Monahan is expected to play on the front line with Johnny Gaudreau on the left wing. The two previously played together for the Calgary Flames from 2014-2022, and their reunion could give new momentum to Gaudreau, who scored 134 points (33 goals, 101 assists) in 161 games with Columbus over the past two seasons after scoring an NHL career-high 115 points (40 goals, 75 assists) in 82 games in his final season with the Flames in 2021-22.
But regardless of who he plays with, Monahan’s goal is to take on a leadership role on the team.
“It’s important to have good leadership in the locker room,” he said. “It creates a good culture and I think I’m a guy who can serve that purpose.”
Behind Monahan could be Adam Fantilli, who was selected No. 3 in the 2023 NHL Draft, at center. But the 19-year-old, who scored 27 points (12 goals, 15 assists) in 49 games as a rookie before his season ended on Jan. 28 due to a calf injury, is just one of many young players Columbus could rely on this season.
One of them is forward Kent Johnson, who was selected No. 5 in the 2021 NHL Draft. The 21-year-old signed a three-year, $5.4 million contract ($1.8 million AAV) on July 27 after scoring 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in 42 games last season. The season ended on February 28 due to a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
Kirill Marchenko (24), Dmitri Voronkov (23), Yegor Chinakhov (23) and Cole Sillinger (21) are also expected to take that next step. Marchenko, who signed a three-year, $11.55 million contract ($3.85 million AAV) on July 28, scored 23 goals last season after scoring 21 goals as a rookie in 2022-23. Voronkov scored 34 points (18 goals, 16 assists) in 75 games as a rookie and Chinakhov scored 29 points (16 goals, 13 assists) in 53 games. Sillinger, who is currently a restricted free agent, scored 32 points (13 goals, 19 assists) in 77 games, a significant improvement after scoring 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 64 games in 2022-23.
On defense, the Blue Jackets let Jake Bean and Adam Boqvist leave as free agents, potentially opening the door for 20-year-old David Jiricek and 20-year-old Denton Mateychuk.
Jiricek, selected No. 6 overall in the 2022 NHL Draft, recorded 10 points (one goal, nine assists) in 43 games as a rookie last season. Mateychuk, selected No. 12 overall in the 2022 Draft, won the Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy as the Western Hockey League’s Defenseman of the Year last season.
“There are a lot of good pieces here,” Waddell said. “The previous management did a good job of putting them together. Of course there are challenges, that’s why they’re bringing you in, but it’s not like it’s going to take long to fix this organization.”
While there remains some uncertainty surrounding forward Patrik Laine, who has reportedly requested a trade, the Blue Jackets are hoping the moves made in the offseason will provide some stability, which in turn could help them return to the postseason for the first time since 2020.
“It’s like a machine, it’s hard to start and hard to stop,” Blue Jackets forward Sean Kuraly said. “No matter who comes in and who goes out, it’s a hell of a lot of work to get it going and set it up. It’s less work to keep it going than it is to get it going.”
