The Blue Jackets have stormed out of the gates this season and impressed us all with their early start. Still, even with their strong play, they sit with a 3-3-0 record that is good enough for 25th overall. This is all a very long winded way of stating the obvious: this team is still deep in its rebuild, with a long way to go.
That doesn't mean things all have to be bad, all the time. The team should definitely start showing improvement sometime in the near future. Maybe this is the year where they actually do take a step forward.
Still, by the time the trade deadline rolls around in March, I expect them to be heavy sellers. Don Waddell will be ready to start making serious marks on this roster by then. Evaluations will be mostly done, and the only way for this team to move forward is by taking out the pieces that don't fit; and replacing them with ones that do fit.
At this moment, the Blue Jackets have 9 pending unrestricted free agents...
Waddell will have his trade chips at the deadline this year. While I do expect the team to retain some of these pending UFA players (Mathieu Olivier is probably my favorite), unless the Jackets somehow scratch and claw their way into playoff contention this year; the majority of them are likely to be sold to the highest bidder.
Easily the most notable player on this list, defenseman Ivan Provorov has seen his name come up in trade rumors over the last few days. This isn't surprising considering the fact that he's a very inexpensive (from a salary cap perspective) veteran defenseman - and that he's been playing really well on the top defense pairing alongside Zach Werenski.
Ivan Provorov has big value...
It's an odd couple situation, to be clear. Both are left-handed shots, who were drafted in the same year - taken one after another. Provorov was selected 7th overall in 2015 by the Philadelphia Flyers, with Werenski taken one spot later by the Jackets.
Both guys are traditionally offense first, but the reason this pair has worked so far has been Provorov's surprisingly reliable, predictable play alongside Werenski. Ivan's calm demeanor has taken the defensive reins off of Zach, allowing him to play in ways that he hasn't been able to play since the team traded Seth Jones away.
So, with the team playing well and the trade deadline still more than four months away, why would the Blue Jackets look to make a deal now? I can think of one reason that should resonate with this team and fanbase right away. Let's take a look.