The 5th Line is feeling rightfully upset about the current path the Blue Jackets are on. With this week's theme being missed opportunities, I thought it might be a good time to take a look at a trade that did not happen, and ponder what might have been if the team had taken Chicago's offer for their fourth overall pick at the 2024 NHL Draft.
The reported offer from the Blackhawks was their own 2025 first round pick-unprotected-along with a second round pick. The rumor came from so many different places, that it's pretty hard to fully refute. Chicago's GM Kyle Davidson did not refute the report in any way, so I believe that to be the package.
Of course, rather than taking that offer, the Blue Jackets stood pat and selected center Cayden Lindstrom, who they hoped would be an Eric Lindros type of player for them. Unfortunately so far, the only aspect of his game that could be compared to the Hall of Famer, is his injury history.
Chicago wanted to land another top-4 pick to select Russian winger Ivan Demidov, who ultimately went to Montreal at pick #5. This is the guy the Blue jackets should have probably taken. He was the best player on the board.
Instead, they stood pat at #4 and did what I almost never advise: they drafted by position. They took the big center. Even at a brief glance, this looks like a horrible decision. The Blue Jackets could have moved up a spot in the draft and landed a better player, had they just punted this pick off for a year-and picked up another asset in the meantime.
Of course, that's all in hindsight. There was no way to know that this would be the outcome of the situation, at the time the trade was proposed. But, it's hard to look back upon this and not be disappointed. They could have landed an amazing talent.
Anton Frondell looks like a star, and he's not the only one from the 2025 Draft who does.
Keeping their first round pick for 2025 turned out fortuitous for the Blackhawks. They wound up picking third overall, selecting Swedish center Anton Frondell. He looks like a safe bet to be a top-two line center in the NHL.
He made his debut in Chicago at the end of this past season, scoring 3 goals and 9 points in 12 games. For a Blue Jackets team that does not appear to have a long-term solution to its #2 center question, he would be a great asset to have right now.
But even if the team had stuck more to Don Waddell's archetype with this hypothetical third overall pick, I like their odds. After all, two of the next three picks were Caleb Desnoyers and Porter Martone. Imagine Martone stepping into the CBJ lineup at the end of last season.
He was a big part of the late season push by the Flyers, which vaulted them over the Jackets and into the playoffs. What a swing that could have been.
The Jackets drafted Jackson Smith and Pyotr Andreyanov later in this same first round. Landing one of Frondell or Martone at #3 overall, would have given this team easily the best first round class in its history. Our outlook on the franchise as a whole, would be a lot different than it is today.
To top it off, Chicago's 2025 second rounder went to-you guessed it-the Montreal Canadiens, who selected Alexander Zharovsky. If that was the pick that was in this deal for the Blue Jackets, boy, that is going to sting for a long time.
Of course, we'll never know what might have been. But at this point, it's hard to look back at this decision and see any positive outcome. That is, unless Cayden Lindstrom magically rejuvenates his career this season, and eventually becomes a top-2 center in this league. I'm not holding my breath.
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