Building from within: CBJ draft picks are a big piece of the puzzle

The Blue Jackets are about to draft another crop of players, and odds are ... a lot of them won’t make it.

But a lot of them will.

The NHL draft is inherently a crapshoot when you consider teams are selecting players at 18 years old, and many of them are headed back to junior teams, college hockey squads or foreign clubs. They might not make their NHL debuts until age 23 or later, if at all, as the road from this year’s draft – to be held Friday and Saturday in Las Vegas – includes a lot of development to come.

MORE: Draft consensus poll | CBJ draft hub

Some first-round picks will become stars, while others will have long careers in the game but might only become bit players at the highest level. In the lower rounds, the numbers show most players won’t turn into All-Stars, but there are certainly gems to be found as you get deeper and deeper into the selections.

And the record shows the Blue Jackets have generally been pretty good at finding pieces of the puzzle on draft day. Over the years, we’ve detailed that in many ways, but the 2023-24 Blue Jackets were a good example of that.

Columbus didn’t have the NHL’s best record, but they did put together a largely homegrown squad that featured contributors from 10 of the last 10 drafts. And if you go all the way back to the 2011 selection show, you can find another pretty good pick, as Blue Jackets drafted captain Boone Jenner in the second round (37th overall pick) that season.

With a number of talented youngsters again about to become Blue Jackets, we figured this was a good time to look back at how the draft can shape the future of a franchise. Here are the players Columbus drafted that have become an integral part of the squad over the past few years, focusing on the 2023-24 season as an example.

2023 draft: Adam Fantilli

It was just one short year ago that Fantilli walked across the stage in Nashville and put on the union blue jersey as the No. 3 overall pick. Just six players from last summer’s draft made it to the NHL this past season and only four were regulars, as Fantilli was joined by top overall pick Connor Bedard of Chicago, second overall choice Leo Carlsson of Anaheim and 13th selection Zach Benson of Buffalo. Though his season was shortened by a freak skate cut suffered in January in Seattle, Fantilli had a 12-15-27 line in 49 games and remains a likely No. 1 center for the squad for years to come.

Also worth noting: The Blue Jackets are the only team in the league to have two players from the 2023 draft to play NHL minutes last year, with Fantilli’s University of Michigan teammate Gavin Brindley signing with the club and skating in the season finale. The second-round pick was one of the top scorers in college hockey last year and will play his first full pro season in 2024-25.

2022: David Jiricek

We’re starting to see more and more players from this draft trickle into the NHL, as nine players have skated in at least 10 career games, and that list includes Jiricek. The rangy Czech defender who was taken sixth overall started the year with Columbus and had his first NHL goal and nine assists for 10 points in 43 games, then was a key part of Cleveland’s run to the AHL conference final at age 20.

Also worth noting: Second-round choice Luca Del Bel Belluz joined Brindley in making his NHL debut in the season finale, and he became the fastest CBJ player – in terms of game time – to score his first NHL goal when he tallied 3:37 into the game vs. Carolina.

2021: Cole Sillinger

Columbus had three first-round picks and nine overall selections in this draft, but Sillinger so far has been the most notable Blue Jacket. He became just the 12th active NHLer to skate in 200 games before his 21st birthday this past season, as the 12th overall selection in this draft has skated in at least 64 games each of the past three seasons and posted a 32-42-74 career line. He had an excellent rookie campaign and rebounded from a sophomore slump to post 13 goals and 32 points this past season.

Also worth noting: We could have just as easily chosen to spotlight Kent Johnson here, as the No. 5 overall pick has posted 22-37-59 in 130 career games. He had one of the best rookie seasons in CBJ history in 2022-23 before posting six goals and 16 points in 42 games in 2023-24. Third-round pick Stanislav Svozil and fifth-rounder James Malatesta also have made their NHL debuts, and this could go down as one of the better drafts in team history when it’s all said and done as prospects Corson Ceulemans, Guillaume Richard and Nikolai Makarov also could be NHLers down the road.

2020: Yegor Chinakhov

Everyone likely remembers the dumbfounded reaction of NHL draft experts when Columbus chose the KHL winger in the first round in 2020, but the Blue Jackets have gotten the last laugh. Chinakhov has already skated in 145 NHL games with 27 goals and 56 points, including last year’s 16-13-29 line in which he started to show he can be an impact player in the league going forward. Recently signed to a two-year extension, he could be on the verge of a huge breakout.

Also worth noting: Columbus had only five picks in this draft, but three of them are already NHLers. Third-round defenseman Samuel Knazko made his debut in 2022-23 with a pair of games, while fourth-rounder Mikael Pyythia skated 17 contests with the Jackets this past season on the wing.

2019: Dmitri Voronkov

The big Russian proved to be a prudent fourth-round selection, as he made his NHL debut this past season and was one of the most productive rookies in the league. Voronkov’s 18-16-34 line in 75 games placed him fifth among NHL rookies in goals and ninth in points, and his big size and hockey sense could make him a unique building block for the Blue Jackets going forward.

Also worth noting: This is the draft when Columbus had just three selections after going all-in at the trade deadline, but two have skated NHL minutes. Seventh-round pick Tyler Angle has played in four NHL games so far with a goal to his credit.

2018: Kirill Marchenko

Just like with Voronkov, it was worth the wait for Marchenko, a second-round pick in this draft, to come to North America. The Russian wing has produced back-to-back 20-goal seasons to start his NHL career, setting the CBJ rookie record with 21 tallies in 2022-23 and adding 23 more last season. A goal scorer with plenty of personality, Marchenko has quickly become a fan favorite for his ability to fill up the net and a mega-watt smile.

Also worth noting: Five of the six draft picks Columbus made this year have made it to the NHL with the team, though just Marchenko and seventh-rounder Trey Fix-Wolansky remain in the organization. Fix-Wolansky is Mr. Monster, setting Cleveland franchise records for goals, assists and points while netting four goals in 26 NHL games. First-round pick Liam Foudy and sixth-round choices Tim Berni and Veini Vehvilainen also played NHL minutes but are not currently with the organization.

2017: Alexandre Texier

Columbus made a trade midway through the second round to select Texier with the 45th overall pick and received a forward who plays solid defense and has some scoring touch. Texier debuted just before the playoffs in 2019 and scored twice in the clinching Game 4 win with the Jackets, kicking off a career that’s seen him post 34 goals and 79 points in 201 NHL games. This past season, after returning from Europe, he had a 12-18-30 line in 78 games and was a key penalty killer for the squad.

Also worth noting: Goalie Daniil Tarasov was a shrewd choice in the third round, as he’s played 45 NHL games while posting a 3.18 GAA and .908 save percentage in 24 games. Though he’s had his fair share of injuries, he had a .925 save percentage in his last 16 contests last year after shaking off the rust and could be a potential starter going forward. Fourth-round selection Emil Bemstrom (34-40-74 in 228 NHL games) and sixth-rounder Carson Meyer (2-4-6 in 41 NHL games) also played for Columbus this year, though Bemstrom was traded to Pittsburgh late in the season.

2016: Andrew Peeke

OK, this is the one draft that turned out to be a bit of a stretch for impact on this year’s squad, as Peeke was often a healthy scratch while posting a 1-7-8 line in 23 games with Columbus before being traded to Boston at the deadline thanks to the team’s glut of defensemen. The second-round pick skated in 218 games over five seasons with Columbus.

Also worth noting: First-round choice Pierre-Luc Dubois started strong with Columbus before being part of the Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic trade with Winnipeg, posting 66 goals and 159 points in 239 games with Columbus. The Blue Jackets had just five picks in this draft, with seventh-round choice Calvin Thurkauf skating three games for the squad in 2019-20 before returning to Europe.

2015: Zach Werenski

Columbus had the eighth overall pick this year and acquired No. 8 with it, and it’s fair to say no one regrets this choice. Werenski has become an alternate captain and team leader – not to mention signing a long-term deal with the organization – since that selection, and he’s also picked up a pair of All-Star bids in his time in Columbus. He had the most productive season of his career in 2023-24, notching a career-high 57 points (11 goals, 46 assists). Werenski is already the top-scoring defenseman in team history and is 37 helpers away from becoming the franchise’s all-time assist leader.

Also worth noting: This was another strong draft for the Blue Jackets, as five of the nine choices have played in more than 200 career NHL games. Werenski is the lone pick to still be with the organization nine years later, though, as first-rounder Gabriel Carlsson, second-rounder Kevin Stenlund, third-rounder Keegan Kolesar and sixth-rounder Vladislav Gavrikov have moved on while seventh-round choice Markus Nutivaara has retired because of injuries.

2014: Elvis Merzlikins

It was a full decade ago that Elvis entered the building, as Columbus chose the Latvian goalie in the third round of this draft. After a decorated career in Europe, Merzlikins finally came to the NHL in 2019-20 and started strong, finishing fifth in the Vezina voting his rookie season. This past season, he started a team-best 40 games, and new general manager Don Waddell has spoken about working to get the most out of the talented netminder going forward. Merzlikins’ 10 shutouts are tied for fourth all-time among CBJ goalies, while his 191 games played and 68 wins are fifth.

Also worth noting: First-round pick Sonny Milano has played over 300 NHL games now, 116 of them in Columbus, and has found a home in Washington.

2011: Boone Jenner

You can argue we saved the best for last, as Columbus made sure to grab the captain in the second round of this draft. All he’s done since then is set the team record with 715 games played while standing third in goals (192) and points (364). He’s also experienced an offensive renaissance in past seasons, scoring at a 31-goal pace per 82 games the past three campaigns and earning his first All-Star bid this season. Jenner had 22 goals and 35 points in 58 games this past season despite suffering a broken jaw midway through the campaign.