Proposal: First 3 moves you would do as the new CBJ GM ?

[Xoggz22]

Well, at least I know where to go to find people that don't know much about the CBJ. @majormajor summed it up pretty well above. This team was actually very competitive until the last 1/3 of the season when back to playing with an AHL roster. Their issue is veterans that can not only lead but also be contributors. This is one of the youngest teams in the NHL with a lot of pieces to sift through. They lost the most amount of 3rd period leads in the NHL and were not getting their doors blown off on a nightly basis. No, they aren't a fledgling juggernaut, but they aren't in need of a complete tear down. They need players (like Voracek was) to lead by example and hold the young players accountable.

A better defined system for their young roster would be nice too.

what would columbus have to add to move him?

probably 50% retention with little return. Less retention and they'll need to add a pick. No clue what that would actually look like....

 

[NoelVilla]

Hire a good coach
Bite the bullet and overpay to get rid of Laine
Sign some UFA veterans with good character

 

[Mrfenn92]

Get a second line center. Hire a new coach with a system in place. Continue to grow the team. Cut around the margins as needed.

 

[Gaylord Q Tinkledink]

1) Trade Fantili and 5 first, 5 second rounders, for Anderson, Price and Gallagher.
2) resign.

Yeah, I'm a Habs fan.

Number 2 before you resign ban the cannon

 

[Nikolajs Sillers]

what would columbus have to add to move him?

Have no clue TBH.

 

[blackjackmulligan]

Have no clue TBH.

just spit balling and wonder if the price was right if the flyers would be interested. would send cal peterson the other way as 1 year left and columbus can buy him out as it is an easy buyout.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

As new CBJ GM I would trade a 1st for Gallagher. Another 1st for Josh Anderson. And one more for Armia.

 

[CBJx614]

First thing I do is go to bettman and tell him it's time the Jackets "win" a lottery. The team was selling out while being in competition for the best lottery odds. Reward the fans with someone to get exited about to pair with Fantilli and reap the benefits in a few years as they become a perennial playoff team.

But seriously, first and foremost the new GM needs to ID what kind of hockey they want to play and what's best given the current roster. That means either working with Vincent to figure that out or getting his guy in place to get that done.
Then getting some proper veteran leadership and depth is a must. Make the kids earn their way on the roster, not just hoping they steal a spot on a injury callup because the lineup is so thin. The only player that worked for this season was Nylander, everyone else would've been better off simmering in Cleveland.

I also wouldn't be surprised to see a new GM package some pieces they don't think fit for a big trade this off-season.

 

[Mackiaveli]

How do you see getting Columbus out of the hole it’s been in for the last few years ?

Step 1) Trade Elvis, Provorov, Sillinger and Johnson

Johnson for 10-15 pick
Sillinger for a late 1st + something small
Provorov for a 2nd
Elvis + 2nd for anything with a pulse.

Step 2) Draft Demidov @ 4, draft Jiricek with KJ trade pick, draft Basha with late 1st from Sillinger

(sub note - I think Lindstrom and Dickinson are also great selections here - CBJ can't go wrong)

Step 3) Sign Lindholm and a goalie in UFA.

2025/2026:

Gaudreau/Lindholm/Laine
Demidov/Fantilli/Marchenko
Nylander/Jenner/Brindley
Voronkov/X/Chinakhov

Werenski/D.Jiricek
Mateychuk/Severson
A. Jiricek/Boqvist

????

----

To me, the CBJ have a wealth of assets and a great foundation with Fants/Marchenko/Mateychuk/Jiricek - they have too many 'good players' like Gaudreau/Laine/Werenski to keep committing to being a rebuilding team, and they are not close enough to sell prospects to all-in.

I think they would benefit from a soft reset - another great target would be like a Marco Rossi. I think a team like Montreal or Calgary with multiple young goaltenders could also make for a good trading partner, as CBJ really needs that goalie of the future.

 

[belair]

1. Start a bidding war for Boone Jenner where the return exceeds multiple 1st rounders in terms of perceived value. Picks, prospects and younger players are all acceptable pieces. He's not going to be in his prime once the team starts turning the corner and his value may never be at a higher point. Replace him with Elias Lindholm in UFA.

2. Approach the offseason in a similar manner as Chicago last summer. Target older veteran forwards on short-term deals with a higher cap hit to persuade them to sign. Provide them with roles to support the younger forwards.

3. Hold all 'negative value' assets and let them play. Only move them when there's a team willing to give you value. That means keeping Merzlikins, Laine and Gudbranson.

Capitalize on your deadline assets to accrue draft capital. Also play broker and use free space to acquire additional futures. This may even result in getting a quality roster player.

Follow that blueprint for two seasons while scouring the markets for players who fit the team's positional needs and projected window. Draft BPA and develop properly. Don't rush prospects.

 

[Cowumbus]

Man, people did not listen when they were told that trading Bjorkstrand to keep Laine was a colossal mistake. If they have to add something to the team, a Bjorkstrand -type of a guy would come a long way in adding structure and leadership.

Many on HF CBJ saw this as the tipping point for Jarmo needing to go.

 

[Cowumbus]

Step 1) Trade Elvis, Provorov, Sillinger and Johnson

Johnson for 10-15 pick
Sillinger for a late 1st + something small
Provorov for a 2nd
Elvis + 2nd for anything with a pulse.

Why? Sillinger is fine 3C long term, 6th in scoring for us this year at age 20. Johnson is only the 3rd player in CBJ history to eclipse 40 points before age 20…

You want us to trade KJ for a player/pick even further away from making an impact, coming off an injury? Then also trade Sillinger for a late 1st? I don’t get it

 

[majormajor]

Hire a good coach, you cant go into the offseason without that in place. You need a coaching staff aligned with your offseason moves.

Imo - Carle from denver pioneers. Good with dmen, good with young talent.

Get rid of any dead weight identified by new coaching staff asap. Especially ones from a lockerroom perspective. See nashville. Buy out, retention, doesnt matter.

- get rid of gudbranson. Hes only taking spot of jirechek, who can play in the bottom pairing to start.

Dont spend big in UFA, go for undervalued vets who can fit your playstylen and not bad in the locker room.

- barabanov?

Carle would be interesting.

Gudbranson actually just had a career season, I'd say he was #4/#5 caliber even. Jiricek is not nearly ready to surpass that.

The biggest development problem in Columbus, in my opinion, is elevating players before they're ready. We keep putting these players in the lineup way too early. Jiricek shouldn't sniff the NHL for another year.

Hire a good coach
Bite the bullet and overpay to get rid of Laine
Sign some UFA veterans with good character

I think Laine's issues are a distraction and he needs to go - we often hear that the club needs to put him in a position to succeed, but the club actually needs to put its younger players in that position, it's not a good fit.

But there shouldn't be much need to overpay to move Laine. He scored 108 pts in 111 games before this year and has become a terrific backchecking presence. If he's excited to come back then a club would make a better bet with him rather than paying long term to someone in UFA. That sounds like a savvy Carolina type of move.

Step 1) Trade Elvis, Provorov, Sillinger and Johnson

Johnson for 10-15 pick
Sillinger for a late 1st + something small
Provorov for a 2nd
Elvis + 2nd for anything with a pulse.

Elvis aside, all of those are terrible value. They can get more for all of them.

1. Start a bidding war for Boone Jenner where the return exceeds multiple 1st rounders in terms of perceived value. Picks, prospects and younger players are all acceptable pieces. He's not going to be in his prime once the team starts turning the corner and his value may never be at a higher point. Replace him with Elias Lindholm in UFA.

I'm hearing on HF occasionally that Lindholm isn't the most dedicated athlete. If that's the case I'd actually sooner bet on Jenner aging well given how he trains, how much he's actually improved in recent years. I don't know if that's true about Lindholm though.

3. Hold all 'negative value' assets and let them play. Only move them when there's a team willing to give you value. That means keeping Merzlikins, Laine and Gudbranson.

There is a big difference for Columbus between guys who are overpaid but good fits (Gudbranson) and guys who are bad in the room (Elvis) or are big distractions (Laine). There is gobs of cap space to retain and move the latter two if necessary (I don't think it will be even needed to move Laine), while the Gudbranson type should be kept regardless. The team isn't short on cap to keep players that are good fits, but they do need to fix up the room and the veteran leadership.

 

[belair]

I'm hearing on HF occasionally that Lindholm isn't the most dedicated athlete. If that's the case I'd actually sooner bet on Jenner aging well given how he trains, how much he's actually improved in recent years. I don't know if that's true about Lindholm though.

The only thing that should matter to Columbus is what the player can do to produce. The last time he played with the offensive catalyst in Columbus, Lindholm was a point per game player having a career season.

Jenner may age well. But the reason you trade him is the value you're going to get for him on a sub-$4m contract with some term left. He's a guy who has yet to eclipse 50 points in a single season. He's not your go-to center. Swiss army knife guy who's essentially rotting on a non-competitive roster.

There is a big difference for Columbus between guys who are overpaid but good fits (Gudbranson) and guys who are bad in the room (Elvis) or are big distractions (Laine). There is gobs of cap space to retain and move the latter two if necessary (I don't think it will be even needed to move Laine), while the Gudbranson type should be kept regardless. The team isn't short on cap to keep players that are good fits, but they do need to fix up the room and the veteran leadership.

It doesn't really make a difference though in the grand scheme. They're all guys who will be tough to move.

Laine is a 26 year old forward with tremendous scoring potential. For a team that finished in the bottom 1/3 in terms of goal production, he has value you if you can rehabilitate him. Maybe don't expect him to play centre.

When it comes to Elvis, I think most CBJ fans see a good goalie. He's never really been the problem.

The big problem with the room in Columbus is that there's no real elite guy leading the charge there. Fantilli may get there in time. Jenner is probably a great captain, but that roster isn't built to play his game.

Top line of Gaudreau - Lindholm and any forward with a hot hand. The next couple years they may give up a lot of goals, but they'll be scoring a lot more of them.

 

[majormajor]

The only thing that should matter to Columbus is what the player can do to produce. The last time he played with the offensive catalyst in Columbus, Lindholm was a point per game player having a career season.

The Jackets were one of the top 5 teams in 5v5 offense until the last quarter of the season when half the team went on the shelf. Shutdown ability and PP are the bigger problems.

And I am not sure Lindholm is going to get back to that level or close to it, I'd want assurances on how dedicated he is to improving.

Jenner may age well. But the reason you trade him is the value you're going to get for him on a sub-$4m contract with some term left. He's a guy who has yet to eclipse 50 points in a single season. He's not your go-to center. Swiss army knife guy who's essentially rotting on a non-competitive roster.

Rotting?

We have half our roster under the age of 24 and they need to learn how to do everything properly. We need more players like Jenner not less, we have a catastrophic dearth of leadership.

Six 1st round picks in the last three drafts. Look at this pool of young talent, adding a late 1st from a Jenner trade is unlikely to change anything one way or the other. While on the other hand, missing Jenner and having even fewer leaders is likely to seriously hurt the development of the young talent they've already drafted.

 

[belair]

The Jackets were one of the top 5 teams in 5v5 offense until the last quarter of the season when half the team went on the shelf. Shutdown ability and PP are the bigger problems.

And I am not sure Lindholm is going to get back to that level or close to it, I'd want assurances on how dedicated he is to improving.

We're talking about a roster that had two 20 goal scorers on it. I'm not as invested to pull out their mid-season tracking of EVG production, but I can tell you that you're probably not going to see a repeat of that kind of spread out goal production year over year.

You look at any remotely competitive team and you'll see the big dogs who get the lion's share of even strength responsibly and the PP that you mention. The Jackets need an infusion of primary scoring talent.

Rotting?

We have half our roster under the age of 24 and they need to learn how to do everything properly. We need more players like Jenner not less, we have a catastrophic dearth of leadership.

Six 1st round picks in the last three drafts. Look at this pool of young talent, adding a late 1st from a Jenner trade is unlikely to change anything one way or the other. While on the other hand, missing Jenner and having even fewer leaders is likely to seriously hurt the development of the young talent they've already drafted.

Poor word. He himself is getting an absolutely overwhelming amount of primary responsibility in Columbus, a team with zero depth at center. He was Johnny Gaudreau's most common pivot. Great for him, not good for the team's primary source of offense. And that's not teaching the kids anything.

Trading for futures isn't about using those picks to try and hit at the draft. It's about amassing trade capital. If there's a Kirby Dach, or a Sam Reinhart or a Bowen Byram that makes it to the trade market, you want to be the team with the picks and prospects that can get those deals done without gutting the resources.

Fact of the matter is that Jenner isn't elevating this team to competitive status probably at any point within the remaining three years of his deal. At that point he's going to be well into his 30s and probably asking for an extension north of $5m. Jenner today is probably one of the most valuable trade chips realistically on the market.

When it comes to veteran leadership, Chicago traded for Hall and Foligno in the summer for literally nothing. Veteran "leaders" are a dime a dozen if you're willing to pony up the dough.

 

[majormajor]

We're talking about a roster that had two 20 goal scorers on it. I'm not as invested to pull out their mid-season tracking of EVG production, but I can tell you that you're probably not going to see a repeat of that kind of spread out goal production year over year.

You look at any remotely competitive team and you'll see the big dogs who get the lion's share of even strength responsibly and the PP that you mention. The Jackets need an infusion of primary scoring talent.

Dysfunctional PP, limited minutes, and injury shortened seasons I think are obscuring the goal scoring talent that they already have. It's a lot.

Consider that twice in his career Elias Lindholm topped .9 G/60. Fantilli, Jenner, and Chinakhov all topped that for Columbus this year.

They really need to fix the PP, if Lindholm was a solution to that then he'd be very valuable, but you'd think they should already have the pieces to have a much better PP. I have made the case elsewhere of how they can fix it.

Poor word. He himself is getting an absolutely overwhelming amount of primary responsibility in Columbus, a team with zero depth at center. He was Johnny Gaudreau's most common pivot. Great for him, not good for the team's primary source of offense. And that's not teaching the kids anything.

Trading for futures isn't about using those picks to try and hit at the draft. It's about amassing trade capital. If there's a Kirby Dach, or a Sam Reinhart or a Bowen Byram that makes it to the trade market, you want to be the team with the picks and prospects that can get those deals done without gutting the resources.

Fact of the matter is that Jenner isn't elevating this team to competitive status probably at any point within the remaining three years of his deal. At that point he's going to be well into his 30s and probably asking for an extension north of $5m. Jenner today is probably one of the most valuable trade chips realistically on the market.

When it comes to veteran leadership, Chicago traded for Hall and Foligno in the summer for literally nothing. Veteran "leaders" are a dime a dozen if you're willing to pony up the dough.

If the Jackets had a spare 1st rounder to spend, the first thing they'd need to do is acquire the best veteran leader they can get.

 

[belair]

Dysfunctional PP, limited minutes, and injury shortened seasons I think are obscuring the goal scoring talent that they already have. It's a lot.

Consider that twice in his career Elias Lindholm topped .9 G/60. Fantilli, Jenner, and Chinakhov all topped that for Columbus this year.

They really need to fix the PP, if Lindholm was a solution to that then he'd be very valuable, but you'd think they should already have the pieces to have a much better PP. I have made the case elsewhere of how they can fix it.

Goals per 60 is a fairly unreliable stat in terms of projecting where those players will continue to produce. If you did some digging on it, I'm sure you'd find a significant amount of variance.

Just take a step back and look at where the goals came from in Columbus this season. I don't think that it's out of the realm of possibility that a lot of that depth scoring isn't there a year from now. Its also not unrealistic to expect a spike of offense from the guys on the top end of your roster. As a first year GM, that would be a priority. Making sure the guys we're paying to produce offense have a good opportunity to do so.

If the Jackets had a spare 1st rounder to spend, the first thing they'd need to do is acquire the best veteran leader they can get.

I don't think the Jackets are at that point in their cycle to be buying veteran help. Especially at that cost. Like I mentioned, the Hawks came out with Taylor Hall and Marcus Foligno in the same trade last summer. It cost them nothing. Veteran leadership for a rebuilding team with endless cap space is incredibly easy to find.

 

[majormajor]

Goals per 60 is a fairly unreliable stat in terms of projecting where those players will continue to produce. If you did some digging on it, I'm sure you'd find a significant amount of variance.

Just take a step back and look at where the goals came from in Columbus this season. I don't think that it's out of the realm of possibility that a lot of that depth scoring isn't there a year from now. Its also not unrealistic to expect a spike of offense from the guys on the top end of your roster. As a first year GM, that would be a priority. Making sure the guys we're paying to produce offense have a good opportunity to do so.

G/60 is certainly going to be volatile but it has one specific use which is applicable here - tracking when top goal scoring talents are ready for bigger roles. Both Fantilli and Chinakhov look like they could be 40 goal guys, maybe more. Marchenko and Laine if he stays could certainly score a lot more as well.

Anyways, back to the point, acquiring goal scoring isn't going to be the focus, shutdown defending and fixing the PP are where they need to focus.

I don't think the Jackets are at that point in their cycle to be buying veteran help.

They're already well past the point in their cycle where they've jettisoned their consistent veteran leaders, to the point that Jenner is really the only one left. They would be fools to let him go. Another late 1st doesn't have alter the outlook of the rebuild, although poor leadership and poor development outcomes might.

 

[Goptor]

They're like 60% through their rebuild. No reason to start over again.

They drafted some really good Defensemen and now they just have to wait for those players to reach their NHL potential.

 

[malcb33]

Step 1) Trade Elvis, Provorov, Sillinger and Johnson

Elvis + 2nd for anything with a pulse.

Not a fan of either team, but I wonder if Ottawa would be open to a hockey trade, Elvis for Korpi?

 

[Miro4Norris]

Tank for a couple of years. Trade everything valuable that is old expect Jenner. Restart by signing a good goalie after you have couple of elite prospects to add to the solid Fantilli/Mateychuk/Jiricek/Johnson core. Be elite for 12years with the improved core instead of going with these players and being mid team once again

 

[614 CBJ]

First 2 tasks will be very difficult, because Elvis and Laine both have to go.

100%

 

[Jormungandr]

The first thing the Blue Jackets need to do is get rid of John Davidson. There is no going forward until that is done.

 

[Youngguns80]

First 5 moves -

1. Fix the room with veteran leadership - sign a veteran "pro" guy or guys and jettison a couple of roster guys. Who are those guys as of right now no clue but would look for someone like a Nick Foligno type. True professional
2. Buyout/trade Elvis and get a veteran goalie that isn't a 1B - Jacob Markstrom?
3. Solidify your top line/help for Gaudreau. Make the top line consistent and stop the line blender. Keep the Russian line together.
4. Send Jiricek unless he has a great camp back to the AHL. Trade 2 of the 3 - Bean, Boqvist or Provorov. Sort out in the Summer
5. New coaching staff - completely (Craig Berube-HC)