After a flurry of trades, what now for the Blue Jackets?
This is the tale of three trade deadlines. It begins in 2019, when Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen rocked the league by going “all in” with a flurry of deals. The reverberations are still felt in Columbus.
Kekalainen hung on to winger Artemi Panarin and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, despite their expiring contracts. He acquired center Matt Duchene (the big prize) along with winger Ryan Dzingel, defenseman Adam Mcquaid and goaltender Keith Kinkaid. He gave up a ton: Two first-round picks, two seconds, four mid- to late-round picks, winger Anthony Duclair and two prospects.
It bought a stunning, first-round sweep of the mighty Tampa Bay Lightning, the first playoff series victory in franchise history. For a fortnight, there was a very real feeling that those Jackets could win it all. Remember? If they got by the Boston Bruins in May, maybe they're ordering rings by the end of June.
As it was, the Jackets lost a savage, six-game series to the Bruins, and Kekalainen's “all-in” gambit will be debated for years to come.
He mortgaged the future to take a heavy swing at the Stanley Cup. Those who view that as admirably aspirational will say, “Isn't that what you want from your GM?” His team lost in the second round, a fact that others will point to and ask, “Was mortgaging the future really worth it?”
As expected, there was a great exodus of unrestricted free agents in the summer of 2019. Panarin, Boborovsky, Duchene, Dzingel, et al, left town. The Jackets had just three picks (two fourth-rounders and a seventh-rounder) in the 2019 draft. It's hard to say how this relatively anemic infusion of new
blood will affect the team's fortunes in years to come.
Last year, the Jackets willed themselves into playoff contention despite leading the league in injuries. Kekalainen could not reward their effort at the 2020 trade deadline because he had depleted his currency of future assets. The only help he could muster was Devin Shore.
Those gritty, gutty Jackets had just enough to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs in the qualifying round in the bubble. They did not have enough, not nearly enough, to beat the Lightning, who won it all.
The Blue Jackets went backward. Disgruntled power forward Josh Anderson was traded to Montreal. Disgruntled center Pierre-luc Dubois created a scene, and forced a trade (to Winnipeg). Max Domi and Patrik Laine were not enough to check the change in identity that began with the great exodus.
Kekalainen did the only thing he could do prior to Monday's trade deadline: Sell off the soul of an era in order to build for the future.
“It's always hard to part ways with guys who've been part of the core of our success, who've been through all the highs and lows, who were key guys and are such good people,” Kekalainen said. “It's sad when they go.”
Captain Nick Foligno, who forced people to believe in Columbus, was traded to Toronto Sunday — a day after defenseman David Savard, the beloved lumberjack, was traded to Tampa Bay. Fourthline center Riley Nash (Toronto) was also shipped.
All three players are pending unrestricted free agents. In return, the Jackets got two first-round picks in 2021, a third- and a fourth-round pick in 2022 and seventh-rounder in 2022.
Considering that it was a big-time buyer's market this year, Kekalainen got an impressive haul.
“Basically, we got all the ammunition back from when we went for it (in 2019),” Kekalainen said. “Everyone was shocked for what we paid (then). We got it all back and more.”
Kekalainen isn't using the word “rebuild” — he is saying “retool.” It is an indication that he will be a player when the real wheeling and dealing begins, at the draft in late July. He has the cap space and the assets (including an extra goaltender, and maybe Laine, who knows?) to pursue a top-line talent. Maybe he can get a center? Jackets fans are allowed to hope.
“We clearly underachieved this year,” Kekalainen said. “We've got to correct that. We've got some pieces to keep, we're going to add to them this summer and we'll be up and running again.
“The defense is good; we've got two studs (Seth Jones and Zach Werenski) back there. We've got the goaltending. If we get the forwards playing the way they should, and if we get the right additions, we'll have a good team.”
Jackets fans used to say, “In Jarmo we trust.” That trust has been tested as, down into their blue, they fell. We'll see whether they can retool to the point where they're capable of not only making the playoffs, but winning more than one round.
marace@dispatch.com