansen. He signed a one-year two-way contract with $750k at the NHL level and $350k at the AHL level. The 24-year-old forward played 12 games for Columbus last year and primarily plays for the AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters. He played 62 games for the Monsters last season and scored 13 goals, and had 46 points.
Another signing that may be primarily for the Cleveland Monsters was goaltender Zach Sawchenko. He signed a one-year two-way contract worth $775,000. Last season he only played 6 games professionally for the Abbotsford Canucks. He has a goals-against average of 2.12 and a save percentage of .924. He last saw NHL ice while playing for the San Jose Sharks in the 2021-22 season. Sawchenko played seven NHL games and had a goals-against average of 3.35 and a save percentage of .901.
Last year’s Monsters goaltender Malcolm Subban has not been signed and is a free agent. The signing of Sawchenko may be to replace him or to give the Monsters/Blue Jackets a little more depth in case of injury or sickness.
Jet Greaves, Cole Sillinger, and Kirill Marchenko are all RFAs who have all been sent qualifying offers but have yet to accept and will go to an arbitration hearing if a deal is not made soon.
Some former Blue Jackets turned UFAs have signed elsewhere.
Defenseman Jake Bean signed with the Calgary Flames.
Defenseman Nick Blankenburg signed with the Nashville Predators.
Former Monster’s captain Brendan Gaunce has signed with the Minnesota Wild.
Carson Meyer has signed with the Anaheim Ducks.
Billy Sweezey signed with the Boston Bruins.
Other UFAs that have yet to be signed are Tyler Angle, Marcus Bjork, Josh Dunne, Alex Nylander, Jakob Zboril, and Malcolm Subban.
Some fans have been wondering why Alex Nylander has not been re-signed yet after his performance last year. One reason could be that the new GM, Don Waddell, doesn’t see him fitting in with next year’s team. Another reason could be that Nylander could be testing free agency to see if he can get more money. In 23 games last season, he had 11 goals and 15 points. His biggest moment with the team was when he scored a hat trick against the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Search For a New Head Coach
Recently, Aaron Portzline from the Athletic tweeted that Todd McClellan is out of the running for head coach for the Columbus Blue Jackets. This could be for several reasons, but the main one may be that they could not reach an agreement on a contract.
A few weeks ago it was reported that the Blue Jackets had three candidates in mind. With McClellan out of the running two candidates remain. Portzline also reported that two of the other candidates are Jay Woodcroft and Dean Evason. Both could be quality choices even if they weren’t the first choice.
The word is that an announcement of a new head coach will be soon. Hopefully, we won’t have to wait long.
