Zach Werenski is playing at an entirely different level for the Columbus Blue Jackets this season. 39 games into his ninth NHL season, he's on pace to smash his career-best marks across the board. More than that, he's on pace to surpass the franchise record in scoring amongst all players.
After another dynamic three point night against the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday, Zach is up to 12 goals (second amongst NHL defensemen) and 31 assists (fourth) for 43 points (second); all while leading the league with an on-ice average of 26:24 per game.
If you do the quick math, that's a 90(!) point pace over a full 82 game season. The current record for a Blue Jackets defenseman is 57 points, which has been done twice. Once by Werenski last season, and once by Seth Jones (2017-18). Zach also holds the top two spots in goals by a blue liner (20, 16); and the high mark in assists (46).
The team record for points overall is 87, held by Artemi Panarin (2018-19). At this moment, nearly halfway into the season, Zach Werenski is on pace to beat that mark.
Most points through 39 team games in a #CBJ season:
— Jeff Svoboda (@JacketsInsider) January 3, 2025
1. Artemi Panarin, 43 (2018-19)
2. Zach Werenski, 43 (right now)
He's currently in the midst of a 14-game point streak at home, which is already a franchise record. This also has him on a list with some of the best defensemen in NHL history. What's changed to open up his game this season?
The chains are off...
Werenski is playing with a different level of freedom this season, and I think that is due to two things. First, Dean Evason is rolling him out for nearly half of every game and allowing him to rove the ice freely. This has been the head coach's tactic with all of the young skill guys, and it certainly feels like a different team this year.
Last season, we lost count of the number of times we saw guys get benched for making mistakes while trying to generate offense. That hasn't been the case this year. The entire team is playing looser, and for skilled guys like Zach Werenski, Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko, that brings out the best in their games. It's all about trust.
The second factor in Werenski's surge: having a comfortable partner. His game was elevated to a higher level when the team acquired Dante Fabbro via waivers. While Fabbro won't likely be a top pairing guy on his own, he's been an excellent fit alongside Werenski; providing a nice compliment to Zach's free roving style.
At some point, I do expect his scoring pace to slow down. But, it's worth noting that Zach is in the middle of one of the most magical seasons in franchise history. He's firmly in the Norris Trophy race at this point. One could even argue that if this team were able to sneak into the playoffs, he deserves Hart Trophy consideration as well.