The Columbus Blue Jackets were much improved this season, in large part due to the improvement of some of their key young players. At the top of that list is Kirill Marchenko, who exploded onto the scene this season and established himself as a legitimate top line two-way winger.
Perhaps this season from Marchy shouldn't be as surprising as it was. After all, in two prior seasons in North America, he'd exceeded the 20 goal mark both times. The talented Russian came overseas in the summer of 2022; and even though he looked really good in the preseason, he started his NA career with the Cleveland Monsters.
He quickly proved to be too good for that league, and was called up by the Blue Jackets in early December. He never looked back. That year, he scored a franchise rookie record 21 goals, while playing in just 59 games. But, in spite of his goal scoring prowess, there were some concerns. He added just 4 assists and carried a -23 rating, which maybe shouldn't be so surprising on a team that was mostly devoid of talent around him.
As a sophomore, we saw Kirill's all-around game take major strides. His plus/minus improved to -5. And, playing in 78 games, he scored 23 goals and improved to 19 assists; his 42 points finishing third on the team in scoring. All of this for a franchise in turmoil; whose direction seemed to be unclear. Everything changed over the summer.
I'm not sure if any player in the organization benefitted more from the philisophical change in this team's front office than Kirill Marchenko. New GM Don Waddell quickly solidified his lineup with some quality veterans, including center Sean Monahan. He also dismissed the team's head coach in favor of Dean Evason.
Early returns were remarkable. Marchenko helped form one of the league's best first lines, with Monahan at center and fellow Russian Dmitri Voronkov on the other side. Evason did something the other two previous head coaches just could not figure out: he trusted this team's talented young players. And, he was rewarded for it.
Marchenko led the way, finishing second on the team in scoring with 31 goals and 74 points in 79 games, along with a team leading +29 rating. This was in spite of a broken jaw suffered at the beginning of February - one that only kept him out of the lineup for three games. That he even played with the broken jaw is notable; but he continued to play at a very high level and produce for this team while wearing a full shield. It showed his passion for the game, and his desire to win.
Everything came together this year.
In Kirill's first two seasons in Columbus, we saw flashes of his skill. We saw flashes of his physicality, and his two-way game as well. But, this year, he put it all together and found ways to impact the game consistently. As a result, Marchenko has quietly emerged as one of the best young two-way wingers in the NHL.
His skill, work ethic, toughness, and fun loving personality were much needed traits on this team this year. In fact, he was so good for this team, that I think the only thing Don Waddell may have regrets on is his contract.
Marchenko signed a three year bridge contract last summer, that pays him $3.85m against the cap through 2026-27. This is great for the Jackets for the next couple of seasons - but his price is going to go way, way up if his play continues to be at such a high level. And, from the outside looking in, I see no reason why it could not.
Marchenko gets a high A+ grade from me this season. He should be a big part of this team's competitive core when they're finally ready to become Stanley Cup contenders.