Union and Blue
Fansided

Columbus Blue Jackets land a franchise-changing prospect in NHL Mock Draft 1.0

The Columbus Blue Jackets may still be struggling, but this NHL Mock Draft has them landing yet another potential franchise-changing player.

By Todd Matthews

Jan 25, 2024; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli (11) celebrates his goal with teammates against the Calgary Flames during the third period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 25, 2024; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Columbus Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli (11) celebrates his goal with teammates against the Calgary Flames during the third period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports / Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 4
Next

The Columbus Blue Jackets have the fourth pick in the NHL Draft, and it gives them a prime opportunity to add a talent that can form a legitimate one-two combo with future star Adam Fantilli within the next few seasons. Before an injury sidelined Fantilli for the year, he was enjoying an outstanding rookie season with 27 points and 12 goals in 49 games, and who knows what his final numbers would have looked like.

Look for him to come back strong and definitely motivated if this particular NHL Mock Draft simulator proves to be a reality by the end of June. Using the simulator via NHLEntryDraft.com, I managed to land a steal at fourth overall, and it could lead to the Blue Jackets building quite the core group of young players around Fantilli and this mystery player. 

No guarantees, unfortunately, but at least Columbus can use this draft to put themselves in the best position possible to succeed in the near future. So, anyway, enough talking: Who did I land after simulating all seven rounds and only drafting for the Blue Jackets? 

4th overall: Ivan Demidov, RW/Ska St. Petersburg 

Oh yes, Ivan Demidov fell to the Blue Jackets in this exercise, and could you imagine just how sensational of a tandem he would one day make with Adam Fantilli? While there are many unknowns surrounding Demidov, what we do know is that the 18-year-old, though slightly undersized, is one of the best, if not the best points-producer in this draft class. And yes, I’m including Macklin Celebrini as opposed to saying something like, “The draft class minus Celebrini.”

In 47 combined regular season and playoff games this past season in the MHL, Demidov had 88 points, giving him a ridiculous 1.87 points per game. Of those 88 points, 34 found the back of the net, so the only question is what the encore performance in 2024-25 will entail? 

Demidov’s size may cause an issue for some teams, but in this simulation, I wasn’t taking anyone else when I saw him fall to the No. 4 spot. In real life, it may be tough to see him slip past the Chicago Blackhawks, but there is a good chance they roll with Artyom Levshunov, arguably the top defenseman in this draft just one season after taking forward Connor Bedard. 

Home/Draft