SvoNotes is a weekly column by BlueJackets.com reporter Jeff Svoboda.
Justin Danforth arrived at Nationwide Arena last Friday night and found something new in his locker stall.
Hockey players are generally meticulous, routine-based creatures, so that could be alarming, but what Danforth saw was a pleasant surprise.
It was a new “A” on the front of his sweater, denoting Danforth had been chosen to be one of the team’s alternate captains for the first time in a regular season game.
“I just showed up at the rink and me and Johnny (Gaudreau) were assistant captains,” Danforth said. “He’s worn one before, but it’s definitely huge – something I’ll be proud of for many years. When I look back on this, it’s pretty cool.”
The move came as the Blue Jackets were faced with a need for official on-ice leadership, with captain Boone Jenner and alternates Zach Werenski and Sean Kuraly all on injured reserve.
In a sport that honors its leaders like few others, having that letter on the sweater is one of hockey’s ultimate honors, and it’s fair to say Danforth has earned it. While many of his teammates starred in junior hockey, were chosen in the first round and tabbed for stardom from a young age, the Ontario native was undrafted, had to leave his home country to play college hockey, and wound his way through the minor leagues and Europe before making his NHL debut at age 28.
It wasn’t an easy road, but Danforth stuck with it, and now he’s an integral part of this Blue Jackets team.
“I wish we talked more about him,” head coach Pascal Vincent said. “He’s a great story. He’s such a good pro. He’s a good person. He’s a good teammate. But his story – never got drafted, not even sure where he played in college. East Coast (League), he played in Finland, went to the KHL. He was given a chance to play here, and he took advantage of it.
“And a few years later, he’s got a letter on his jersey and he’s playing on the top line, so it’s quite amazing. He plays power play, he plays the PK, can play center, can play wing. He’s low maintenance. He’s in top shape. So it’s a great story, and I feel lucky we have him on our team.”
Blue Jackets fans are likely somewhat familiar with his road, but it’s still worth rehashing. While many top youngsters in North America play in the Canadian Hockey League, he got his start in the Ontario Junior Hockey League; only one other player in the top 100 in the league scoring chart that season made it to the NHL. To play college hockey, he went to Sacred Heart University, which had never produced an NHL player when he arrived.
After college, he headed to the ECHL, the Double-A league that is more likely to be a player’s last stop than a springboard to the NHL. He dominated his one season in Cincinnati and had a few chances in the AHL, playing in 21 games over two seasons, when in 2018-19 he decided to go overseas to Finland.
That was the boost his career needed, though, as Danforth had two excellent seasons with Lukko in Finland and was named the league MVP in 2019-20. Another step up, this one to the KHL, did nothing to stop his productivity, as he had 55 points in 58 games with Vityaz. With little left to prove overseas, he wanted to return to North America to again chase the NHL dream, and the Blue Jackets scouting staff saw someone who had a chance to contribute at the top level.
From there, we’ll take a bit of an interlude here. We’ve been lucky enough over the years to chat with two people critical to Danforth’s development in his father, Kent, and his college coach, C.J. Marottolo. They’re likely two of the people who believed in Danforth the most over the years, and they’re two of the people who have seen the work Justin has put in to keep his dream alive.
"It's been a long road," his father, Kent, said two years ago. "I know that he put a huge effort in, and we just kept supporting his dream and told him to keep going, keep pushing, things will happen, keep going. And he just kept doing it. He's been putting effort in his whole life because every chance that he's had, he's had to work for. It's been great to watch and see."
"Scott McDougall, my assistant head coach, he found Justin," Marottolo said early last season. "I remember him saying, 'He's going to help change the culture of the program in how he works, how he attacks the game.' What I remember most about Justin is every day, he wanted to get better, and he brought that work ethic on the ice, he brought that work ethic in the classroom. He just wanted to improve every day, and I think he's probably still doing that today."
It’s generally easy to understand why Danforth was overlooked for a while, as he’s listed at just 5-foot-8. But the old saying about the size of the fight in the dog applies to Danforth, who has made up for his perceived physical shortcomings in a variety of ways.
First, he works his butt off, as his performance in the gym has allowed him to work his way into being not just a dependable player but one whose speed and strength allow him to compete at the top level. Secondly, as Vincent said, he’s a dependable pro, one whose effort and preparation are there on a day-to-day basis. Third, he’s a Swiss Army knife, a player who can play center or wing, whose skills and knowledge of the game allow him to thrive on any line or any situation, from 5-on-5 to power play to penalty kill.
And finally, he can score. Danforth’s nine goals are currently fifth on the CBJ squad, and he’s tallied 21 times in 91 career games. He reached double digits in goals in his first NHL season in just 45 games, and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if he gets to 20 this season if he can stay healthy.
So now at the age of 30, Danforth has found the hockey life he dreamed of, and it’s clear he’s earned the respect of the Blue Jackets along the way. He took the difficult road, but he’s earned first-line minutes, is a key part of the team, and now is considered a team leader.
“It’s obviously a huge honor, and we have a lot of leaders on this team and guys who lead in their own way,” he said. “To be recognized by the coaching staff to wear an ‘A’ at this level, it’s pretty awesome.”
Jiricek Supports the Czechs
A funny scene developed near the end of the Blue Jackets’ morning skate before Tuesday’s game vs. Boston.
As the Blue Jackets were finishing up, half a world away, a notable thing happened in the hockey world – Czechia scored with 11 seconds left to break a 2-2 tie and post a massive victory at the IIHF World Championships, downing perennial tournament favorite Canada in the quarterfinals.
A year ago, CBJ defenseman David Jiricek was part of Team Czechia as it posted a historic accomplishment. The proud hockey nation made it to the gold medal game of the World Juniors for the first time since it won gold in 2001, and it was one goal away from beating Canada in the final before the hosts scored in overtime.
Still, it was the first medal for the Czechs since a bronze in 2005, though that was little solace to Jiricek, who acknowledged the historic nature of the team’s run but also admitted it was hard to get so close to winning and then having to settle for silver.
In other words, Jiricek is still pretty tuned into how his home country is doing at the event – his brother, Adam, was on the team but suffered a tournament- and season-ending injury in game one – so when word filtered through the glass at Nationwide Arena that Czechia had posted the win, Jiricek was quite excited.
First, he wasn’t sure if it could be believed – “Really?” he asked – before being told by teammates that it had in fact happened. Jiricek then took a victory lap around the ice, raising his arms and stick to the sky before hugging assistant coach Jared Boll.
“That’s a little bit of revenge after the finals last year, right?” he said. “That’s good for them to enjoy the moment and be ready for the next game.”
The excitement was clearly there for Jiricek, and it’s something he’s getting a little used to as well. Not only did the Czechs make it to the World Juniors final a year ago, the country advanced to the final of the Hlinka Gretzky Cup – an international tournament for players under 18 in which Adam Jiricek played this summer – as well before falling to Canada.
Czechia has a strong hockey history, winning gold when NHL players first entered the Olympics in 1998, so the upswing is encouraging after a tough decade or so of results for the country. While Czechia fell in the semifinals of the World Juniors to Sweden, the team rallied today for a comeback win over Finland that delivered the bronze to the country.
“Good results the last two-three years,” Jiricek said. “I hope it gets going.”
