The Blue Jackets made a waiver claim on Thursday, plucking forward Christian Fischer off of the wire from the Detroit Red Wings. A veteran of 522 career NHL games, Fischer will bring plenty of experience to the young Blue Jackets roster.
This may not be the deadline splash a lot of people were hoping for, but I think it's an interesting one. The Jackets are still without centers Sean Monahan and Cole Sillinger; and with veteran winger Kevin Labanc lost for the season, the need has arisen for more bodies in Columbus.
The Jackets had recalled Joe LaBate and Mikael Pyyhtia to the roster in the last week, but the return of Yegor Chinakhov from injured reserve meant that Pyyhtia had lost his spot in the lineup. Adding Fischer to the group allows the team to send Pyyhtia back to the American Hockey League's Cleveland Monsters, where he can get into more games and continue his development.
I wouldn't expect anything to change with the 31 year old LaBate as a result of this waiver claim. He's not in need of more development, and should be taken as he is: a physical depth forward. They just added another one with Fischer. After 3:00 tomorrow, teams can carry more than 23 players on their active roster. So, I think the Jackets will keep Fischer and LaBate around as extra forwards for the duration of this season, giving them flexibility since they can carry more bodies.
What does Christian Fischer bring to the lineup?
Fischer is a 6'2", 212 pound forward who was originally a second round pick (#32 overall) of the Arizona Coyotes, back in 2015. While his offense didn't fully translate relative to his draft position, he's had some good seasons in the NHL. Most notably, his first full season (2017-18), when he scored 15 goals and 33 points in 79 games. Unfortunately, that was the peak of his offensive output in the NHL. Since then, his best season was a 13 goal, 27 point (80 games) campaign in 2022-23, his last with the Yotes.
With that said, I do think he can bring some value to the Blue Jackets roster, in a bottom-six role. He's a physical player who can kill penalties and give them reliable minutes in depth situations. At the very least, I think he'll be an upgrade over LaBate because of his experience in the NHL.
This isn't an earth shattering move that is going to change the trajectory of this organization in any major way. More likely, I think the Blue Jackets saw an opportunity to replace Kevin Labanc with a guy who would fit into the culture here. He won't be an every day player when this team is healthy, but by all accounts he'll be well-liked and reliable. A good guy to have around in case you need him.
Not all waiver acquisitions turn into top line players ala Dante Fabbro. So, we shouldn't expect that from Christian Fischer at all. But that doesn't mean this is a failed experiment. You can never have too many good pros, especially down the stretch and towards the playoffs.