This week, we're talking about some of the best and worst in Blue Jackets franchise history. Earlier in the week, that included a look at the worst draft pick the team ever made. Today, we'll talk about the best one, which I believe to be Zach Werenski.
Of course, this can be up for debate. You might say it's Rick Nash, and I would hear your argument. The great #61 wrote most of the franchise record book, with many of those records still standing tall today.
However, I wouldn't rank him ahead of Werenski at this point in time, in part because of where they were selected. Nash was taken with the first overall pick, in a rare bit of shrewd business by then-GM Doug MacLean. He traded up two spots in the order, to secure the best player on the board.
Rick immediately became the face of the Blue Jackets, and remained that face for the next decade. He still holds franchise records in most meaningful categories, including goals (289) and points (547)-though, the latter is in danger of being passed over this year. By none other than Werenski.
When it's all over, Zach Werenski will go down as the best player to ever wear Union Blue.
Circling back to my first point: Werenski was not a first overall pick. The Blue Jackets picked him 8th overall at the 2015 Draft, behind two other defensemen (Noah Hanifin 5th to Carolina, Ivan Provorov 7th to Philadelphia).
He spent one more year at the University of Michigan, before turning pro at the start of the 2016-17 season. Much to our surprise, he stepped right into the NHL and played on the top defense pairing alongside Seth Jones.
Not only did Zach play there, he thrived. He set the franchise record for points by a rookie (47, since eclipsed by Pierre-Luc Dubois); scoring 11 goals and averaging nearly 21 minutes per game. He would continue to score at roughly that same pace for the next several seasons.
In that time, when everyone else was choosing to depart Columbus for other locales; Zach chose to re-up with the Blue Jackets; signing a 6-year, $57.5 million dollar contract in July of 2021. It is under this contract that he has really become one of the best players in the world.
After struggling through a few injury-riddled seasons, he changed the way he eats and works out. The results have spoken for themselves. In 2023-24, he set a new career-high with 57 points (11 goals), which tied a franchise record for scoring by defensemen.
All he did the next season is shatter those marks to pieces. In 2024-25, Zach scored 23 goals and 82 points, tying him for the second highest scoring campaign by any player in franchise history. He followed that up in the most recent year with a 22-59-81 stat line, walking away with the Norris Trophy as the best defenseman in hockey.
These past three seasons have him right on track to catch Nash for the franchise scoring record-maybe as soon as this season. Werenski sits just 82 points behind him. Basically, he just needs to score right on pace with his production over the last two years.
When you consider the fact that he's a defenseman, it's pretty hard to look at Zach Werenski and say that he's not the greatest player in the history of this franchise. In my opinion, he's easily the most successful draft pick this team has ever had. Defensemen like this only come along every so often, and we are incredibly lucky he's on our side.
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