On Monday the Columbus Blue Jackets signed two defencemen, Blake Siebenaler and Dean Kukan, to entry level positions (via the team’s website). Siebenaler was signed to three years while Kukan was signed for two. Both are two way contracts which most likely won’t come into play until at least the 2016-2017 season.
Siebenaler might sound familiar, he was the 77th pick in last year’s draft where he was the Jackets second 3rd Round pick. He played last year for the OHL’s Niagara Ice Dogs notching 6 goals and 24 assists in 68 games while finishing with a -16. Hockey’s Future had this to say about Siebenaler.
"Siebenaler is extremely offensive minded and has the potential to be a force in the offensive zone. He is a good skater that is still learning when to join the rush. His passing is impressive and will only get better from this point. He has not displayed the consistency that an offensive defenseman should have, but that should come with time. Like many offensive-minded defenders, Siebenaler is going to have to fine tune his positioning in his own zone. Siebenaler’s aggressiveness, skill set and creativity suggest he can be a dangerous offensive threat from his blue line position at the NHL level one day. To reach that potential he has to shore up his decision making and become more responsible in his own end."
Many believe he can turn into a 3-5 defenceman for a solid team but being only 19 it’s tough to say. I can’t say I’ve seen enough tape to determine either way but the Jackets obviously feel he has potential otherwise they wouldn’t have taken him with a mid pick and signed him.
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Kukan has had a little different journey to get to Columbus. He wasn’t selected in an NHL draft and most recently has been playing in the SHL with the Lulea HF where he put up 7 goals, 18 assists with a Plus 10 in 106 games over 2 seasons. Kukan who will be 22 is expected to fight for a position this season but most expect him to spend a year in Cleveland for the Lake Erie Monsters before making the transition in the 2016-2017 season, though injuries could force him up this season.
There isn’t much I was able to find on Kukan except the Jackets weren’t the only one going after him. Apparently the Edmonton Oilers were rumored to be going after him earlier in the year and this little, maybe generic, blurb from Elite Hockey Prospects.
"Kukan has good size and is a fairly skilled two-way defenseman. Plays a pretty solid defensive game and has good character and work ethics. Moves the puck well (EP, 2012)"
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I don’t expect these signings to really change how the Jackets might approach free agency, as free agency is usually used to fix issues and roster holes immediately and these signings do more for future seasons than they do this upcoming season. As I’ve said with the Cody Goloubef and Justin Falk signings, the blue-line is going to be a very interesting position to watch all off-season, especially with the free agent market drying up (Potential target Jeff Petry has just resigned with the Montreal Canadiens) forcing the Jackets to the trade market if any new immediate blue-line help is on the way.
Where this may see it’s effect is on the draft. Many mocks believe the Jackets are going to the blue-line, even in our mock where we went in with grabbing best available we walked away with blue-line help. These signings might let the Jackets feel more at ease taking the best player available if they feel these two young signings will bolster depth and progress enough to make a difference in the next few seasons.
We’ll find out soon enough, but until then, keep an eye out for potential blue-line trade targets.