Hofmann could be a find for the Blue Jackets

It's the kind of transaction that can slip underneath the radar.
On Feb. 13, the Blue Jackets sent a seventh-round pick in the 2022 draft to Carolina for the rights to forward Gregory Hofmann.
It was a bit of a speculative move for Columbus, who wouldn't see Hofmann all season thanks to the fact he had to finish his campaign in his native Switzerland. There was no guarantee he'd ever join the team, in fact, as Hofmann was drafted in the fourth round of the 2011 draft by Carolina yet had never played a game in a North American league at age 28.

But if you watched the first two days of practice for the Blue Jackets, there was Hofmann, skating on a line with top center Jack Roslovic and top-six winger Oliver Bjorkstrand. After a string of highly successful seasons in his home country, Hofmann is now giving the highest level a shot, and he could end up being an under-the-radar gem for the Blue Jackets.
Time will tell how it will go, but count both the team and player curious how things will develop this season.
"Of course," Hofmann said when asked if he was curious how his game will translate to the NHL. "The NHL is the best league in the world. It's the first time for me having a full season in America. I'm really excited for that. That's where I want to play right now. I don't want to put too much pressure on myself. I want to focus on one day at a time and try to enjoy it and show what I can bring on the table."
So far he's off to a good start, posting two goals -- one on a snipe in transition and the other on a rebound at the net front -- in his group's scrimmage game Friday on the second day of training camp. And if there's anything Hofmann's past shows, it's that he does have a knack for putting the puck in the net.

Over the last three seasons in Switzerland -- two with 2021 National League champion EV Zug and one in 2018-19 with HC Lugano, where he was teammates with Elvis Merzlikins -- Hofmann has combined for 72 goals and 65 assists for 137 points in 136 games. He's been just about as impactful at the international level, as well, as he's become a regular member of the Swiss national team and placed tied for third in the 2021 World Championships with six goals in eight games.
Columbus is no stranger to Swiss players -- not only did Merzlikins play in the country before coming over to the U.S. but defenseman Dean Kukan and draft pick Tim Berni also are from the Alpen country -- and Kekalainen saw an opportunity to add a talented player when he made the deal with the Hurricanes.
"He was a guy that always seemed to stick out in the World Championships," Kekalainen said this summer. "He's going to get a great opportunity not only to make our team but to get a role where he can try to make a difference. He competes. He's a deceptive guy, but he's fast. He has a great shot, and he's always been at the top of the league in scoring in Switzerland and the World Championships. He's a productive winger. I think he has the potential to score goals in the NHL as well."
In all, the 28-year-old winger had a 165-159-324 line in 485 games over 12 seasons in the National League, but his focus is now squarely on seeing if his skills translate here. He last gave the NHL a try in 2017 when he came to camp with Carolina but ended up back in his home country, but the trade to Columbus provided him a fresh start.
"Obviously the Jackets were huge," he said. "They took my rights last February and they showed a lot of interest in me last season. I was able to have a good season last year and a good World Championships, and for me it was a big chance, a big opportunity to come over here. I am really happy to be here."
Hofmann said he was excited to also reconnect with Merzlikins, with whom he spent four seasons at HC Lugano while the latter was one of the top goalies in the league and Hofmann was one of the top scorers.
While Merzlikins and his wife, Aleksandra, are quite busy at the moment after the birth of their son Knox, Hofmann was able to have dinner with the two recently and has leaned on the goalie for advice since arriving in Columbus.
Last year, when the trade was made, Merzlikins was ecstatic after the move was announced.
"He is great," Merzlikins said at the time. "He is great in the locker room. What I can tell you is he's hard-working. Obviously he is never going to give up. He is really competitive -- sometimes he is way too much competitive. Even though we are really good friends, we were even fighting sometimes. Just a little example, on PlayStation, you can't beat him because he is going to get mad at you and then you are going to fight."
Hofmann's shot and skating ability stand out, and he spent the summer trying to work on his quickness both mentally and physically to get used to the higher skill level of the opponents and the smaller playing surface in North America.
In recent years, such players as Dominik Kubalik (30 goals in 2019-20 with Chicago) and Pius Suter (27 points last year with Chicago in 55 games) have made the transition from Switzerland to the NHL with success. Hofmann hopes to be the next in line.
"Overseas I was producing pretty good in Switzerland, and there were some other guys that I played against like Kubalik or Suter, and obviously you saw what they bring to the table now in the NHL," Hofmann said. "You look at that and you want to try to have your own story and try to repeat that, so we'll see what is going to happen."