In case you somehow missed it, the NHL made it official this morning. Zach Werenski has won the Norris Trophy as the best defenseman in the league. Now, it's time for the Blue Jackets to repay him for his loyalty to the organization.
He has waited long enough. Zach was selected by the Blue Jackets with the 8th overall pick back in 2015. He joined the organization the following spring, helping the AHL's Cleveland Monsters win the Calder Cup in his first few weeks as a pro.
Then, he immediately made the jump into the NHL and played on the top defense pairing as a 19-year-old. His pairing with Seth Jones helped propel this franchise into its best run of success over four years, from the moment he entered the league; right up until all of the star talent left town.
All of the star talent, except for one.
After one playoff series win in 2019, the organization saw almost every meaningful player leave Columbus. It started with Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky hitting the free agent market. It continued with the trading of Seth Jones, who told management he would not sign another contract in Columbus.
Gone next were core leadership players like Nick Foligno, David Savard, and Cam Atkinson. Also out the door was the team's only lottery prize (Pierre-Luc Dubois), along with head coach John Tortorella.
But, just as it seemed like the team was going to completely fall apart, Zach Werenski doubled down. Instead of seeking a trade to a contender, he chose to stick around through a prolonged rebuild and play in Columbus.
On July 29, 2001; he signed a 6-year, $57.5 million dollar contract to remain a Blue Jacket. This was a full year before he could hit the open market, which gave the franchise some stability on the back-end.
At that time, we did not know what we were in for. We had no clue that Zach would become the best defenseman in the league just 5 years later. But, that's exactly what happened. This year, he won just the 9th major award in franchise history. And, he did it for a team that didn't even make the playoffs.
It's time for the Blue Jackets to help cement his legacy.
This is where we need management and ownership to step up and say that enough is enough. The fanbase is tired of seeing this team constantly fall short. We have said our piece. But I can also attest that more than a few fans will be disappointed if history repeats itself in Columbus.
The only other time this organization had a talent of this caliber, his loyalty was never repaid. The Blue Jackets allowed Rick Nash to consistently play on a terrible team, until he decided that the best course of action was to put in a trade request so the team could recoup some assets while he still had value.
To be clear: Rick Nash did not ask to leave Columbus for selfish reasons. Rick left Columbus because he knew that it would be better for this team to turn the page and move on from him.
Do we want to see that happen with Zach Werenski? No, we do not.
Whatever this team needs to take a large step forward this year, needs to happen. Zach is going to be 29 years old when the puck drops on the next season. The time for building brick by brick has passed.
Don Waddell needs to do something to get the right pieces in place, right now. This team needs to start climbing the mountain, before another elite player decides that it's time to move along to greener pastures. It's time for the Blue Jackets to repay Zach Werenski's loyalty to Columbus by assembling a Stanley Cup worthy team around him.
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