COLUMBUS, Ohio — New general manager. New coach. A new No. 1 center. Even a new television commentator.
The Columbus Blue Jackets underwent a lot of reinvention this summer—you could call it a rebirth in the midst of a rebuild—but there was still one problem that needed to be solved before the 2024-25 season could begin with a clean slate.
On Monday, Don Waddell accomplished one of the most important things he set out to do when he became general manager in May. Left winger Patrik Laine, who had requested a trade, was sent to the Montreal Canadiens along with a 2026 second-round pick for 24-year-old defenseman Jordan Harris.
The best part of the deal for Columbus – and the part that few could match for Waddell, especially this late in the offseason – is that the Blue Jackets are not retaining any portion of Laine’s massive contract, which will pay him $8.7 million this season and next.
And the second best part? The Laine case is closed in Columbus.
In recent weeks, both Waddell and Laine’s agent, Andy Scott, have said all the right things about what could happen if Waddell couldn’t find a transfer to his liking and Laine was still on the roster when training camp began next month.
At best, it would have been a major distraction. At worst, it could have led to confrontational conflicts – a training camp walkout, poisoning of the young team members, etc.
“It solves what could have potentially been a problem, knowing that the player didn’t want to be here and that his teammates knew that too,” Waddell said The athlete“I don’t know how it would have turned out if he had to come.
“You hope for the best. But the way things went last year (for Laine in Columbus), I’m not sure that would have been the case.”
Laine played just 18 games for the Blue Jackets last season. He also joined the NHL/NHL Players’ Association relief program in January and left last month. One of the games he missed (Nov. 19 against Philadelphia) was an injury-related absence, a decision made by former coach Pascal Vincent that Laine called “the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to me.”
A month later, Laine suffered a broken collarbone that kept him out of the game for six weeks.
The Blue Jackets were also willing to part ways with Laine. If there was a theme to Waddell’s maneuvering this offseason, it was the shedding of players who were injury-prone and otherwise inconsistent – Adam Boqvist, Alexandre Texier, Jake Bean and now Laine.
They want to pursue a much more competitive and straightforward style of play, which is why a no-shortcuts coach like Dean Evason was brought in as a replacement.
It’s unclear how Laine would fit into Evason’s new system, but the Blue Jackets no longer have to shape their playstyle around Laine’s superior skills, which will be a relief to many.
Waddell said Montreal GM Kent Hughes called this weekend and asked for permission to speak with Laine, even though Waddell had already made it clear to agent Scott that he had permission to speak to any club in the league.
“On Sunday, (Hughes) texted and said he had a good conversation with (Laine),” Waddell said. “We discussed back and forth about what they really wanted and in the end we came to the conclusion that we could do it. It’s a fair deal and a fresh start.”
In all the discussions Waddell had with his fellow GMs, Montreal was the only club willing to take on Laine’s entire contract.
On paper, the Blue Jackets have several candidates to fill the wings of the first three lines to fill Laine’s absence, especially if captain Boone Jenner, who played on the wing early in his NHL career, returns to his comfort zone.
With Johnny Gaudreau, Jenner, Kirill Marchenko, Yegor Chinakhov, Kent Johnson and Dmitry Voronkov, Evason has some options.
But Waddell may not be finished this offseason.
The Laine trade leaves the Blue Jackets with $18.2 million in salary cap space. Only Calgary ($19.2 million) and Anaheim ($21.7 million) have more cap space. When the Laine trade was announced on Monday, Waddell said he was immediately contacted by two other GMs who have salary issues.
“This prepares us,” Waddell said. “If nothing happens now, we’ll go to training camp and see how things go. If nothing happens, we’ll be in a great position for the future.”
And as much as Waddell likes the potential of this group of forwards…
“If I could find the right man for that mix, to be honest, it would be good for us,” he said.
Teams that exceeded the salary cap a month before training camp, according to PuckPedia, include Washington ($10.2 million), Edmonton ($5.9 million) and Vegas ($3.6 million).
(Photo by Patrik Laine: Jason Mowry / Getty Images)
