At first glance, the Patrik Laine trade looked like a clear loss for the Blue Jackets. They unloaded the disgruntled winger for pennies on the dollar - even throwing in a second round pick to offload him. In return, they got only Montreal defenseman Jordan Harris; a player who played depth minutes for the Canadiens last season.
But in hindsight, I don't think this is as bad as we thought. In fact, Harris could be a nice pickup for the Blue Jackets. While he'll never likely exceed the value of a guy with 40-goal potential, this is exactly the kind of player the Blue Jackets needed to add to a back-end that surrendered so many goals over the last few seasons.
Harris posted modest offensive numbers with Montreal last season, scoring 3 goals and 14 points in 56 games played. He posted a -5 rating, which isn't bad for a team that had a goal differential of -53; and added 22 penalty minutes. All of this while playing bottom-three minutes (he averaged 17:28 per game).
More importantly, Harris has quickly earned a name for himself as a good locker room guy and a future leader in the NHL. I have to think this appealed to the Blue Jackets in a big way. And, his advanced metrics have been very solid:
I really like this trade for Columbus; Jordan Harris looks really strong defensively. pic.twitter.com/bohmAPiNZL
— Micah Blake McCurdy (@IneffectiveMath) August 19, 2024
The Blue Jackets needed to add players that would help them bring down their team goals against average. Harris looks very capable of doing just that, even if it's in a secondary role.
But, with that said, I think there's some untapped potential here. He's only 24 years old, and with two full professional seasons under his belt, should be stepping into his own. Perhaps a change of scenery will help him make a bigger leap?
I don't see him ever becoming a big-time point producer in the NHL. He's never been that kind of player. In four years at the NCAA level (Northeastern University), his point totals were: 13, 21, 19, and 20. Obviously, he has some skill, but I think his ideal usage would be on the second or third pairing; as a complimentary piece for someone like Damon Severson or David Jiricek. Or, maybe in a pure shutdown pairing with Erik Gudbranson.
One bold prediction: Jordan Harris leads all Blue Jacket defensemen in plus/minus this season.
I think Harris will step in and be a difference maker, transitionally and in the defensive zone, right away. He's a strong defender in the modern age of hockey because he uses his skating and gap control to prevent time and space for the opponents.
Plus/minus is far from the "be-all" stat category for defensemen, but it's an easy one to track and compare. If he can emerge as a strong defender and leader on the blue line and work into replacing Ivan Provorov on the second pairing by season's end; this trade will be fine from a Blue Jackets perspective.