Denton Mateychuk, Four Others Injured To Start Blue Jackets Training Camp
The Columbus Blue Jackets have plans to ease top defense prospect Denton Mateychuk up to speed at the start of training camp as he recovers from a groin injury, per general manager Don Waddell in a recent conversation with Aaron Portzline of The Athletic. Portzline added that forwards Jordan Dumais (lower-body) and Max McCue (undisclosed) will both be day-to-day with injury, forward Owen Sillinger (knee) will be held out of contact all camp, and defenseman Luca Marrelli (shoulder) will be out until December. All five players are listed on Columbus’ training camp roster.
This news will make Mateychuk worth that much more attention at this year’s camp. He was generally injury-free during his first pro season, which spanned 27 AHL games and 45 NHL games last season. Mateychuk posted four goals and 13 points in a Blue Jackets jersey, along with 25 points in the minor-leagues. It was an incredibly productive year for the 2022 12th-overall selection, and one that sets him up well to break into the NHL full-time this season. Mateychuk will boast clear top-four upside when he lands with the Blue Jackets, after averaging 18 minutes of ice time last season. He should be a strong option to play behind top defender Zach Werenski, and next to shutdown defender Ivan Provorov.
Columbus’ remaining injuries will help shape the minor-league roster to start the year. Sillinger held a prominent role in the AHL and seems near the top of Columbus’ call-up sheet entering the new year, though he’ll need to fully recover from a late-season injury before he can prove his NHL worthiness. Marrelli and Dumais have each signed their entry-level contracts, though only Marrelli will be eligible to return to the CHL. That will be his likeliest outcome, while Dumais will look to fully stride into the pro ranks after netting 11 points in 21 AHL games last season. Dumais should sit atop the AHL lineup next season, while McCue – another first-year pro who recorded eight points and 122 penalty minutes in 46 AHL games last season – will sit near the bottom of the lineup.
Blue Jackets Activate, Reassign Max McCue
The Blue Jackets announced they’ve activated forward prospect Max McCue from season-opening injured reserve and sent him down to AHL Cleveland. He barely participated in training camp due to an undisclosed injury, which has evidently now been resolved.
McCue, 21, was a fifth-round pick by the Sharks in the 2021 draft but became a free agent last summer after San Jose’s exclusive signing period lapsed. He played out his overage OHL season with the London Knights last year, recording 61 points in 62 games, before inking an entry-level deal with Columbus.
The physical 6’1″, 183-lb center may have some upside as a fourth-line piece down the line. But the lack of game-breaking offensive production as an overage player in juniors on a championship-caliber team is a red flag for his breakout potential as an impact player in the NHL. He’ll look to prove those premonitions wrong this year in Cleveland, where he’ll get his first taste of professional hockey.
If McCue reaches the NHL over the life of his ELC, he’ll carry an $858K cap hit. His deal runs through the 2026-27 season, and he’ll be an RFA upon expiry.
NHL-Affiliated Prospects Playing In 2024 Memorial Cup
The field for the 2024 Memorial Cup, the top club tournament in junior hockey, is set. The QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltigeurs, the OHL’s London Knights and the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors all swept their respective league championship series within the last two days to advance to the CHL championship tournament, joining the host Saginaw Spirit of the OHL.
This year marks the first Memorial Cup held in the United States since 1998, which was hosted by the WHL’s Spokane Chiefs. The Spirit will attempt to become the first U.S.-based team to win since the Chiefs in 2008, and they have a strong chance. They’re stronger than a typical host team, finishing second in the league in the regular season with a 50-16-2 record and trailing London by just two points. They were eliminated by London in six games in the Western Conference Final.
The Knights lead the way with 10 NHL-affiliated prospects on their roster, including two first-round picks in Flyers defenseman Oliver Bonk and Maple Leafs forward Easton Cowan. The latter was named the OHL playoffs MVP after leading the Knights in scoring with 10 goals, 24 assists and 34 points in just 18 games. He had 15 points in four games in their championship sweep over the Oshawa Generals.
If you’re looking for some non-Stanley Cup Playoff hockey to watch, check to see if your favorite NHL team has prospects suiting up in the tournament, which begins May 24:
Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL champion)
D Mikaël Diotte (Devils, free agent signing)
RW Ethan Gauthier (Lightning, 2023, 37th overall)
RW Alexis Gendron (Flyers, 2022, 220th overall)
D Vsevolod Komarov (Sabres, 2022, 134th overall)
NHL Utah 2022 first-round pick D Maveric Lamoureux is out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery in March.
London Knights (OHL champion)
C Denver Barkey (Flyers, 2023, 95th overall)
D Oliver Bonk (Flyers, 2023, 22nd overall)
C Easton Cowan (Maple Leafs, 2023, 28th overall)
D Jackson Edward (Bruins, 2022, 200th overall)
D Isaiah George (Islanders, 2022, 98th overall)
RW Kasper Halttunen (Sharks, 2023, 36th overall)
C Jacob Julien (Jets, 2023, 146th overall)
C Kaleb Lawrence (Kings, 2022, 215th overall)
C Max McCue (Blue Jackets, free agent signing)
C Landon Sim (Blues, 2022, 184th overall)
Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL champion)
RW Jagger Firkus (Kraken, 2022, 35th overall)
D Denton Mateychuk (Blue Jackets, 2022, 12th overall)
D Kalem Parker (Wild, 2023, 181st overall)
D Vojtech Port (Ducks, 2023, 161st overall)
LW Martin Rysavy (Blue Jackets, 2021, 197th overall)
C Matthew Savoie (Sabres, 2022, 9th overall)
C Brayden Yager (Penguins, 2023, 14th overall)
Saginaw Spirit (host)
C Owen Beck (Canadiens, 2022, 33rd overall)
LW Josh Bloom (Canucks, acquired from Sabres in 2023 trade for Riley Stillman)
D Rodwin Dionicio (Ducks, 2023, 129th overall)
D Jorian Donovan (Senators, 2022, 136th overall)
C Hunter Haight (Wild, 2022, 47th overall)
C Ethan Hay (Lightning, 2023, 211th overall)
G Nolan Lalonde (Blue Jackets, free agent signing)
C Matyas Sapovaliv (Golden Knights, 2022, 48th overall)
C Joseph Willis (Predators, 2023, 111th overall)
Blue Jackets Sign Max McCue To Entry-Level Deal
2:01 p.m.: The contract carries a cap hit of $858K, per PuckPedia. The deal pays him $775K salary in all three years, a $82.5K signing bonus in 2024-25 and 2025-26 that jumps to $85K in 2026-27, and a minors salary of $82.5K in all three years.
10:37 a.m.: Today marks the first day teams can sign unaffiliated prospects in free agency, and the Blue Jackets are the first team to make a splash. They’ve inked 21-year-old center Max McCue to a three-year entry-level contract that begins in 2024-25, per a team release. Terms were not disclosed.
McCue was a fifth-round pick of the Sharks in 2021, but San Jose lost his exclusive rights after opting not to sign him to an entry-level contract by June 1, 2023. He’s suited up for the OHL’s London Knights since 2019 but lost out on the 2020-21 campaign entirely due to COVID-19, putting a pause on his development.
Still with London as an alternate captain, McCue has set or tied career highs with 24 goals, 26 assists, 50 points, and a +20 rating in 52 games. The 6-foot-1, 174-lb native of Sudbury, Ontario, relies on his speed to generate offense and projects as more of a playmaker than a goal-scorer at the professional level.
McCue has ideal size for the NHL level if he can add more muscle. However, his delayed offensive production in juniors doesn’t bode well for his chances of being a full-time major leaguer.
He’ll likely begin his pro career next season with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, although an assignment to the lower-level ECHL isn’t out of the question. Columbus is one of the handful of NHL teams without a dedicated ECHL affiliate.
Columbus now has 32 out of a maximum of 50 standard player contracts signed for next season, so they still have plenty of room to re-sign their pending RFAs and add a few more bodies to the organization in free agency.