Maybe the only reason Don Waddell is happy that his team isn't playing in the playoffs right now: it gives him plenty of time to get to work on his offseason tasks. The general manager of the Blue Jackets has a lot on his plate, with a glut of unrestricted free agents that need sorting out.
If you count both the Blue Jackets and the Cleveland Monsters, the organization has 13 players that need new contracts before July 1st. These guys range from key contributors at the NHL level, all the way down to depth players in the AHL.
Today, we'll take a look at all 13 of them, talk about their roles, and try to figure out what the team might do in each situation. Just for fun, we'll speculate on the next contracts for some of the guys at the top. Lets start there.
There are 6 Blue Jackets set to become free agents on July 1st.
Charlie Coyle
Heading into this past season, we hoped that Charlie Coyle would bring depth and experience to this team's bottom-six. He did that, and then quite a bit more. He wound up finishing fourth on the team in scoring with 20 goals and 58 points, playing in all 82 games.
He was productive while centering this team's identity line, that was often matched up against the top line of the opponent on a shift-by-shift basis. He played on both the top power-play and penalty kill units, and won more than 50% of his faceoffs.
Charlie was so good this year, that I would put him firmly into the "must re-sign" group. Obviously, the dollars and term have to make sense for a guy who is now 34 years old. And, it may take some convincing, since he just missed the playoffs for the first time in his career. He may also be the most sought-after player, should he hit the open market. That could push him to test the waters of the open market.
If Waddell can't get him back next season, that's going to leave a massive hole to fill down the middle-one that is not easy to fill. The Jackets might have to overpay him, but I think he's worth it on a shorter term deal. Contract prediction: 3 years, $7m AAV.
Mason Marchment
The same things could be said for Mason Marchment and what he brought. After being acquired from the Seattle Kraken in December, "Mush" wasted no time getting accustomed to his new digs. He stepped onto the top line and scored 3 goals in his first 2 games, eventually accruing 15 goals and 32 points in 39 games with the Jackets-along with a +21 rating.
That's a 31 goal, 67 point pace over a full 82 games, with a lot of intangibles. Impressive for a guy who was picked up for a couple of middle round draft picks. Still, with Dmitri Voronkov and Kent Johnson both trying to find their games, I don't think Mush is as much of a must-keep as Coyle is. This one feels like it could go either way, so the Jackets might have some leverage. Contract estimate: 4 years, $5.25m AAV.
Boone Jenner
One of the most decorated players in franchise history is due a new contract. Boone has been with the organization longer than any other player in its history, owning the franchise record for games played (808); having been a loyal Blue Jacket ever since he was taken 37th overall back in 2011. But, at this point, we wonder if it's time for both sides to move on.
The last few years have been really hard on #38. He's played just 151 out of 246 games, dealing with multiple injuries and some very difficult circumstances off the ice. This year, he fared a little bit better; getting into 67 games-but that was due at least in part to him being used more sparingly in the lineup.
Just as we would expect, Boone was bounced up and down the line chart as needed. He scored 13 goals and 38 points (nice!), while averaging around 16 minutes per game-his lowest ATOI in 8 years. But, the elephant in the room here: would both he and the team have been better off with him playing even fewer minutes?
That's not meant to be a knock on him, by any means. It's just a fact: he's a bottom-six player at this point in his career. If Rick Bowness really wants to change this team's culture (get them playing faster), one way to do that would be moving on from their captain and most tenured player.
Whatever happens with Boone, it's going to be emotional. There are fans who love him and want to see him finish his entire career as a Blue Jacket (I'm in this group). And, there are fans who think the team should move on. We'll see. Contract estimate: 2 years, $4m AAV.
On the next slide, we continue the UFA discussion with a few more NHL veterans...
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