5 things we'll remember from 2023

2023 wasn’t the most memorable year for the Blue Jackets in the standings, but even though that was the case, there were some great times for CBJ fans to celebrate.

That’s one of the good things about the sport of hockey, as even in tough times, there are still plays and moments to enjoy over an 82-game season. From the rise of the team’s young players to some memorable victories and spectacular goals, there were moments we’ll never forget from the calendar year.

Here’s five that come to mind as we say goodbye to 2023.

KJ’s ‘Michigan’ goal

When it comes to the best goal of the year scored by the Blue Jackets, there’s really no debate.

The Blue Jackets drafted Kent Johnson with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2021 draft because of his elite skill, and Johnson showed it in spades March 24 at Nationwide Arena against the New York Islanders.

Johnson won a battle for the puck in the slot, curled to the right wall, made a deke to lose a defender and cut behind the net with speed and space. And before goalie Ilya Sorokin knew what hit him, Johnson picked up the puck on his stuck, curled around the net and snuck it into the top corner of the net.

It was the first lacrosse style “Michigan” goal in team history and put him on the short list of players to pull it off at the NHL level, but it wasn’t a huge surprise. A 20-year-old rookie at the time, Johnson had scored on the move both in junior hockey with Trail of the BCHL and with Team Canada at the previous summer's World Junior Championships.

"I always want to score goals and score any way," he said afterward. "I don't know if (scoring a Michigan) was the goal (this season), but I was really happy. I don't know that I was relieved at all. I just think I was really pumped."

Everything Marchy

The Blue Jackets have had some fan favorites over the years, and it hasn’t taken Kirill Marchenko long to join that list.

A 2018 draft pick of the Jackets, Marchenko made his debut with the club in December 2022, but he really announced himself as a force to be reckoned with Jan. 7 of this year when he scored a hat trick in and added a shootout goal in the team’s 4-3 victory over visiting Carolina.

Since then, he’s filled up the net unlike any CBJ player before him, setting the team’s rookie record with 21 tallies a season ago. The ebullient Russian has 34 goals in his first 95 games with the team, five more than Rick Nash – Rick Nash! – for the most in team history to start a career. And he bookended his year with a second hat trick, scoring three times – including a spectacular between-the-legs tally – Dec. 19 at Buffalo.

On top of that, Marchenko’s ever-smiling personality has quickly made him a favorite off the ice, from his penchant to crashing interviews with teammates to his “Marchenko Mondays” motivational messages on social media to his one-liners in interviews (order your Forecheck, Backcheck, Paycheck shirt now!).

Add it all up and 2023 was the year of Marchy. If we’re being honest, 2024 probably will be too.

Drafting Adam Fantilli

The silver lining to last year’s struggles was that the Blue Jackets earned the No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, and things also went their way when the league arrived in Nashville in late June for the annual selection show.

While everyone knew Connor Bedard would go No. 1 overall, there were three players – big Canadian center Adam Fantilli, dynamic American forward Will Smith and talented Swedish center Leo Carlsson – in the mix after Bedard.

All were considered potential franchise-altering players, but the conventional wisdom going to the Music City was that Fantilli was the second-best player in the draft and would likely to go Anaheim at No. 2 overall.

The Ducks disagreed, though, taking Carlsson. That has worked well – Carlsson has eight goals and 15 points in his first 23 games – but the Jackets are also quite happy with Fantilli, who is currently tied for second in the league among rookies with 11 goals and second alone with 23 points. He’s also coming off one of the best months ever for a CBJ rookie, placing third all-time in franchise history with seven goals and 13 points in December.

On top of that, Fantilli appears to be a complete player, someone who is just as willing to win the game with an important backcheck as by scoring a key goal. He’s also not afraid to mix it up physically, and his personality and leadership skills are also evident already.

So far, Fantilli has been as good as advertised – and there’s a lot more to come.

Boone sets the record

There have been a number of players who have come to define what it means to wear the union blue sweater.

From Rick Nash to Nick Foligno to Cam Atkinson, there have been heart-and-soul players who have made their mark both on the ice and in the community over the years. But as of last month, none of them have played more games than Boone Jenner.

The CBJ captain set the team record for games played when he stepped onto the ice for the 675th time Nov. 18 at Washington. And when you ask around, it’s clear the honor of playing the most games in Blue Jackets history is fitting for someone who has dedicated himself to the organization since he was drafted in the second round in 2011.

“It doesn’t seem like long ago that I was coming in as a rookie and just trying to make my way and be a part of the team,” Jenner said at the time. “Obviously here we are 11 years later. It’s pretty special.

“I take a lot of pride in being a Blue Jacket, what it means to be a Blue Jacket. I don’t put too much thought into the milestone, but it’s definitely cool to get. I just want to keep going.”

Ironically, Jenner suffered an injury recently when he was in his office at the netfront and was hit by a shot, but he should be back soon to add to his totals of 686 games, 183 goals and 347 points.

Some OT fun

There’s nothing in hockey quite like the rush that comes when your team scores in overtime, and the Blue Jackets did it nine times during 2023.

We could go over all nine of them, but two in particular stand out to me. First, we’ll go back to last year as the Blue Jackets won by a 7-6 score March 21 at Washington, just the third win by that score in team history.

It was a memorable night in the nation’s capital, as the Blue Jackets were down 3-0 in the first period, trailed 5-3 after two periods and were down 6-5 with a minute to go before Boone Jenner scored the tying goal. And then in overtime, Jack Roslovic ripped a one-timer on a rush to give the Jackets one of the more insane victories in team history.

And we’ll finish up by talking about a win that happened just two days ago. On Friday night in Nationwide Arena, Columbus again posted a memorable comeback victory, defeating Toronto by a 6-5 score.

The Jackets again trailed often in this one, being down 1-0, 3-1, 4-2 and 5-4 before Adam Fantilli got the tying goal with 6:14 to go. Then in overtime, Johnny Gaudreau took Damon Severson’s shot pass in front of the net and scored around Ilya Samsonov for the victory.

It was a great way to finish the year in Nationwide Arena. Here's hoping for many more victories in 2024.