Blue Jackets look to add 'big piece' after earning third pick

Once again, the ping pong balls didn't go the Blue Jackets away.

Columbus fell one spot in Monday night's NHL Draft Lottery, entering with the second-best odds to earn the No. 1 overall pick (13.5 percent) but instead dropping into the third overall choice in the June 28-29 selection process.

The bad news is the Blue Jackets will miss out on a chance to draft a player like Connor Bedard, the high-scoring center who has been described by many analysts as one of the top prospects to enter the league in years.

But there is good news, including the fact the Jackets didn't fall as low as they could have to four. Analysts also feel the talent at the top of this year's draft is impressive, and general manager Jarmo Kekalainen believes the Blue Jackets will still add an exciting piece when the league makes its picks this summer in Nashville.

"Just look at the history of the league and the players that have been drafted at three or four even," Kekalainen said. "Even in the not-so-distant past, Cale Makar was drafted No. 4 and he's a Conn Smythe winner on the Stanley Cup team last year and the Norris Trophy winner.

"I can't emphasize it enough -- we're going to get a difference maker. We're going to get a player that's going to change the direction of the franchise. Everybody is obviously hoping for No. 1, but we're going to get a big piece that is going to help us get to the next level."

Bedard is ranked as the No. 1 North American skater by the NHL Central Scouting bureau, with University of Michigan center Adam Fantilli second and U.S. National Team Development Program center Will Smith third. When it comes to the international ranks, Swedish center Leo Carlsson is ranked first by Central Scouting, while Russian wing Matvei Michkov is second.

Time will tell how things will unfold at the draft, but the Blue Jackets will likely end up with one of those players, who seem to have separated themselves from the pack based on what draft analysts have said to this point.

Considering the Blue Jackets loaded up on defensemen last year in first-round choices David Jiricek and Denton Mateychuk, it's good news that the top of the draft is so heavy on centers.

"We've talked about it enough, that we need to strengthen that position," Kekalainen said. "I think there will be a great centericeman available at three. A lot of those guys are ranked in the top of the rankings with what you see publicly, and we'll see who gets taken at one. I think we have a pretty good idea of that, and then we'll see who gets taken at No. 2 and we'll take our pick at three and it'll be a great player."

The Blue Jackets actually have two picks in the first round -- that third overall pick as well as the first-rounder acquired from Los Angeles at the trade deadline. It's the third consecutive season the Blue Jackets own multiple first-rounders, with the team selecting five times in the first round the previous two drafts.

Three of those players -- Jiricek as well as forwards Cole Sillinger and Kent Johnson -- have already made NHL debuts, with experts ranking the Blue Jackets' pool of prospects as among the best in the league. They'll now have the chance to add to it with the third overall pick, but with the team in the midst of its annual scouting meetings, nothing will change as the team's group of scouts from all over the globe assembles the list the franchise will use during the June draft.

"It's not going to change anything the way we do our order," Kekalainen said. "We're going to go one, two, three, just like we would have wherever we would have finished in the lottery. I can't emphasize enough the fact that we're going to get a real good player. You feel disappointed that you didn't get the chance to control the draft with the first overall pick and you don't have to worry about anything else, but we're going to get a hell of a player at three."

The choice will tie for the third-highest draft selection in team history, as the only No. 1 overall pick was Rick Nash in 2002 and the only No. 2 choice was Ryan Murray in 2012. Columbus has picked third overall once before, when the team selected Pierre-Luc Dubois in the 2016 draft.

In addition, six other No. 3 overall picks have worn union blue in their careers: Erik Gudbranson, Matt Duchene, Jack Johnson, Nathan Horton, Alexander Svitov and Marian Gaborik.

In all, the list of third overall picks in NHL history includes current standouts Leon Draisaitl, Jonathan Toews, Jonathan Huberdeau and Tim Stutzle as well as Hockey Hall of Famers Pat Lafontaine, Denis Savard, Henrik Sedin and Scott Niedermayer. In all, third picks have won 20 Stanley Cups and two Hart Trophies.

Kekalainen knew going in the Blue Jackets had at best an outside shot at the top pick. Now that he knows where he's drafting, it's up to the general manager to make it count.

"You hope for the best and you keep your fingers crossed," he said. "The results are here now, and we are going to get a real good player at three."