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Free Agent Focus: Columbus Blue Jackets

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Free agency is now a little more than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Key Restricted Free Agents

D Marcus Björk – Björk had a nice, albeit abbreviated rookie season for the Columbus Blue Jackets. The 25-year-old Swede split the year between Columbus and the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL. In 33 NHL games Björk tallied three goals and eight assists, while in the AHL he put up seven goals and eight assists in 44 games. Björk earned a lot of praise from the Columbus coaching staff and at one point was being dubbed a player who could have a long NHL career, this was before his game fell off during the middle of the season. He was demoted for a few months before being recalled towards the end of the year to re-join Columbus. While his play trailed off, one might wonder if it was tied to fatigue as Björk had never played more than 52 games in a season prior to this year. Columbus will likely lock up Björk for a season or two to take a long look at a player who could become a hidden gem for the Blue Jackets should he be able to build on his small success from this past year.

RW Mathieu Olivier – Olivier has never topped 19 points since turning pro back in 2018-2019. His career high came in the AHL when he put up 10 goals and nine assists in 58 games for the Milwaukee Admirals in the pandemic shortened 2019-2020 season. This past season the 26-year-old played a career high 66 NHL games for the Blue Jackets putting up 81 PIM, as well as five goals and 10 assists. Olivier offers sandpaper and is always willing to battle and stick up for his teammates, however he will never put up much in the way of offence. But given his status as one of Columbus’ most pressing RFA cases, it is a real indication of the lack of NHL talent that the Blue Jackets have on their NHL roster at this time. Olivier will likely be re-signed to a one year/two-way contract for around the league minimum.

Other RFAs: Tim Berni, Joshua Dunne, Carson Meyer, Trey Fix-Wolansky, Jacob Christiansen

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

D Gavin Bayreuther – Bayreuther is the Blue Jackets top unrestricted free agent heading into this offseason and was famously taken by the Seattle Kraken in the expansion draft two years ago only to be left unsigned. Bayreuther then became a free agent and quickly signed back with the Blue Jackets where he has played the past few seasons. The New Hampshire native toiled in the AHL with the Texas Stars for four seasons before finally getting a chance in the NHL with the Blue Jackets in the 2021-22 season. The 29-year-old spent most of this past season with Columbus where he put up two goals and 12 assists in 51 games.

Bayreuther has never put up much in the way of offense in his career as he has just 28 career points in 122 career games, he is the epitome of a tweener. He is too good for the AHL however he is likely not a strong enough player to sustain success in the NHL. He will likely be given the opportunity to sign a two-way contract this summer with a decent downside guarantee at the AHL level and the chance to split time between the AHL and the NHL.

F Lane Pederson – The Blue Jackets claimed Pederson off waivers from the Vancouver Canucks this past January. The Saskatoon native spent 27 games in the NHL this season split between to the two clubs and put up three goals and three assists. Much like Bayreuther, Pederson is also a tweener. He’s been a very good offensive player in the AHL the past few seasons as he has put up nearly a point a game since 2018-19. But this offensive success just simply hasn’t carried over the NHL as Pederson has just four goals and seven assists in 71 NHL games.

Pederson will get a two-way contract with a good AHL salary and will likely make for a good 13th or 14th forward next season.

G Michael Hutchinson – Hutchinson is the definition of a journeyman. He has played 153 NHL games spread over ten seasons posting a .902 career save percentage. Early in his career the 33-year-old looked as though he would be a solid NHL backup as posted a .914 save percentage in 38 games going 21-10-5 for the Winnipeg Jets in 2014-15. However, by 2017 Hutchinson found himself back in the AHL and struggled to find consistent NHL work, dressing in just 54 NHL games over the past six seasons. Given his age and recent track record it is realistic to guess that Hutchinson will find work as a teams third string goaltender that can take the bulk of the AHL starts and fill in at the NHL level should an injury occur.

Other UFAs: Joona Luoto, Justin Richards, Jon Gillies

Projected Cap Space

Columbus has ample cap room to fill out their roster as they currently have just under $17MM in space and 21 players signed for next season. However, filling out their roster simply won’t be good enough given how thin the team is on NHL talent. The club has committed big money to Patrik Laine, Johnny Gaudreau and Zach Werenski but haven’t been able to insulate them with much in the way of offensive talent. They have some terrific young players and will need to be careful to leave room for their future contracts, however the Blue Jackets need to do a better job of providing depth scoring so they don’t rely so heavily on their top line scorers. Columbus has been largely unsuccessful in unrestricted free agency making it interesting to see how they will play the market when it opens in July.

 

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Columbus Blue Jackets Make Multiple Roster Moves

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The Columbus Blue Jackets announced on Wednesday that they have recalled goaltender Jon Gillies from their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, on an emergency basis. In addition, the team has assigned defenseman Jake Christiansen and goaltender Jet Greaves to the Monsters.

The move to send Christiansen back to the AHL could indicate that another defenseman, Nick Blankenburg, may be available for tomorrow’s game against the New Jersey Devils, per Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch. Blankenburg has been sidelined with an ankle injury since March 27 and was considered week-to-week, but could return to the lineup after an absence of 10 days and five games.

Gillies and Greaves have once again been swapped for one another on the NHL roster as Elvis Merzlikins remains sidelined with a lower-body injury. Greaves is returning to the Monsters after making his NHL debut on Tuesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 22-year-old goaltender set a franchise record for shots faced and saves in his first NHL game, stopping 46 of 49 shots in a 4-2 loss. Greaves spent less than two days on the NHL roster after he was added from Cleveland on emergency recall on Monday.

As noted by AHL beat reporter Patrick Williams, the return to Cleveland will give the young Greaves good experience in high-stakes games. The Monsters are set to face off against the Belleville Senators tonight, with both teams three points out of the final playoff spot in the AHL’s North Division.

The Blue Jackets acquired Gillies in a pre-deadline trade with the Arizona Coyotes. It took a while for him to make his first NHL appearance with the team, but he made an immediate impact, stopping 24 of 27 shots in a 4-3 overtime win over the Ottawa Senators last Sunday.

Since making his NHL debut in the 2016-17 season, the 29-year-old journeyman has gone 8-15-3 with a 3.29 goals-against average and .893 save percentage in 33 career contests with the Blue Jackets, New Jersey Devils, St. Louis Blues, and Calgary Flames.

Despite his solid performance over the weekend, Gillies has struggled in the AHL this season, posting a 3.70 goals-against average and .878 save percentage in 15 appearances with the Tucson Roadrunners before the trade. He’s yet to appear with the Monsters since Columbus acquired him over a month ago.

Meanwhile, Christiansen heads back to the Monsters after being added to the Blue Jackets’ roster on an emergency basis on March 25. The 23-year-old defenseman has recorded three assists, four penalty minutes, and 25 shots on goal in 23 games with Columbus this season. The undrafted free agent signing is in his third professional season after completing five campaigns of junior hockey with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips.

Minor Moves: Blue Jackets, Steen, Sharks

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The Columbus Blue Jackets announced Monday that they’ve added goaltender Jet Greaves on emergency recall from the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, assigning goaltender Jon Gillies to Cleveland in a corresponding move. Additionally, center Justin Richards has been assigned to Cleveland.

The move to swap Greaves and Gillies comes after Gillies won his Columbus debut last night, stopping 19 of 22 shots in an overtime win. Greaves has been recalled to Columbus on multiple occasions this season but has still yet to appear in his first NHL game. With the end of the season approaching, Columbus will continue to rotate goalies between the NHL and AHL to give everyone playing time, especially with Elvis Merzlikins sidelined with a lower-body injury. The 25-year-old Richards was returned to Cleveland after registering an assist while playing in the team’s last two games.

  • The Boston Bruins announced today that forward Oskar Steen has been assigned to the team’s AHL affiliate in Providence. Steen, 25, has recorded a goal in two appearances for the Bruins this season, both coming within the last few weeks. The move is likely a sign that either David Krejci is ready to return from a lower-body injury or the team plans on putting Patrice Bergeron back in the lineup after taking some time for load management.
  • The San Jose Sharks have announced that forwards Kyle Criscuolo and Daniil Gushchin have been reassigned to their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. Criscuolo, 30, scored his first NHL goal in his first appearance for the Sharks over the weekend, while Gushchin, 21, also scored his first NHL goal, coming in his NHL debut. Gushchin has had a productive first professional season in the minors after being drafted 76th overall in 2020.

Columbus Blue Jackets Issue Injury Updates

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In what’s becoming a tired refrain, the Columbus Blue Jackets have issued multiple injury updates after a blowout loss over the weekend. Defenseman Erik Gudbranson’s season is over with a separated shoulder, while defenseman Nick Blankenburg is week-to-week with an ankle injury and could also be done for the year. Winger Mathieu Olivier may have also played his last game this season, as he’s out two to four weeks with a lower leg bone bruise. Goalie Elvis Merzlikins is also day-to-day with a lower-body injury.

For Gudbranson, the injury ends a rocky first campaign in Columbus after signing a four-year, $4MM average annual value contract in the offseason. The 31-year-old had 13 points in 70 games, seeing his defensive play regress back to some of the worst metrics in the league after a brief spike last season with the Calgary Flames.

Blankenburg has also struggled with injuries most of the year, but the 24-year-old rookie has played well. Some doubted Blankenburg’s NHL viability after signing with Columbus as a free agent out of college to end last season. Still, the 5-foot-9, 175-pound defender finished the year with 14 points in 36 games without being a complete defensive liability on a struggling team.

In his first season in Columbus, Olivier has set career highs in every offensive category, playing in 66 games and registering five goals and 15 points. The 26-year-old hard-nosed winger had found a consistent home on the team’s fourth line.

Without Merzlikins in the fold for the next few games, Columbus is down to minor-league veterans Michael Hutchinson and Jon Gillies as their netminders for the next few games.

Columbus Blue Jackets Recall Jon Gillies On Emergency Basis

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The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced that netminder Jon Gillies has been recalled from their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, on an emergency basis. The move comes after starting netminder Elvis Merzlikins suffered an apparent leg injury during the team’s 8-2 loss last night against the Montreal Canadiens.

Veteran Michael Hutchinson entered last night’s game in relief for Merzlikins and is now likely to take over the starter’s crease for as long as Merzlikins is sidelined. Hutchinson was acquired at the trade deadline from the Vegas Golden Knights in the Blue Jackets’ Jonathan Quick trade and has appeared in eight games in Columbus.

He hasn’t been great in that span and has a .874 save percentage, but it’s important to note that Hutchinson has often been placed in less-than-ideal circumstances having to enter games in relief for other goalies.

Hutchinson in total has played 15 games this season, those eight with Columbus and seven in the AHL with the Golden Knights’ affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights. He posted a 1-5-1 record and an .897 save percentage with Henderson but does have a .917 career save percentage in the AHL.

The Blue Jackets’ newest netminder is Gillies, 29, a 2012 second-round pick who was acquired from the Arizona Coyotes when Columbus sent Jakub Voracek’s contract to the desert.

The former college hockey star was the backup for five games with AHL Cleveland and has played a total of 15 games this season, all for Arizona’s AHL affiliate. Gillies has a career .893 save percentage in 32 NHL games, with 19 of them coming with the New Jersey Devils last season.

Both Gillies and Hutchinson are on expiring league-minimum two-way contracts this season, meaning the rest of this season serves as an important opportunity for each to put some solid starts on tape and give themselves the best possible footing to enter the offseason.

Arizona Coyotes Acquire Jakub Voracek

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The Arizona Coyotes continue their run on contracts they will never have to pay out. The team has acquired Jakub Voracek from the Columbus Blue Jackets, along with a 2023 sixth-round pick, in exchange for Jon Gillies. Voracek’s career is in doubt, and according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, there is insurance coverage for next year’s $7.8MM salary.

The move is important for a few different reasons. One, it gets the Coyotes much closer to the salary cap floor for next season, meaning they can make additional trades in the next 24 hours to jettison more expensive pieces like Nick Schmaltz or Lawson Crouse that may be drawing interest.

For the Blue Jackets, the move lets them get out from long-term injured reserve and under the salary cap ceiling, meaning performance bonuses from this year will no longer be carried over to 2023-24. With only the cost of a sixth-round pick to pay, it makes plenty of sense to get Voracek’s contract off the books.

If it is the end of his career as suspected, thanks to multiple head injuries, Voracek will go down as one of his generation’s more underrated offensive players. With over 800 points in his career, he sits 177th all-time and is just shy of the top 100 in assists with 583.

He’ll join a long list of players who have technically been part of the Coyotes organization but never played a game for the team, should he miss next season as expected.

Arizona now has Voracek, Shea Weber, and Bryan Little on the books for next season, a total of nearly $21.4MM in cap hits that won’t play a minute of ice time. On the other hand, they also have 36 draft picks over the next three years, including 21 in the top three rounds.

Evening Notes: Coyotes Goaltending, Angello, Bloom, Raty

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As this offseason was wrapping up with most team’s rosters relatively clear, the Arizona Coyotes and GM Bill Armstrong made it known that the team was still looking for goaltending with all options, internal and external, on the table. To that end, the team had signed journeyman Christopher Gibson to a PTO ahead of training camp, but released him a couple of days ago. A day later (yesterday), the team claimed another journeyman netminder in that of Jonas Johansson off waivers from the Colorado Avalanche. Should Johansson stick with the Coyotes, it would be his fourth team in three seasons.

Earlier today, Armstrong talked with PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan about Johansson and where the team’s goaltending situation stands. Armstrong said Johansson is expected to be on the ice at the team’s practice facility tomorrow and they will get as many looks as possible at the goaltender during their final three preseason games. The GM added that they will continue to monitor the goalie market and waiver wire going forward. Johansson could have a chance as the Coyotes’ primary backup to Karel Vejmelka, a role that seemed destined for either Ivan Prosvetov, who was assigned to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners earlier this evening, or the recently-signed Jon Gillies.

  • St. Louis Blues forward Anthony Angello left tonight’s game with an apparent injury and will not return to the game, the team announced. The injury is a tough break for Angello, 26, who is in camp with the Blues after signing a one-year, two-way deal with them earlier this summer. Angello spent his entire career to-date in the Pittsburgh Penguins organization, spending time in both the NHL and AHL. It’s unclear how severe the injury is and no timetable has been announced yet, but any significant absence would be bad news for the former Cornell University standout who could have a chance to latch on with St. Louis as a quality depth option.
  • Buffalo Sabres prospect Josh Bloom took another intriguing step in his development, having been named Captain of the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit, the team announced. While the honor doesn’t necessarily develop any on-ice skills for the 19-year-old, his ability to be a leader on his team does seem to bode well for his off-ice development and his future in the NHL. The winger had 30 goals and 31 assists in 67 games last year for Saginaw. Mitchell Smith and Dean Loukus will serve as full-time Alternate Captains for the Spirit, while a third alternate will be split between T-Bone Codd and Brayden Hislop.
  • Earlier today when New York Islanders head coach Lane Lambert met the media, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz asked the new bench boss about top prospect Aatu Raty, who has impressed so far in Islanders camp. Specifically, Kurz wondered if Raty, who is a natural center, could be a fit on the wing, to which Lambert replied that the 19-year-old is a center only. This would seem to indicate that despite his strong impression, Raty is unlikely to make the Islanders opening night roster, given the team’s strong depth down the middle with Brock Nelson, Mathew Barzal, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, and Casey Cizikas. Considering the prospect’s struggles in his first full season in the Finnish Liiga, which contributed to his draft stock slipping, it might make sense that Raty doesn’t spend his first full season in North America in the NHL. However, if he can produce similarly to how he did last season with Jukurit (40 points in 41 games), it is possible Raty could force his way into the NHL sooner rather than later.

Arizona Coyotes Sign Jon Gillies

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The Arizona Coyotes have added some goaltending depth, signing goaltender Jon Gillies to a one-year, two-way contract, the club announced this evening. The club did not immediately release the financial terms of the deal, however, CapFriendly reports the contract is worth $750K in the NHL and $150K at the minor league level, with $200K guaranteed (link).

Gillies, 28, actually got into 19 games this season for the New Jersey Devils and another one for the St. Louis Blues, easily the most action he’s seen at the NHL level in his career. Originally a third-round pick of the Calgary Flames from 2012, he has just 32 appearances overall at that level and has been mostly limited to AHL action.

That may not necessarily be the plan for 2022-23 though, as Gillies joins a goaltending group that is by no means settled. Karel Vejmelka will be getting the lion’s share of the work in the NHL but beyond that, it is anything but certain. Ivan Prosvetov is the real competition for the backup role, but at 23 without any real success in the minors yet, it’s hard to think the Coyotes would want him sitting for long stretches in the NHL. There’s also David Tendeck, but he barely has any experience above the ECHL.

In reality, Gillies may be the closest thing the team has to a backup goaltender at this point, though that could always change before the season starts.

USA Hockey Announces Roster For 2022 World Championship

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The U.S. roster for the upcoming IIHF World Championship has been set, a group that includes both NHL stars and prospects waiting for their first opportunity. The event will be held later this month in Helsinki, Finland, and will see the U.S. squad try to improve from their third-place finish a year ago.

The full roster:

G Jon Gillies
G Strauss Mann
G Alex Nedeljkovic

D Nick Blankenburg
D Jordan Harris
D Luke Hughes
D Caleb Jones
D Seth Jones
D Jaycob Megna
D Andrew Peeke
D Nate Schmidt

F Riley Barber
F Kieffer Bellows
F Thomas Bordeleau
F Sasha Chmelevski
F Sean Farrell
F Alex Galchenyuk
F Adam Gaudette
F John Hayden
F Sam Lafferty
F Vinni Lettieri
F Karson Kuhlman
F Ben Meyers
F Austin Watson

One of the most interesting names to watch will be Mann, who represented his country at the Olympics earlier this year and recently signed an entry-level contract with the San Jose Sharks. The 23-year-old netminder has had quite an odd path to this point, including going undrafted, playing three years at the University of Michigan, and then going to play in Sweden this season.

It will certainly be some mixed emotions for Canadian fans from the Montreal area, given how this squad includes two of the highly-touted Canadiens prospects in Harris and Farrell. The former signed and made his debut at the end of the year, while the latter just completed an outstanding rookie season at Harvard. Farrell was also a part of the U.S. Olympic squad this year, and scored three goals and six points in four games on the international stage.

The U.S. will kick things off on May 13 against Latvia.

New Jersey Devils Sign Kyle Shapiro To ATO

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The New Jersey Devils were in trouble when they were forced to put both Akira Schmid and Mackenzie Blackwood in the COVID protocol. The only other healthy goaltender in the entire organization was Jon Gillies. While he’ll get the start tonight, his backup will be Kyle Shapiro, who has signed an amateur tryout contract.

Shapiro, 28, is an assistant coach with the NAHL’s New Jersey Titans and serves as a regular emergency backup for the Prudential Center. He played four seasons of Division III college hockey, three of them with the University of Southern Maine and one with New England College. If forced into action, it would be his first competitive game since the 2017-18 season.

It’s not all bad news for the Devils though. The team has also activated Nathan Bastian, Andreas Johnsson, Yegor Sharangovich, and Pavel Zacha from the COVID protocol. Colton White has also been recalled from the taxi squad. All five players are available to play tonight, giving the team a little bit of a boost as they take on the New York Islanders.

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